Dr. Lonnie Smith Leads Octet Into 2017 At Jazz Standard – 12/28/16 through 1/1/17…video shot on Thursday, 12/29 Ah, Dr. Lonnie! I could see him perform every night. He’s that engaging, that thrilling when he sits down at his beloved Hammond B-3 organ. Noticing heavy guys like Jason Marshall on […]
Dr. Lonnie Smith
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I interviewed the late Hammond B-3 organ master Dr. Lonnie Smith when he led his octet in shows at The Jazz Standard 12/28/2016 through 1/1/2017…interview video was shot on Thursday, 12/29/2016.
Ah, Dr. Lonnie! I could see him perform every night. He’s that engaging, that thrilling when he sits down at his beloved Hammond B-3 organ. Noticing heavy guys like Jason Marshall on baritone sax stand agape while watching Smith work his magic on keyboards was ample evidence that even his band is constantly amazed by him. The Buffalo bred master, who spent decades living in Harlem before retreating to the more temperate clime of Florida, calls Jazz Standard – the fantastic room on East 27th Street – home when he’s in town as he was to put a cap on 2016. (Sadly, this venue closed in 2020).
Here are some bits from interviews and performances over the past year or so put together as a celebration of jazz in NYC, past and present…full of fantastic characters! Find the full reports on Wynton Marsalis, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Bill Frisell, Chris Botti, and Lew Tabackin in the jazz section.
Dr. Lonnie Smith reveals the moment he fell in love with the Hammond B3 organ and about playing his genius late 1960’s songs with a tough NYC octet. Chat and performance with the jazz keyboardist captured at 2014 Montreal Jazz Festival.