31878

John Patton - Boogaloo

Released - 1995

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, August 9, 1968
Vincent McEwan, trumpet; Harold Alexander, flute, tenor sax; John Patton, organ; George Edward Brown, drums; Richie 'Pablo' Landrum, congas.

3074 tk.4 Boogaloo Boogie
3075 tk.6 Spirit
3076 tk.7 Barefootin'
3077 tk.8 B & J (Two Sisters)
3078 tk.10 Milk And Honey
3079 tk.11 Shoutin' But No Poutin'

Session Photos

Photos: Francis Wolff/Mosaic Images / 
https://www.mosaicrecordsimages.com/

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Boogaloo Boogie	John Patton	August 9 1968
Milk & Honey	John Patton	August 9 1968
Barefootin'	R. Parker	August 9 1968
Side Two
Shoutin' But No Poutin'	John Patton	August 9 1968
Spirit	John Patton	August 9 1968
B & J (Two Sisters)	John Patton	August 9 1968

Liner Notes

Not many jazz players in the sixties went untouched by the powerful originality of the avant garde. The innovations of Ayler, Ornette and Cecil Taylor affected many of the more established musicians who, coming out of the 'hard bop' fifties welcomed a new approach and a new generation of players. Miles, Jackie McLean, Sonny Rollins and Coltrane were just a few of the players who were not afraid of alienating their usual crowd by exploring some new frontiers in search of sounds they'd never heard before.

Coming out of the Jimmy Smith R&B/Soul organ tradition, a few modern organists in the 1960's also found inspiration in these new sounds - Don Patterson, Larry Young and John Patton being perhaps the most successful exponents of the 'modern' organ school. The album you are holding was recorded in 1968 and sat in the vaults unheard for over 25 years (excepting a few titles on a British John Patton compilation released in 1994), but it is another beautiful example of how John has managed to use these more modern harmonies and textures while still retaining his deep feeling for the blues. He doesn't just 'put on' another style like a fashionable new suit of clothes, he integrates it wholly into his musical vision and what gasses me most about what John Patton does is how natural it all sounds. This is, in a sense, a living folk music/dance music and rehearsing with John at his house in Montclair, New Jersey confirmed to me how much of a community music this is. John sings and plays the parts to his musicians in his inimitable way (one doesn't 'play' John's melodies, one 'says' them).

Surrounded by his whole family of friends and neighbors, and his loving wife Thelma everyone fully supportive of every head, every solo, every note. The atmosphere had much more of the feeling of a downhome picnic than a rehearsal, with plenty of potato salad, sandwiches and good feelings. John brings that same vibe with him wherever and whenever he plays, and this date is no exception.

Recorded toward the end of his tenure with Blue Note, BOOGALOO fits in as his penultimate recording for the label, and his second recording with Harold Alexander on tenor and flute.

John remembers: "When me and 'Jazzbo' got together we had all the fun in the world. He would say 'Man, play anything, what are you kidding?...start playing!' and I don't know where we would Stan, but that's how we did it. He was so supportive. Oh, I loved 'Jazzbo'."

Harold Alexander, or 'Jazzbo' as he was more affectionately known, was a big fan of Eric Dolphy, but you'll hear no imitation in his soloing on either tenor or flute he was very much his own man. He plays his ass off on this date, taking it 'all the way out' and bringing it back in to a gutbucket blues in his solos. His association with John was a long and fruitful one and we are fortunate indeed to have another recorded example of their work together.

One doesn't hear trumpet often with organ players trumpet and organ is a difficult blend to make work (Blue Mitchell was perhaps the most successful at it). Vince McEwan plays well throughout, but the balance of the mix doesn't help him much and he consistently sounds a little too separate from the rest of the band. This seems to be one of his only recorded documents, which is a shame, because he's got a nice sound and his own thing happening.

One of the most exciting things about this date is John's interaction with the remarkable drummer George Edward Brown. With no guitar player the rhythm section is more free and open than usual and Brown's complex polyrythmic, soloistic style seems a perfect foil for Patton (who's always looking for a little more BOT-TOM), and they get into it in more than a few places here.

