Patton with saxman Harold Alexander and drums. Alexander is playing sax that is just a tad too “out” for an organ combo than is standard for soul jazz, thus turning the sound toward something other than a real groove. If you like progressive sax, you might be able to…

Grant Green always brought out the best in Big John Patton. Almost any record that featured the guitarist and organist was dominated by their scintillating interplay, and it always sounded like they were trying to top each other’s blistering, funky solos. Patton and Green rarely sounded better than they…

By the time John Patton recorded Along Came John, his debut as a leader, he had already become a familiar name around the Blue Note studios. He, guitarist Grant Green, and drummer Ben Dixon had become the label’s regular soul-jazz rhythm section, playing on sessions by Lou Donaldson, Don…

The main reason to purchase this previously unissued set from the declining years of Blue Note is not for the trivial rhythmic themes (which use fairly basic chord sequences) or even the solos of organist John Patton (who never does escape entirely from the shadow of Jimmy Smith) but…

In an unusual setting for a groove/soul jazz setting, B3 organist extraordinaire big John Patton creates a band around himself that includes Grant Green, drummer Otis Finch, and vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson. It’s truly weird to think of vibes on a groove date, but the way Patton’s understated playing works,…

For his third album, Big John Patton decided to expand his band to quintet. Retaining the services of his longtime colleagues, guitarist Grant Green and drummer Ben Dixon, he hired tenor saxophonist Fred Jackson (who also played on Along Came John) and trumpeter Richard Williams. The combination of two horns can occasionally overshadow the groove Patton, Green, and Dixon lay down,…

Patton’s fourth album for Blue Note. Big John Patton with Grant Green on guitar and Harold Vick on tenor sax. With tunes like “Fat Judy” and “Good Juice,” there is no worry about there being a groove. The addition of a trumpet (Blue Mitchell) means you have a horn…

It took Big John Patton nearly two years to return to the studio as a leader following the sessions that produced the exceptional Got a Good Thing Goin’. When he finally cut its sequel, That Certain Feeling, the musical climate had changed just enough to make a difference in…

It is strange to realize that drummer Pete La Roca only led two albums during the prime years of his career, for this CD reissue of his initial date is a classic. La Roca’s three originals (“Basra,” which holds one’s interest despite staying on one chord throughout, the blues…

Larry Appelbaum, the recording lab supervisor at the Library of Congress, came across this tape by accident while transferring the library’s tape archive to digital. What a find. Forget the Five Spot recording that sounds like it was recorded inside of a tunnel from the far end. The sound…