Search - Rhoda Scott :: Summertime

Burning You Softly

03/08/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"In the rush to exhume every Hammond B-3 jazz player of the 60s when acid jazz and Joey DeFrancesco first hit it big, Rhoda Scott seems to be forgotten. Perhaps it's because she's been living in Paris for the last 25 years. Perhaps it's because the classically-trained Scott attacks her instrument a little differently than the pisno players who learned the Hammond in a hurry to get gigs in a hurry. Scott's approach to the organ is as a band, not a single horn as Jimmy Smith and most other jazz organists. Also, her classical training gives her the sort of understanding of the organ's nuances that most of her contemporaries don't have. It should be noted that the only other musician on this 1991 compilation of ballads recorded in 1973 is drummer Michael Silva--Scott plays her own bass lines on the pedals (barefoot) without doubling on the left hand, which leaves her left hand free to do the sort of things the guitar player does in most organ groups. This set isn't recommended for those who want a hot party set of burners and blues (although she does turn up the heat on several cuts), Scott does err on occasion of being too show-offish in her virtuosity (or coming very close to sounding soap operaish) and Barbara Dennerlein fans will find it all too mainstream-sounding, but if you want some really pretty organ jazz (and yes, it is possible) and just some solid organ playing, you'll find it here from a woman who should be better known in the jazz world. And if you're wondering why the B-3 sounds a little different, that's because Scott uses both a Leslie speaker and the speaker Hammond preferred people used, which gives the B-3 a little bit of churchiness, even when the Leslie is on full speed."

Easy listening organ music

04/05/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I have this CD. I enjoyed the smooth slow jazz tunes. This CD reminds me of her "STARDUST" album. All slow tunes and no swing tunes. On this CD it's just Rhoda on organ and a drummer. A duo. Her organ sounds mamoth due to the Leslie & Hammond speakers combination. Her selection of songs made it worth while. I just wish there was at least 1 fast song on the album."