BLP 4239

John Patton - Let 'Em Roll

Released - July 1966

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, December 11, 1965
Bobby Hutcherson, vibes; John Patton, organ; Grant Green, guitar; Otis Finch, drums.

1693 tk.2 The Shadow Of Your Smile
1694 tk.5 The Turnaround
1695 tk.14 Latona
1696 tk.21 Jakey
1697 tk.25 Let 'Em Roll
1698 tk.28 One Step Ahead

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Let 'em Roll	John Patton	December 11 1965
Latona	John Patton	December 11 1965
The Shadow of Your Smile	Mandel, Webster	December 11 1965
Side Two
The Turnaround	Hank Mobley	December 11 1965
Jakey	John Patton	December 11 1965
One Step Ahead	John Patton	December 11 1965

Liner Notes

AT five feet-eleven inches and 180 pounds, “Big” John Patton is not an inordinately large man, according to prevailing physicai standards. Yet he is fully entitled to his nickname, due to the magnitude of his talent and the breadth of response he is able to evoke when he comes on strong at the organ: For he might well be called not the lost, but the latest of the “red hot” organists to blaze upon the jazz scene. This corner of the musical milieu in which he has stoked out a claim is, indeed, quite crowded, but Patton’s innate modesty, coupled with a driving desire to reach out toward perfection have enabled him to steer clear of pretentiousness, concentrating, in turn, on the production of a big, warm sound that is instantaneously captivating and deceptive in its simplicity. Above and beyond the swinging elements of his style is the apparent ease with which he engages any willing listener. This is the mark of the true artist — being able to stimulate deeply without allowing the intensity of the effort involved to shine through.

It didn’t happen overnight. Like all who might aspire to excellence in any creative field, he had to travel the long road of uncertainty before reaching the point where his natural gifts might be showcased in the light of a latent potential.

Born in Kansas City, Mo., Patton developed like an ordinary boy, too young to realize that a tonal history of jazz was being written around him, inscribed in the tumultuous night of a rhythm-permeated city that never slept. Instead, there was for him a relatively tranquil home environment where “Momma played the piano” and “I saw my father holding a guitar, once when I was little.” He more or less drifted into music, turning to the piano where he first picked out Gershwin’s time-weary ‘Lady Be Good,” a tune heard over the radio and just about everywhere.

From then on out, the piano came to dominate his life, and, after sporadic stints as a semi-professional performer in local clubs, he left Kaycee at the age of 18, pushing out into the world beyond the midwestern plains. Washington, D.C., was the most likely destination, since a brother previously had settled in the nation’s capital. So John made his own nest in that eastern city at the twilight of his teens and, eventually, met Lloyd Price. Patton, as a self-taught pianist with a proclivity for the rhythmic, was a natural collaborator for the blues-based Price. From 1955 to 1960 the fledgling musician worked with Price, learning the ropes on the road and, as pianist, becoming “straw boss” of the band. But other things began happening, too. A gift for original melodies unfolded and Patton started writing songs With Price. Among their more lucrative joint efforts were “Where Were You On Our Wedding Day” and the jukebox hit “Personality.”

During that period, Patton began his long romance with the organ rather accidentally. While hanging out at a club called the Flamingo on DeeCee’s luminous Fourteenth Street, he ran into a fellow musician who casually showed him what the organ was all about. Initially, the instrument seemed formidably difficult. For one accustomed to the piano, it was a challenge, since it required less physical force, but the ultimate in control and coordination. From then on, Patton turned increasingly to the organ, working out on one whenever he could find a vacant instrument and no derisive audience. “I liked the sound,” he reminisces. “It was something that just got into my ears. I kept hearing the sort of things a cat like Jimmy Smith could do with it, and I listened hard.”

Shortly after leaving Price at the turn of the decade, Patton made his debut as leader and organist at a club in New Jersey. After a few initial hang-ups, he moved on to Pittsburgh and Birdie Dunlap’s Hurricane, organ capital of the Renaissance City. Along the bars and in the booths of after-dark places, a chord of response was struck in those who had come to have a good time and to lose themselves in pulsating waves of night music. Though there were others who might have been considered more spectacular in their technical exploits, no one could deny that Patton possessed an ability to communicate his many shadings of mood to those on the other side of the stage. Then, it was, that Patton took to the organ almost exclusively.

Ever since, he has been moving ahead, carving his own reputation as o leading exponent of the organ, propelled by an artistic desire to continue pushing out toward those goals not yet attained.

This record marks a new peak in achievement for Patton. His talents have jelled now, and he is strong enough to come through clearly when paired with artists of notable individuality whose styles are flexible enough to fit into his mold. Grant Green, one of the funkiest guitarists of them all, has played with Patton, off and on, throughout his organ career, thus establishing an enviable musical rapport that is apparent in every line they produce. Candy Finch is an excellent but under-rated drummer who lately has begun to attract his fair share of attention—to the point where he has been picked up by the Dizzy Gillespie aggregation, after spending a year with Patton. A real surprise, though, is Bobby Hutcherson, who has been heard more frequently ¡n a semi-avant-garde context. It is difficult to believe that this session was the first time he had worked with Patton, for he fits as smoothly into this earthy groove as he did into the more experimental set which produced Jackie McLean’s superb One Step Beyond (Blue Note 4137).

Most of the selections here are originals, fitting the pattern set by this inventive composer-organist in previous recordings. Let ’Em Roll is a joyful of abandon that conjures up images of the house-rent parties of a gone era. Note Grant Green’s fine guitar segment and the feeling of unity that prevails throughout. Latona, which was inspired by Patton’s “baby sister” Antoinette as she might come through in a “Latin bag,” is highlighted by Hutcherson’s crystal-like vibes statements, leading into Green’s response which is enough to put anyone in a carnival mood. Jakey is a slightly frenetic, driving, straight-ahead blues projecting Patton into the foreground, while One Step Ahead is done in the difficult, but increasingly popular 5/4 tempo. What distinguishes this effort from many attempts by others in this vein, is that the melody is constructed so neatly to fit the tempo that its unusualness is not distracting, a feat which truly puts Patton one step ahead of the fold.

Hank Mobley’s catchy The Turnaround is just as appealing in this new setting, remaining an elaboration on a simple but infectious riff designed to leave abundant room for improvisation.

These five tracks are proof enough of Patton’s gifts, and if one harbors any doubt of them, it is certain to be shattered by his rendition of The Shadow of Your Smile, one of the most beautiful songs to emerge from Hollywood in many a day. Already it has been used and abused by a multitude of singers and instrumentalists, but his treatment of this little gem is utterly fresh, delicate and yet provocative, with just the right touch of a bossa nova flavor. Here Patton and his cohorts are at their subdued best, and the number serves to point up one of the organist’s major attributes — his ability to dominate without resorting to force, always being able to get his point across with a soft touch, even while swinging. This one was a hit on the pop front. Perhaps it also will be a big one for this artist with a big talent.

—PHYL GARLAND