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| 1. | Tell Me What to Do
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| 2. | Los Conquistadores Chocolates
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| 3. | Lost on 23rd Street
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| 4. | Fantasy
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| 5. | Shifting Gears
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| 6. | Can't We Smile?
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Jazz
Johnny "Hammond" Smith - Organ, Performer, Piano (Electric), Synthesizer
Chuck Rainey - Bass (Electric)
Craig McMullen - Guitar
Fonce Mizell - Clavinet, Producer, Vocal Arrangement, Vocals (Background)
Hadley Caliman - Sax (Tenor)
Harvey Mason, Sr. - Drums
Jerry Peters - Piano, Piano (Electric)
Julian Priester - Trombone
Kenneth Nash - Percussion
Larry Mizell - Arranger, Producer, Solina, Vocal Arrangement, Vocals (Background)
Michael White - Violin
Roger Glenn - Flute, Vibraphone
* Charly Franklin - Cover Photo
* David Hassinger - Remixing
* Eddie Bill Harris - Engineer
* Jeff Hawks - Remix Assistant
* Jim Nipar - Remixing
* Joe Tarantino - Remastering
* Orrin Keepnews - Executive Producer
* Phil Bray - Photography
* Phil Kaffel - Assistant Engineer
* Sigidi - Conductor
* William Jordan - Recitation
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.
---Rob Theakston, All Music Guide
Johnny "Hammond" Smith
Active Decades: '50s, '60s and '70s
Born: Dec 16, 1933 in Louisville, KY
Died: Jun 04, 1997 in Chicago, IL
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Hard Bop, Soul-Jazz
Actually nicknamed after his instrument, Johnny "Hammond" Smith was perhaps one of the more underrated soul-jazz organists of the style's heyday. Born John Robert Smith in Louisville, KY, on December 16, 1933, Smith began learning piano as a child, idolizing Bud Powell and Art Tatum early on. After moving to Cleveland, Smith heard jazz organ pioneer Wild Bill Davis and decided to switch instruments; he made his professional debut on the organ in 1958, around the same time he was working as an accompanist for vocalist Nancy Wilson. In 1959, he began recording as a leader for Prestige, an association that would last through 1970 and produce highlights like That Good Feelin', Talk That Talk, Black Coffee, Open House, Ebb Tide, and Soul Talk, among others. As time passed, Smith's style got progressively funkier, and in 1971, he shortened his name to Johnny Hammond and moved to producer Creed Taylor's CTI label family. Hammond recorded five jazz-funk albums over the next three years, including Breakout, Wild Horses/Rock Steady, and the Mizell Brothers-helmed Gambler's Life. In 1975, Hammond moved to Milestone and recorded the culmination of his move into jazz-funk, Gears, another collaboration with the Mizell Brothers that was reviled by purists and canonized by acid jazz fans. After a few more sessions for Milestone, Smith largely retired from jazz, settling in Southern California and investing in real estate. He began recording sporadically again in the '90s, but was stricken with cancer and died on June 4, 1997.
---Steve Huey, All Music Guide |
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