Funky16Corners Radio v.81 – The Piano Electrified
Funky16Corners Radio v.81 – The Piano Electrified
Playlist
Herbie Hancock – Fat Albert Rotunda (WB)
Art Jerry Miller – Finger Lickin’ Good (Enterprise)
Pete Jolly – Prairie Road (A&M)
Mose Allison – Meadows (Atlantic)
Lonnie Liston Smith & the Cosmic Echoes – Voodoo Woman (Flying Dutchman)
Hampton Hawes – J.B.’s Mind (Prestige)
Bob James – Nautilus (CTI)
Larry Willis – 153rd St Theme (Groove Merchant)
Neal Creque – D Train (Cobblestone)
Deodato – September 13 (CTI)
Les McCann and Eddie Harris – Shorty Rides Again (Atlantic)
Ramsey Lewis – Living For the City (CBS)
To hear this mix, head over to the Funky16Corners Radio Podcast Archive
I hope reentry into the seven day cycle finds you all well.
I have just about recovered from all the snow-related exertion, and if we get another storm anytime soon I’m going to hunt down Mother Nature and kick her in the ass.
It is in the spirit of relaxation (though not too relaxed) that I bring you another in the recently mounted series of instrumental focus mixes, this time out a very tasty hour-long (plus) excursion into the world of the electric piano.
The electric piano – specifically the Fender Rhodes, though there are a couple of different brands/models represented here – is, like the vibes in F16Rv.79, one of my all time favorite sounds. Say what you want about the structure/genre of any kind of music, but when you boil it down, there’s something about the way a specific instrument sounds, whether it’s the vibes, electric piano, string bass, oud, flute, what have you, that gets deep inside my head and drills down into my pleasure centers on a primal, vibrational level, to the point where an immersive exercise like the one you see before you is the only prescription.
This has a lot to do with growing up around the piano. My Pop plays, and it was his second job for all of my childhood. If my love of music has a specific source, it’s because I grew up with a pianist/singer in the house. Whether it was on the out of tune upright at my Grandma’s house, the baby grand he entertained on at my wedding, or the electric keyboard he has now, my Dad has always instilled the value of a good (great) song in all of his children (which is why most of them play instruments).
I’ve been wanting to get down to working on this particular mix for a long time, but it was only in the last couple of weeks that I set foot in the record room – which is starting to outgrow its current location – and set to digging out the prime electric piano specimens in my crates.
While there is a funky edge to the majority of the selections herein, there are a couple of mellower things where you really get to hear the dreamy, chiming side of the instrument.
Things get underway with a song that is both a certifiable soul jazz standard, but also an oddity of sorts. Eddie Harris, who appears twice in this mix, but just once on the piano, is best known as a sax man, primarily as the number one proponent of another favorite sound of mine, that being the Varitone electric saxophone. The 1966 album ‘Mean Greens’, from which ‘Listen Here’ originates, is unusual because it includes an entire side on which Harris puts down the sax and works it out on electric piano and organ. Though Harris wasn’t giving any of the past masters of the keyboard anything to worry about, he acquits himself nicely on ‘Listen Here’, building a nice groove against a percussion base.
Herbie Hancock lays down a serious groove on the title track from 1969’s ‘Fat Albert Rotunda’. Featuring Hancock and a band of serious jazz heads (like Joe Henderson and Albert ‘Tootie’ Heath) ‘Fat Albert Rotunda’ (the song and the album) is a landmark of sorts, with the pianist settling into the funk for the first time.
Art Jerry Miller is one of those cats where I wish I could get more than a few, tantalizing clues about his story. He was Memphis-based, wrote for an played with Willie Mitchell, and recorded one very groovy album for the Stax subsidiary Enterprise Records in 1969. ‘Finger Lickin’ Good’ is a classic of the three o’clock in the morning mood, and sounds like a distant cousin of King Curtis’ ‘Soul Serenade’.
Pete Jolly was a serious West Coast jazz pianist and studio musician who recorded steadily from the 50s to the 90s. ‘Prairie Road’ is a cut from his 1970 album ‘Seasons’, which was improvised and recorded in a single four-hour session. The album is sought out for the sample on ‘Plummer Park’, but I’m here to tell you that in addition to ‘Prairie Road’ – which is included here – you really need to get your hands on the entire album (in OG or reissue) because it is one sweet listen.
Mose Allison has long been a favorite of mine, but it wasn’t until last summer, when I was down in DC digging, that DJ Birdman hepped me to the album ‘Western Man’, the only one on which the mighty Mose ever played the electric piano. I finally found myself a copy last month, and it’s both amazing, and a little bit sad that Allison didn’t spend more time working in a similar groove. The mellow tune ‘Meadows’ is included here.