Not much is known of George Edward Brown, but his playing on this outing alone confirms his place in jazz history as one serious mother******! Patton does recall a year or so of playing together, mostly in a trio with tenor saxophone genius Pharoah Sanders, which must have been truly astounding. Brown's funky sense of time, tight tuning and creative, aggressive accompaniment continually blows my mind here, in particular on "Milk & Honey".

Patton's own playing and writing has always been simple, direct, blues-drenched and deep in the best sense of the word. These recordings more than bear this out. As guitarist Robert Quine has said to me on many an occasion, "Let the Boss Man speak!"

John's soloing has that funky edge one would expect from a keyboard player whose long-time associate and favorite guitarist is Grant Green. His left hand is legend throughout the music cognoscenti (tuba virtuoso Bob Stewart has told me how much he's learned from the 'spank' of Patton's left thumb). His tunes here are varied in tempo, mood, and meter, but still retain that distinctive bluesy flavor that is so much a part of his soul. No matter how 'out' it gets, or how modern he plays, he'll always kick it off with his 'Pattonted' "1...2...you know what to do" count off that tells us in essence, to cut out the crap and get down!

John has always been his own worst critic, continually pushing himself, and even today he admits that there is so much more he'd like to get to, "I always felt like what I was playing just wasn't hip enough that I needed to follow through more on the concept. You know, at that time Wayne (Shorter), Herbie (Hancock), Freddie (Hubbard) and Larry Young were smokin' man, and I felt like they gave me the incentive to keep trying to get to that level. More progressive."

But there is so much that John Patton has accomplished, and it's great that Blue Note has finally seen fit to begin releasing a lot of the prime material he recorded during Jazz organ's 'Golden Age'. Let's all look forward to more of John's releases in the near future, and cherish this one now because on it, he's at the top of his form.

—John Zorn
Composer

BST 84418 (NR)

John Patton - Memphis to New York Spirit

Released - 1996

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, October 2, 1970
Marvin Cabell, flute, soprano, tenor sax; John Patton, organ; James 'Blood' Ulmer, guitar; Leroy Williams, drums.

tk.2 Steno
tk.4 The Mandingo
tk.5 Bloodyun
tk.12 Footprints
tk.16 Memphis

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Memphis	John Patton	October 2 1970
Footprints	Wayne Shorter	October 2 1970
The Mandingo	Marvin Cabell	October 2 1970
Side Two
Bloodyun	James Blood Ulmer	October 2 1970
Steno	John Patton	October 2 1970

Liner Notes

Hammond B-3 organists were in great demand from Jimmy Smith's initial impact on the scene in the mid 1950s until about 1960, when, with the coming of fusion, they were pushed aside by electric piano and synthesizer players. Now, B-3s are returning to fashion, as a byproduct of the post-bop (Young Lion) revival. It's often forgotten that some organists were major post-boppers. After all, Smith recorded with Lee Morgan, Tina Brooks and Lou Donaldson. The gospel influence that was a distinguishing feature of post-bop music was present in the work of many Hammond organists as well as in pianist Horace Silver's playing.

The most popular organists — Smith, Shirley Scott, Groove Holmes, Jimmy McGriff — recorded scads of LPs. John Patton didn't have as large a following, although he cut his share of albums on Blue Note. He was too subtle and unpredictable an improviser (and composer) for a lot of fans, and even musicians, to appreciate.

Jazz organ fans like to hear a lot of funky cliches laid on them hot and heavy. Patton's work, though blues tinged and earthy, was and is also fresh and creative. He's thoughtful; he doesn't just hit you in the face with a lot of notes. And he's an advanced, forward looking musician. Consider the people he's worked with on record — Bobby Hutcherson, Grant Green, Tommy Turrentine, and, on this CD, one time Miles Davis tenorman George Coleman and pioneer fusion guitarist James "Blood" Ulmer. These people are thinking, creative musicians.

Patton was born in Kansas City in 1935. After high school, he got a job as pianist for R&B singer Lloyd Price's band and stayed with Price for five years, leaving in 1959 to settle in New York. He'd fooled around with the organ during his time with Price, and, after reaching the Apple, decided to feature it.

