RHODA SCOTT: from C to Shining C

Rhoda Scott

from C to Shining C

© 2006 Pete Fallico (634479377433)

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This is Hammond organ jazz that swings in the tradition; featuring battling tenor saxophones, soulful ballads and bluesy guitar.

notes

Since 1968, Rhoda has lived in Paris, France where she has performed and recorded for the European jazz lovers unselfishly. Her reputation as one of the world's leading jazz organists, always heralded in Europe, may now be brought to the attention of those American Jazz fans awakening to the Hammond groove. With her roots in Newark, she knows the rich and colorful history of the Jazz organ and it's versatility in modern music. "I think the organ can do just about anything one wants to do with it. It can be a single instrument or a whole big band. It can be a hard driving instrument or it can be a smooth, mellow, soft instrument. It can set just about any mood and can play just about any rhythm or style. The organ is one of the most amazing instruments that exists."

Rhoda Scott was born outside of Atlantic City, New Jersey on July 3, 1938. Although the family moved around, she has become most associated with the city of Newark. She learned to play organ in her father's church beginning at age seven. She was schooled in the "proper" way of playing. That is, achieving a "full" organ sound using all its facility. To this day, Rhoda plays her bass line exclusively with the foot pedals; not relying on the left hand finger-bass and "popping" action of only a few pedals. This technique frees up her left hand to chord through the changes while her right hand plays melody and solos. She bridged this classic style from Church to Jazz with the help of her close musical friends. "That's something I like to talk about because I like to give a lot of credit to a couple of people. The first organists I really heard were Richard "Groove" Holmes and Trudy Pitts. Groove started having me come to his practice sessions at a club in Camden, New Jersey...and he would have me sit down while he practiced and he'd pull out stops and tell me: "This is how you do it if you want to accompany a horn" and so forth...Then I used to go sit-in with Trudy Pitts. I did not want to sit-in, but her husband, Mr. C, would make me come up and play. He told me a lot and gave me many hints, saying things like: 'If you want to play the bass, you've got to do it like this'...and to this day, whenever I meet young organists who come up, especially in France, I try to always pass along whatever I can to them, mainly because of Mr. C, Trudy Pitts and Richard 'Groove' Holmes."


Rhoda's Newark, New Jersey was loaded with fine organists, many of whom never recorded but literally made up the foundation of Jazz organ education in this country. Learning from one another, jazz organists in Newark, Philadelphia, New York and other big cities, formed a crudible for the so-called "Soul Jazz". Rhoda readily recalls this era: "About twenty-five or thirty years ago when we used to have an organ in every club, we used to have what they called a 'battle of the organs'...Four or five organists would take turns on the same organ; each one trying to out-do the other one.

It was all in great fun; there was no real rivalry. Organists have a history of appreciating each other and that's one reason why these reunions go so well because organists love other organists and we love to listen to each other...We love any new idea that somebody finds to do on the organ...We're all happy about it and, I think, there's a great fraternity in organists."

Rhoda continues to tour Europe regularly. Her reputation as one of the swinging-est jazz organists continues to grow as she encounters new fans throughout the world. She is currently re-claiming her fame in the States with multiple festival appearances and her newest recording, 'From C to Shining C',

reviews

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  • Great CD if you like Hannon B3 and Sax
    author: Mike

    Wonderful swinging CD. This is my first from Rhoda Scott and I like it! Jammin' Hammond B3 and a couple of saxos on the side make for a great sound. The only reason I gave 4 and not 5 stars is that "Danny Boy" is a pretty big shift in the mood from the rest of the CD. I assume Rhoda knows better than me what makes this CD work - I just had to stop boogie-ing when it came up.

  • Tremendous Playing and an Excellent Recording
    author: Eric Brill

    Rhoda Scott is a great Hammond player, and unlike many of the Jazz organists, she works with music that allows her tremendous ability to swing its full range. She also produces very beautiful tone, and this CD's top sound engineering really brings that out in a vivid way.

  • Rhoda Scott is very special among the Hammond B artists. She deserves more recog
    author: Liz Rogers

    Rhoda Scott's From C to Shining C brings together a remarkable group of musicians who are clearly having a great time. I wish that the whole recording session could have been captured for our listening pleasure, but what we have is a gem!

  • Juicy Playing, Recording and Production. Swinging Hammond and Wailing Tenors !
    author: Eddie Landsberg

    Just by having a look at the members of the session should key you in on the fact that this is no ordinary session. The players on this album have played with EVERYONE - - Plas and Red in particular were THE on call ORGAN ENSEMBLE tenor players in the 60's (Red Holloway being most famous for his classic recordings with Jack McDuff - - Plas, incidentally being the tenor player from the PINK PANTHER - - he's even got his name in BIG in the credits - - but he's played with EVERYONE literally, and so has the rest of the ensemble... as a result, they all feel at home!) Rhoda Scott distinguishes herself by a barefooted approach to organ bass lines whereas unlike Jimmy Smith and all the others, she REALLY plays the pedals. (Contrary to popular myth, most organ players use the pedals for pops and accents... it looks like we're playing bass on that, but its just a convenient illusion.) In the case of most players who try to do this, it usually doesn't work, because most people can't swing on the pedals alone (one exception is Philly's sadly relatively unknown Charlie Nesbitt) - - Rhoda Scott however can swing her butt off... and the ensemble just feed in and pushes the levels of swing to higher and higher levels. What also makes this CD so great is the production and recording quality... I'm serious... you've probably never heard a Hammond recorded so well, and may never again. Get this CD... buy it for your friends... and get the word out... All the best organ recordings weren't made 40 years... atleast one was made this year !

  • author: Linda Goshay Jones

    Paris-based organist Rhoda Scott has over the past few years gained a loyal and steady following on the West Coast after appearances at major jazz festivals and venues - and for good reason. Her latest release, "From C to Shining C" on the new Doodlin' Records label, features Scott and a coterie of established players - tenors Plas Johnson and Red Holloway, guitarist Carl Lockett, and long-time drummer Lucien Dobat - in fine and energetic form. Recorded earlier this year at The Annex Studios in Menlo Park, California, Scott and friends present a bluesy, toe-tapping mix of classics and original compositions. Special highlights include a gorgeous melding of the traditional "Danny Boy" and "Lift every Voice"; the infectious original title track "From C to Shining C"; and a zesty cover of the Mamas and Papas' hit "Monday, Monday", a rendition that is sure to linger in your head for awhile. We hope for more stateside visits from this very fine organist. Linda Goshay Jones - August 2006

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