Blue Note, 1963
Jimmy Smith was a self-taught pianist who abandoned the instrument in 1954 in favour of the Hammond B3 organ, renting a Philadelphia warehouse and woodshedding for a year until he emerged with a revolutionary style that immediately caught the ear of Alfred Lion. The Blue Note boss dubbed him The Incredible Jimmy Smith and recorded the B3 innovator as frequently as he could between 1956 and 1963.
It's a testament to Smith's volcanic creativity that he recorded not one but two soul jazz classics - Midnight Special and Back at the Chicken Shack - when he entered Rudy Van Gelder's studio on April 25, 1960 with Stanley Turrentine on tenor saxophone, Kenny Burrell on guitar, and Donald Bailey on drums.
Tracklist
A1: Back At The Chicken Shack
A2: When I Grow Too Old To Dream
B1: Minor Chant
B2: Messy Bessie
This Blue Note Classic Vinyl Edition is all-analog, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original master tapes, and pressed on 180g vinyl at Optimal.