I remember a time when I didn’t know that Lonnie Smith (the Hammond cat) and Lonnie Liston Smith were two different people. It wasn’t until I picked up a couple of his early 70s Flying Dutchman albums that I got hip. Lonnie Liston Smith was a busy sideman (with Miles Davis among others) who broke off in the early 70s to make his own brand of spiritual fusion. ‘Voodoo Woman’ is from his 1974 ‘Expansion’ album, and while it gets off to a funky start, it quickly settles into a late night, quiet storm groove.
Hampton Hawes first made his mark as a hard bop pianist in 1950s Los Angeles. By the early 70s he had moved on to electric piano, and a funkier sound. ‘J.B.’s Mind’ is from his 1972 album ‘Universe’, and manages to whip a little bit of funk into the mix, alongside some serious jazz sounds from Oscar Brashear and Harold Land.
Bob James is known to most people as the man behind the theme to ‘Taxi’, but ask any crate digger, and they’ll let you in on the breakbeats that make his early 70s albums on CTI/Tappan Zee favorites. The most prominent of these comes toward the end of the tune included in this mix, ‘Nautilus’ from 1974’s ‘One’ album (break courtesy of Idris Muhammad).
Larry Willis is a journeyman jazz keyboardist who has played in a wide variety of settings since the 60s (including an early 70s stint in Blood Sweat and Tears!). ‘153rd St Theme’ is a cut from his 1973 Groove Merchant album ‘Inner Crisis’.
Neal Creque has appeared in this space before, in his capacity as sideman for both Grant Green (he wrote Green’s epic ‘Cease the Bombing’) and Mongo Santamaria. He was a versatile keyboardist, working on both piano and organ. His 1972 ‘Contrast’ LP for Cobblestone is a lost classic, with funk, jazz and just a touch of his roots in the Virgin Islands. ‘D Train’ is one of the funkier numbers on the album.
Eumir Deodato, one of Brazil’s most successful musical exports is responsible for the biggest hit CTI records ever had, his reworking of ‘Also Sprach Zarathustra’ aka ‘2001’ which was a Top 10 hit around the world in 1973. The heavily sampled ‘September 13’ is another cut from the ‘Prelude’ album.
Les McCann and Eddie Harris were both jazz veterans when they hit the charts with their live, 1969 recording of Gene McDaniel’s ‘Compared To What’ which appeared on the ‘Swiss Movement’ LP. They reunited in 1971 for the album ‘Second Movement’, which featured the tune included in this mix, the funky, oft sampled ‘Shorty Rides Again’.
No mix focusing on the electric piano would be complete without a contribution from the mighty Ramsey Lewis. Lewis verily wrote the book on soul jazz piano in the 60s, and carrid on making huge contributions to jazz funk in the 70s. His 1974 ‘Sun Goddess’ album was one of his biggest hits, and in addition to his regular trio members (including Cadet house drummer Morris Jennings), the album also featured contributions from several members of Earth Wind and Fire. We close out this edition of the Funky16Corners Radio thang with his extremely cool cover of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Living For the City’.
I hope you dig the mix, and I’ll be back later in the week.
Also, if you’re in or around NYC this Wednesday, I’ll be back spinning with DJ Bluewater and M-Fasis at Master Groove @ Forbidden City, Ave A between 13th and 14th Sts. If I can get my shit (and records) together it’ll be an all Northern Soul set, so fall by if you’re in the area (things get underway at 10PM).
Peace
Larry
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Themocracy
Larry,
Another great selection..
Kicking off with one of my favourite ‘Rare Groove’ cuts ‘Listen Here’ BIG on London’s underground dancefloors in the mid ’80’s
themusicologist
I think there might be some Wurly in there too. Speshly the Eddie Harris track. Unless it’s a freakily EQed rhodes.
Yep def some Wurly.
I’m getting myself back together as well; five feet of snow in less than a week! My back is still aching, and we’re supposed to get another 3-6″ later on today. Hopefully it will miss us.
As always, thanks for all the tuneage 🙂
Peace and blessings.
JJ
I think there may be a couple of types in the mix. The Eddie Harris and the Art Jerry Miller come to mind.
Vincent
My heart goes out to you guys in Balt/DC. You got creamed with the snow. I hope it doesn’t get any worse.
L
Some friends and I will see you on Wednesday. Keep up the great work man. Love it.
[…] piano. I was reminded of this a week or so ago when Larry at Funky16Corners put up a post called “The Piano Electrified,” which featured his own impressions of the sound and some great examples of it. I was reminded of it […]