Apr 29, 2025 11:53 AM
Vocalist Andy Bey Dies at 85
Singer Andy Bey, who illuminated the jazz scene for five decades with a four-octave range that encompassed a bellowing…
Jimmy Smith, who took the organ from novelty status in jazz to primary instrument status, having learned to develop bass lines with his feet, chordal accompaniment and solo lines with his right hand, died Tuesday at his home in Scottsdale, Ariz., of natural causes. He was 79.
Born in Norristown, Pa., on Dec. 8, 1925, Smith started out on piano at an early age, taught by his parents as well as self-taught. In 1948, he attended the Hamilton School of Music, and he attended the Ornstein School of Music from 1948-‘50. In 1951, Smith began playing the Hammond organ, subsequently developing a reputation in the Philadelphia area. The year 1956 was a milestone: He was a smash in his debut at New York’s Cafe Bohemia. This was followed by successful appearances at Birdland and the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival, setting the stage for international acclaim as the first jazz organ star of note.
The past 40-plus years, Smith has toured internationally and recorded with many of jazz’s biggest names in a variety of contexts, from trios and quartets on up to large ensembles. Collaborating artists have included Wes Montgomery, Oliver Nelson and Kenny Burrell. When Smith moved Los Angeles, he and his wife, Lola, opened a jazz club, Jimmy Smith’s Jazz Supper Club
Smith’s aggressive style of organ playing is a unique blend of bop with r&b. Recordings include: Off The Top (Elektra, 1982), The Dynamic Duo (with Wes Montgomery, Verve, 1966), The Cat (Verve, 1964), The Unpredictable Jimmy Smith: Bashin’ (Verve, 1962), Midnight Special (Blue Note, 1960) and The Sermon (Blue Note, 1957). DB
“It kind of slows down, but it’s still kind of productive in a way, because you have something that you can be inspired by,” Andy Bey said on a 2019 episode of NPR Jazz Night in America, when he was 80. “The music is always inspiring.”
Apr 29, 2025 11:53 AM
Singer Andy Bey, who illuminated the jazz scene for five decades with a four-octave range that encompassed a bellowing…
Foster was truly a drummer to the stars, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson.
Jun 3, 2025 11:25 AM
Al Foster, a drummer regarded for his fluency across the bebop, post-bop and funk/fusion lineages of jazz, died May 28…
Davis was a two-time Grammy winner for liner notes.
Apr 22, 2025 11:50 AM
Francis Davis, an august jazz and cultural critic who won both awards and esteem in print, film and radio, died April…
“Branford’s playing has steadily improved,” says younger brother Wynton Marsalis. “He’s just gotten more and more serious.”
May 20, 2025 11:58 AM
Branford Marsalis was on the road again. Coffee cup in hand, the saxophonist — sporting a gray hoodie and a look of…
“What did I want more of when I was this age?” Sasha Berliner asks when she’s in her teaching mode.
May 13, 2025 12:39 PM
Part of the jazz vibraphone conversation since her late teens, Sasha Berliner has long come across as a fully formed…