He impressed altoist Donaldson and made his Blue Note debut with him in 1962 on The Natural Soul. Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff must've liked what they heard because they put out eight LPs with him as a leader from 1962-69. Since then two previously unreleased albums from that period have been issued, Blue John in 1986 and Boogaloo in 1995.

The selections on this CD previously hadn't seen the light of day (except a few cuts on a British compilation) although the session with Ulmer came close — it was even assigned two catalog numbers. In any event, we now have it, thank goodness.

The personnel on both sessions certainly is better than that heard on most B-3 organ dates. By 1969 George Coleman was an acknowledged star, known for his work with Davis and, prior to that, Max Roach. Ulmer recorded later with Ornette Coleman and a few years after that became highly regarded. Williams, respected as a versatile and musical drummer, appears on both sessions. Cabell, strongly influenced by John Coltrane, may be the least well known of the musicians here, but his work certainly deserves attention. He played thoughtfully, continually striving to come up with fresh ideas, rather than glibly employing stock licks. As The Mandingo, a dreamy piece, and Dragon Slayer indicate, he's also an intriguing writer.

Patton's composition Memphis, played over a boogaloo beat, illustrates what I wrote above about him being subtly unpredictable. It's a sixteen bar tune which Patton states twice at the beginning of the track. However, the first and last phrase of the theme are virtually identical, so that it's momentarily difficult to tell where one chorus ends and the next begins. His Steno, a thirty two bar AABA tune, has a straight ahead swinging beat.

There are also two pieces here by men who were underappreciated in 1970 but are now considered greats, Wayne Shorter's Footprints, a 6/8 blues that's become a jazz standard, and McCoy Tyner's The Man From Tanganyika, on which triplets are used to create a powerfully rolling groove. Ulmer's infectious, medium tempo Bloodyun has a twenty four bar AAB structure. Patton's use of Cissy Strut, written by the Meters, illustrates his R&B roots.

Instead of going for the jugular here, Ulmer performs with restraint, in addition to his normal inventiveness. Note the excellent structuring of his work on Bloodyun, where he exhibits a fine sense of motivic development. Cabell doesn't have great chops, but compensates by making a daring choice of notes, employing wide interval leaps in the process.

By contrast, Coleman ranked among the best tenor technicians of the 1970s, and there are times here when he exhibits his facility, but tastefully; he's not into empty, pyrotechnical display. His work on The Man From Tanganyika is spare, however, and unusually fragmented. It's reminiscent of Coltrane's playing on Impressions (Impulse).

Throughout the disk, Patton exhibits consummate skill as a soloist. Those who dig funk will find plenty of it in his work, but he's got far more going for him. He doesn't rely on cliches like so many B-3 players did in the 1960s. He's very inventive melodically and rhythmically; his work is always earthy but also full of surprises. Note on Memphis and Steno the ease with which Patton swings and the flowing continuity of his improvisation. He paces himself nicely and uses his left hand very well to maintain the momentum of his spots. I like the way he contrasts economical and multi-note playing on Bloodyun and check out how effectively he airs out his solo on The Man From Tanganyika with rests.

He and Williams perform wonderfully in the rhythm section. The versatile Williams isn't overly loud or busy, but buoys the soloist with his loose, relaxed accompaniment. What he plays sounds so appropriate. He's especially impressive on Cissy Strut, where he implies rather than states the beat, superimposing counter rhythms over it.

Groups led by or featuring organists don't have to rely on the tried and true; they can perform as imaginatively as any others, as this CD makes abundantly clear.

—Harvey Pekar
1995

BST 84366 (NR)

John Patton - Memphis to New York Spirit

Released - 1996

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, October 2, 1970
Marvin Cabell, flute, soprano, tenor sax; John Patton, organ; James 'Blood' Ulmer, guitar; Leroy Williams, drums.

tk.2 Steno
tk.4 The Mandingo
tk.5 Bloodyun
tk.12 Footprints
tk.16 Memphis

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Memphis	John Patton	October 2 1970
Footprints	Wayne Shorter	October 2 1970
The Mandingo	Marvin Cabell	October 2 1970
Side Two
Bloodyun	James Blood Ulmer	October 2 1970
Steno	John Patton	October 2 1970

Liner Notes

Hammond B-3 organists were in great demand from Jimmy Smith's initial impact on the scene in the mid 1950s until about 1960, when, with the coming of fusion, they were pushed aside by electric piano and synthesizer players. Now, B-3s are returning to fashion, as a byproduct of the post-bop (Young Lion) revival. It's often forgotten that some organists were major post-boppers. After all, Smith recorded with Lee Morgan, Tina Brooks and Lou Donaldson. The gospel influence that was a distinguishing feature of post-bop music was present in the work of many Hammond organists as well as in pianist Horace Silver's playing.

