Johnny Hammond - 1975 - Gears

Johnny Hammond

1975

Gears

01. Tell Me What To Do 5:20

02. Los Conquistadores Chocolatés 6:08

03. Lost On 23rd Street 5:54

04. Fantasy 6:05

05. Shifting Gears 5:16

06. Can't We Smile? 4:35

Bonus Tracks

07. A Child's Love (Fast) 4:34

08. A Child's Love (Slow) 5:28

09. Song For My Family 6:04

10. Detroit Rainbow 3:58

11. Funky Native 4:09

12. Can't We Smile (Alt) 5:41

Clavinet – Fonce Mizell

Cymbal, Gong, Percussion – Kenneth Nash

Drums – Harvey Mason

Electric Bass – Chuck Rainey

Electric Piano – Jerry Peters, Johnny Hammond

Flute, Vibraphone – Roger Glenn

Guitar – Craig McMullen, John Rowin

Keyboards [Solina] – Larry Mizell

Organ, Synthesizer – Johnny Hammond

Piano – Jerry Peters

Tenor Saxophone – Hadley Caliman

Trombone – Julian Priester

Violin – Michael White

By the mid-'70s, the embracing and assimilation of soul and funk elements into the jazz vernacular had come full steam. Artists and producers from both communities were exchanging ideas and sounds that once again challenged jazz purists' definitions of what jazz "should" be. These collaborations were often scoffed at by academics and critics attempting to pigeonhole and quantify jazz into an academic exercise ripe with songbook predictability and sonic parameters. Thankfully, the record-buying public at large had the good sense to politely ignore these people and continue purchasing records with these new sounds, largely concocted by the production team of Larry and Fonce Mizell. This time around, their subject was Johnny "Hammond" Smith who proves to be more than up to the task of playing around and inside the Mizell's string arrangements which foreshadowed the early days of disco. In fact, two of the cuts found on Gears -- "Fantasy" and "Los Conquistadores Chocolates" -- were played extensively at the early Loft parties hosted by legendary DJ David Mancuso, as well as at the club many consider to be the true home of disco, the Paradise Garage in NYC. Gears starts off innocently enough with "Tell Me What To Do," which could have easily found its way on to a Donald Byrd album from this period, but then kicks into full steam with "Los Conquistadores Chocolates," a six-and-a-half-minute tour de force of funk, soul, jazz and disco all rolled into one. Hammond is in fine form throughout with crisp playing; never over improvising, but playing only what's necessary to help the music move along at a brisk pace. This is unquestionably another jewel in a treasure chest already filled with so many for the Mizell production team, and a great performance by Hammond to keep up with his contemporaries who refuse to be held back by conventional wisdom.

It always amazes me that Sky High productions didn’t just list their albums as Larry and Fonce Mizell, featuring whoever they happen to be working with on that release. I mean whoever they're working with, the album just sounds like another Mizell album, but with a different lead. This Johnny Hammond album is quite unusual though, as you would never have guessed, by the music alone, that this album’s main artist was an organ/keyboards man; unlike Bobbi Humphrey’s and Donald Byrd’s albums produced by these guys which are very obvious what the lead instrument is. However, Johnny Hammond doesn’t really take the lead too often, so what you get is that solid Mizell rhythm right through with no one artist ever breaking away from the pack. For me, this makes this album much more consistently good throughout, and just as essential as the more noted Mizell productions for Blue Note.

One of our favorite albums of all time – and a record that just gets better and better the more we listen to it – and we've listened to it for years! Johnny "Hammond" Smith began his career as a simple soul jazz organist – but by the time of this album, he'd teamed up with the mighty Larry Mizell, the genius arranger/producer who'd breathed new life into the careers of Donald Byrd and Bobbi Humphrey. Mizell works with Hammond in the same way he does with other jazz artists – by taking a groove that works best with their solo style, and slowly layering other instrumentation and effects on top of it, so that when the solo kicks in, it's supported on waves and waves of funky sounds and soulful grooves. Mizell and his brother Fonce both play keyboards on the record, and the rest of the group includes monster fusion players like Harvey Mason, Roger Glenn, Hadley Caliman, and Jerry Peters. The real treat is Johnny, though – as his solos are heavenly, the best of his 70s work, stripped mean and lean, laid in at just the right points. Includes the breakbeat classic "Shifting Gears", the house classic "Los Conquistadores Chocolates", and funky numbers "Fantasy" and "Tell Me What To Do". This stunning version adds in some killer bonus tracks – 6 never-heard cuts from the Milestone vaults.