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| Joey DeFrancesco will play a tribute to the great Jimmy Smith What should have been a happy concert tour shared by the jazz organists Jimmy Smith and Joey DeFrancesco -- the first a legend, the second his accomplished acolyte -- turned to sadness in February when Smith, 79, died. "I love Jimmy," DeFrancesco said. "He's been a huge influence on all organ players. I've known him all my life. We got really tight over the last year." DeFrancesco will play two concerts Wednesday at Chisholm's Bar and Grill -- one show will be at 7 p.m., the other at 9. His trio will feature Jake Langley on guitar and Byron Landham on drums. But as he prepared to set out on a quick, three-day jaunt through Wichita, Edmond, Okla., and Fayetteville, Ark., Smith was very much on his mind. "We were inseparable," DeFrancsco said. "We talked about making a record together, and we did it. I'm so glad we did. I had no idea that he was going to leave us so soon." That recording, "Legacy," released in February on the Concord Jazz label, features Smith and DeFrancesco side by side, trading licks and sharing a palpable joy in music-making. Both musicians play the Hammond B-3 organ. Smith propelled the instrument into the jazz -- and pop music -- mainstream with a series of albums in the 1950s and '60s. His sound combined blues and bebop, and his funky riffing on hits such as "Got My Mojo Working" helped create the "soul-jazz" subgenre. DeFrancesco, who turned 34 last week, fell in love with the organ -- and with Smith's playing -- when he was a toddler. His dad, "Papa" John DeFrancesco, played; a Hammond B-3 sat in the family's living room in Philadelphia. The story goes that little Joey listened to Smith's recording of "The Sermon" over and over while his dad was at work one day, then played it note-for-note for him when he came home. "It's never been hard for me," DeFrancesco said matter-of-factly. "But when you start learning when you're young, you don't know it's hard. So that helps." DeFrancesco was 7 when he first met Smith on a New York City bandstand -- his mom and dad took him to hear him play. He met him again several times afterward -- and by the time he was in high school the prodigy DeFrancesco had a jazz career of his own. Miles Davis heard DeFrancesco play piano when they were both guests on a Philadelphia television show. (Besides the organ and piano, DeFrancesco also plays the trumpet and sings.) After an audition in Davis' New York apartment, the great trumpeter hired DeFrancesco, then 17, to tour with his band. He has made a dozen albums as a leader since 1989 -- more as a sideman. But no project in his career meant more to him than "Legacy." The CD was recorded in Tempe, outside Phoenix, over several days last August. The album features originals by DeFrancesco, jazz standards, and a few of the hits made famous by Smith --"Back at the Chicken Shack," "I've Got My Mojo Workin' " and "Midnight Special." Many of the tunes recorded on "Legacy" will be on the set lists when the Joey DeFrancesco Trio plays Wednesday night. DeFrancesco treasured the hours he spent in the recording studio with Smith. But more than his musical legacy, the organist hopes to pay tribute to the spirit of his mentor and friend. write your comments about the article :: © 2005 Jazz News :: home page |