Post by @allenmichie@jazztodon.com

2026-10-25 02:50 UTC

Jazztodon artist of the week: Jimmy Smith! From @aaj : Born James Oscar Smith in Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA. Smith was influenced by both gospel and blues. He first achieved prominence in the 1950s where his recordings became popular on jukeboxes before there were commonly used terms to describe his unique musical flavor. In the sixties and seventies he helped create the jazz style known as &#39;funk&#39; or &#39;soul jazz&#39;. There had been earlier limited use of the electronic organ in jazz (notably by Fats Waller and Count Basie), though these early examples sometimes had a novelty feel. (Continued in the comments.) #jazz #jimmysmith

Replies (4)

@allenmichie@jazztodon.com 2026-10-25 02:51

Smith is widely recognized as introducing the electric organ as a legitimate musical instrument, capable of virtuoso improvisation. Smith employed a unique technique to emulate a string bass player on the organ. Although he played walking bass lines on the pedals on ballads, for uptempo tunes, he would play the bass line on the lower manual and use the pedals for emphasis on the attack of certain notes. His solos were characterised by percussive chords mixed with very fast melodic improvisation with the right hand. He generally used a drawbar registration of 868000000 or 888000000 on the lower manual, which he used for the bass line and comping chords. He used a similar registration on the upper manual, which he used for soloing, but with the addition of the Hammond's percussion circuit. Smith was a prolific recording artist. (Continued in the comments.)

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@hairylarry@gamerplus.org 2026-10-25 02:52

@allenmichie@jazztodon.com @aaj@jazztodon.com One of my favorites.

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@the_turtle@polyglot.city 2026-10-25 06:06

@allenmichie@jazztodon.com @aaj@jazztodon.com Roosevelt Sykes laid down some tracks on organ in the late 50s. Some people don't think Ethel Smith was jazz, but she could lay down a beat back in the 40s on a Hammond.

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@VisualStuart@pdx.social 2026-10-25 14:14

@allenmichie@jazztodon.com @aaj@jazztodon.com Fantastic! Thanks for featuring Jimmy Smith and putting him back on my radar. I know what I am listening to this rainy Sunday!

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