The most popular organists — Smith, Shirley Scott, Groove Holmes, Jimmy McGriff — recorded scads of LPs. John Patton didn't have as large a following, although he cut his share of albums on Blue Note. He was too subtle and unpredictable an improviser (and composer) for a lot of fans, and even musicians, to appreciate.

Jazz organ fans like to hear a lot of funky cliches laid on them hot and heavy. Patton's work, though blues tinged and earthy, was and is also fresh and creative. He's thoughtful; he doesn't just hit you in the face with a lot of notes. And he's an advanced, forward looking musician. Consider the people he's worked with on record — Bobby Hutcherson, Grant Green, Tommy Turrentine, and, on this CD, one time Miles Davis tenorman George Coleman and pioneer fusion guitarist James "Blood" Ulmer. These people are thinking, creative musicians.

Patton was born in Kansas City in 1935. After high school, he got a job as pianist for R&B singer Lloyd Price's band and stayed with Price for five years, leaving in 1959 to settle in New York. He'd fooled around with the organ during his time with Price, and, after reaching the Apple, decided to feature it.

He impressed altoist Donaldson and made his Blue Note debut with him in 1962 on The Natural Soul. Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff must've liked what they heard because they put out eight LPs with him as a leader from 1962-69. Since then two previously unreleased albums from that period have been issued, Blue John in 1986 and Boogaloo in 1995.

The selections on this CD previously hadn't seen the light of day (except a few cuts on a British compilation) although the session with Ulmer came close — it was even assigned two catalog numbers. In any event, we now have it, thank goodness.

The personnel on both sessions certainly is better than that heard on most B-3 organ dates. By 1969 George Coleman was an acknowledged star, known for his work with Davis and, prior to that, Max Roach. Ulmer recorded later with Ornette Coleman and a few years after that became highly regarded. Williams, respected as a versatile and musical drummer, appears on both sessions. Cabell, strongly influenced by John Coltrane, may be the least well known of the musicians here, but his work certainly deserves attention. He played thoughtfully, continually striving to come up with fresh ideas, rather than glibly employing stock licks. As The Mandingo, a dreamy piece, and Dragon Slayer indicate, he's also an intriguing writer.

Patton's composition Memphis, played over a boogaloo beat, illustrates what I wrote above about him being subtly unpredictable. It's a sixteen bar tune which Patton states twice at the beginning of the track. However, the first and last phrase of the theme are virtually identical, so that it's momentarily difficult to tell where one chorus ends and the next begins. His Steno, a thirty two bar AABA tune, has a straight ahead swinging beat.

There are also two pieces here by men who were underappreciated in 1970 but are now considered greats, Wayne Shorter's Footprints, a 6/8 blues that's become a jazz standard, and McCoy Tyner's The Man From Tanganyika, on which triplets are used to create a powerfully rolling groove. Ulmer's infectious, medium tempo Bloodyun has a twenty four bar AAB structure. Patton's use of Cissy Strut, written by the Meters, illustrates his R&B roots.

Instead of going for the jugular here, Ulmer performs with restraint, in addition to his normal inventiveness. Note the excellent structuring of his work on Bloodyun, where he exhibits a fine sense of motivic development. Cabell doesn't have great chops, but compensates by making a daring choice of notes, employing wide interval leaps in the process.

By contrast, Coleman ranked among the best tenor technicians of the 1970s, and there are times here when he exhibits his facility, but tastefully; he's not into empty, pyrotechnical display. His work on The Man From Tanganyika is spare, however, and unusually fragmented. It's reminiscent of Coltrane's playing on Impressions (Impulse).

