Among all the practitioners of soul-jazz during the genre heyday of the late 1960s into the 1970s, Hammond B-3 organ groovemeister Don Patterson and modern Texas tenor Booker Ervin (also a veteran of jazz ensembles led by Randy Weston and Charles Mingus) are among those usually overlooked. Yet the pair teamed up to release several albums during that time that were, if not standards of the genre precisely, full of vitality and fervor -- Ervin's playing, especially, often sounded so emotional and combustible that it seemed ...
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Among all the practitioners of soul-jazz during the genre heyday of the late 1960s into the 1970s, Hammond B-3 organ groovemeister Don Patterson and modern Texas tenor Booker Ervin (also a veteran of jazz ensembles led by Randy Weston and Charles Mingus) are among those usually overlooked. Yet the pair teamed up to release several albums during that time that were, if not standards of the genre precisely, full of vitality and fervor -- Ervin's playing, especially, often sounded so emotional and combustible that it seemed like he was suffering a nervous breakdown through his horn, perhaps a residue of his time with Mingus. Legends of Acid Jazz: Don Patterson / Booker Ervin surfs the cream of three mid-'60s recording sessions: in a trio setting with drummer Billy James, all five selections from The Exciting New Organ of Don Patterson, including one of Miles Davis' early signature tunes, "Oleo" (actually a Sonny Rollins composition); the title track from Hip Cake Walk, a 17-minute monument to the soulful power of organ that endured as Patterson's most-beloved hip-swiveler (featuring Leonard Houston on alto sax); and "Love Me With All Your Heart" from Patterson's People. Legends of Acid Jazz: Don Patterson / Booker Ervin suffers only slightly from a program that leans heavily toward the mainstream -- "Love Me With..." goes more than six minutes, and "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" nearly eleven. ~ Chris Slawecki, Rovi
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