Throughout the disk, Patton exhibits consummate skill as a soloist. Those who dig funk will find plenty of it in his work, but he's got far more going for him. He doesn't rely on cliches like so many B-3 players did in the 1960s. He's very inventive melodically and rhythmically; his work is always earthy but also full of surprises. Note on Memphis and Steno the ease with which Patton swings and the flowing continuity of his improvisation. He paces himself nicely and uses his left hand very well to maintain the momentum of his spots. I like the way he contrasts economical and multi-note playing on Bloodyun and check out how effectively he airs out his solo on The Man From Tanganyika with rests.

He and Williams perform wonderfully in the rhythm section. The versatile Williams isn't overly loud or busy, but buoys the soloist with his loose, relaxed accompaniment. What he plays sounds so appropriate. He's especially impressive on Cissy Strut, where he implies rather than states the beat, superimposing counter rhythms over it.

Groups led by or featuring organists don't have to rely on the tried and true; they can perform as imaginatively as any others, as this CD makes abundantly clear.

—Harvey Pekar
1995

BST 84340

John Patton - Accent on the Blues

Released - 1969

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, August 15, 1969
Marvin Cabell, tenor sax, flute, saxello; John Patton, organ; James Ulmer, guitar; Leroy Williams, drums.

4992 tk.11 Lite Hit
4993 tk.21 Freedom Jazz Dance
4994 tk.23 Captain Nasty
4995 tk.27 Don't Let Me Lose This Dream
4996 tk.31 Rakin' And Scrapin'
4997 tk.34 Village Lee

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Rakin' and Scrapin'	Harold Mabern	August 15 1969
Freedom Jazz Dance	Eddie Harris	August 15 1969
Captain Nasty	Marvin Cabell	August 15 1969
Side Two
Village Lee	Marvin Cabell	August 15 1969
Lite Hit	Marvin Cabell	August 15 1969
Don't Let Me Lose This Dream	Aretha Franklin, Ted White	August 15 1969

Liner Notes

The blues is personal.

It’s a wail of trouble, a well of loneliness, a wealth of emotional outlet. It is a thread of hope and a curtain-going-up. City life. Country lanes. Sunshine. Rain. It is a statement of fact beat out of yesterday’s times, flailing into tomorrow’s promise.

The blues is fire and water and ashes—and layers of love. It is restless. Relaxed. Aroused. No stranger to suffering. No sinkhole. As full of tragedy and dull despair as it is, it has an undertone of spirit and aspiration. Golden dreams. Good omens.

The blues is music. Inspired players get its message through. And listeners personalize it.

John Patton puts "Accent On The Blues.” His organ is plugged into tales of today and tempos of the time. experiments to demonstrate the power of music over matter, lyrical impressions. Lilt. He and his group graphically express their feelings. Scrupulously. Soaringly. They swing. They romp. They play with purpose and poise. Moving. Moving. Moving.

This quartet sets forth on simple and beautiful melodic lines and add only significant touches. There is no desire to overpower to prove their point-blank involvement, no attempt to exaggerate an emotion or beat an ear-drum to a protest.

You can hear the exchange of confidences, feel the antennae quiver to creative adventures. There is an obvious atmosphere of camaraderie. Forthright. Uncompromising. This group underlines the message that there is life in the blues.

John Patton with Marvin Cabell, James Ulmer and Leroy Williams raises roots to the roofs. holding tight to heritage letting loose on inventive ideas. They strip away at the frill and fancy and make personal statements together. They add refinements but leave intact the reminders of the mixtures that combined to make the blues—the melodies that might stem from a spiritual leaning, the rhythms out of work songs, the intonations out of hollers. The feeling. True feeling. The truth.

The blues is personal. The "Accent On The Blues" as it is sketched by John Patton and his players gets the story through. prints the message of tomorrow today. They restore the blues. Rearrange. Preserve. Renew and purify the pleasure. They make music. Listeners will personalize the meaning—happily.

—Mort Goode

BST 84306

John Patton - Understanding

Released - February 1969

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, October 25, 1968
Harold Alexander, tenor sax, flute; John Patton, organ; Hugh Walker, drums.

4035 tk.1 Alfie's Theme
4036 tk.2 Understanding
4037 tk.5 Chittlins Con Carne
4038 tk.9 Soul Man
4039 tk.11 Ding Dong
4040 tk.14 Congo Chant

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
Ding Dong	M. Alexander	October 25 1968
Congo Chant	John Patton	October 25 1968
Alfie's Theme	Sonny Rollins	October 25 1968
Side Two
Soul Man	Isaac Hayes, David Porter	October 25 1968
Understanding	Sam Gary, Mark Nash	October 25 1968
Chitlins con Carne	Kenny Burrell	October 25 1968

Liner Notes

JOHN PATTON'S music comes in on warm and friendly waves of sound saturating our thirsty and appreciative shores. Like the ocean, his music commands a wide range of moods, sometimes quiet, often still (never stagnant), deep, dark and mysterious.

Mysterious to the extent that it cannot wisely be anticipated. Within the past few years, John's albums on Blue Note have come in steady numbers and again like the ocean's waves, some break with a thunderous roar while others dance in a gentler groove.

For me, his previous set, "That Certain Feeling", (4281) evoked thoughts of bright colors and carousels. This time he brings us "Understanding", and in it we find that his wave lengths are in soulful-harmony with Hugh Walker's and Harold Alexander's. Harold, better known to many as "Jazzbo" is a very passionate man. His message has an urgency that compels us to listen.

You see, when a man is not given the chance to say all that he is capable of saying, or cannot give all that he would like to, a swelling takes place. Deep inside, an emotional swelling takes place; the longer his desires go unfulfilled, the greater the swelling. John Patton is presenting Harold with the opportunity to give vent to his emotions.

Expression is an artist's sharpest instrument. Suppress it, and you make him dull. Deny it, and you destroy him. The artist spends his life span shaping his musical (should he be a musician) mode of expression, working alone and with others toward more meaningful and gratifying ways to "speak". Unfortunately, in the course of his development, he encounters untold obstacles, each being the dictate of its own particular trend of thought. More often than not, the will and the power of these forces overshadow and misrepresent the ultimate aims of the artist. Ironically though, it is very often while struggling (hustling?) with these same forces, that he realizes his true strength - Expression.

John Patton knows the power of expression, and is dedicated to the task of broadening his to its fullest talent. Further, he realizes the importance of "knowing", so he keeps his mind in the "on" position.

McCoy Tyner in his "Real McCoy" date on Blue Note, presented a tune called Passion Dance. John, Harold, and Hugh are doing passion dances in this set. John, with his eyes clenched, head thrown back in ecstacy and feet tapping out the rhythms of the music. Harold, with tenor locked securely in his grip, eyes closed and rocking back and forth and Hugh, with all of his rhythmic thunder, accented cymbal bursts and the stabilizing forces of his bass drum telling us where it's all coming from. John sits there like a "Black Scul-Wick" sopping up all the musical energy that they're creating and re-directing it back into the group effort so rapidly and with such a thrust, his trio becomes a combustion chamber.

The musical association of John Patton and Harold Alexander is, in a very real sense, a new beginning, a full moon of ideas and ideals. There is great feeling and unity in John's group, and as its warm waves break on your shores, greet them eagerly in the knowledge that they bring the full bounty of every harvest.

ED WILLIAMS Voyage" WLIB/FM NYC

BST 84281

John Patton - That Certain Feeling

Released - 1968

Recording and Session Information

Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, March 8, 1968
Junior Cook, tenor sax; John Patton, organ; Jimmy Ponder, guitar; Clifford Jarvis, drums.

2052 tk.2 Daddy James
2053 tk.9 Early A.M.
2054 tk.14 Minor Swing
2055 tk.16 Dirty Fingers
2056 tk.19 I Want To Go Home
2057 tk.23 String Bean

Track Listing

Side One
Title	Author	Recording Date
String Bean	John Patton	March 8 1968
I Want to Go Home	John Patton	March 8 1968
Early A.M.	John Patton	March 8 1968
Side Two
Dirty Fingers	John Patton	March 8 1968
Minor Swing	John Patton	March 8 1968
Daddy James	Jimmy Watson	March 8 1968

Liner Notes

I IMPLORE YOU, listen to these men, individually and collectively. If you do so attentively, honestly and with open ears and mind, yours will be a richly rewarding musical experience many times over. I implore you, indeed listen to Clifford Jarvis, Jimmy Ponder, Junior Cook and John Patton.

The occasion is yet to arrive for me to see John Patton when that very positive, sober thing he has going isn't there. Somehow though, I've always suspected him of being shy. He speaks slowly, in enviably modulated tones, with an attractive sort of mid-western (Kansas City, Mo.) drawl.

His calling cord says he’s an organist, but it doesn't stop there. I don’t think it ever did. You see, John Patton ploys for keeps. He shoots straight from the heart, and if you stop to listen, that’s exactly where you’ll get hit. No need to worry though‚ it won’t hurt you, in fact, it’ll do you good, spiritually good, it’ll set fire to you, make you move, you become involved, you can’t shut it out, (you won’t even try) it’s everywhere, here, there, you know. My advice to you is to stop, listen, and get hip to some “Pattoned” ideas.

One of the first things you realize about John when you see him, is that he is serious. A good part of that some seriousness spills over into his musical endeavors. Now, I don’t suggest that the man is without a sense of humor, nothing could be more distant from truth. Check him out on The Yodel, in his Blue Note LP 4229. Let’s just say he not only knows How to laugh, but When to laugh as well. Maybe it’s ‘THAT CERTAIN FEELING.”

John Patton is not your style, that is, if all you’re looking for are some organ vibrations. By the some token, if all you’re concerned with and attracted by are run-of-the-mill organ combos, this group is not your thing. You know the type, the ones that seem hell-bent on shattering the mirror in the men’s room, or making all the booze behind the bar gyrate and threaten to fall over from exhaustion. In a club setting, this group doesn’t make one set a test of endurance.

No, if that’s your stick, you won’t find it here. Before you abandon all hope and split, I'd like to have you get acquainted with some "Patton-ed" ideas. You see, due to the maturity of these men, and the responsibility John has placed upon them, each is agreeably committed to the last note. As a result, there are extremely happy moments in this music, moments when the mood calls to mind (mine) a carnival or playground. Remember that buoyant, happy feeling with those wildly inspired moments of abandon? Remember too, the carnival colors, the reds, the greens. the bright oranges, and the blues? Yes, the “blues,” let’s not forget the “blues “ Children are so free, so full of fun, adventure and life, but so are these men, listen to them. Through their instruments they’re like children, Patton’s organ, Cook’s tenor, Ponder’s guitar, and Jarvis’ drums. They’re riding the carousel, they’re swinging as high as they can, they’re gliding effortlessly on the sliding board. They’re at play, at peace, in lov.e Don’t confuse “child-like,” with “child’s-play,” the two can be (and in this case are) worlds apart. These men are serious, dedicated, mature musicians. Each of the tunes herein, represents a different and exciting musical game with almost boundless challenges. Indeed, they’ve captured "THAT CERTAIN FEELING".

—ED WILLIAMS
“Maiden Voyage”
WLIB-FM N.Y.C.

Cover Photo by JOEL BRODSKY
Cover Design by FORLENZA VENOSA ASSOCIATES
Recording by RUDY VAN GELDER
Produced by FRANCIS WOLFF

75th Anniversary Reissue Notes

This March 8, 1968 album was something of a transition for Big John Patton. He came to Blue Note through Lou Donaldson and the rhythm section of Patton, Grant Green and Ben Dixon was a powerhouse on a variety of Blue Note sessions. By the time the organist recorded "That Certain Feeling", he was looking for new musicians to interact and create music with. Here he chooses tenor saxophonist Junior Cook and drummer Clifford Jarvis who were known as players on the organ circuit. On guitar, he introduces Jimmy Ponder, who was so impressive on this date that Frank Wolff was considering signing him to Blue Note.

The music on this album is wonderful and "Minor Swing" is a minor masterpiece (no pun intended). Everyone gels and sounds great with any of the clichés that can occur on organ-tenor albums.

Michael Cuscuna