Smith, Jimmy (actually, James Oscar Jr.)

Smith, Jimmy (actually, James Oscar Jr. ), American jazz organist; b. Norristown, Pa., Dec. 8, 1925. Smith validated the organ as a jazz instrument and popularized jazz organ playing in a series of recordings; he hit the pop charts with 22 albums between 1962 and 1970.

Both of Smith’s parents were pianists, and he won a Major Bowes amateur contest on the instrument at the age of nine, later going on to appear on the radio in Philadelphia. He and his father performed together in local clubs in 1942. He served in the navy during World War II, then returned to Philadelphia, where he studied the string bass at the Hamilton School of Music in 1948 and the piano at the Ornstein School of Music in 1949–50. He joined Don Gardner and His Sonotones as a pianist in 1952, later switching to organ. In September 1955 he formed his own organ-guitar-drums trio, and his N.Y. debut at the Bohemia club in 1956 was critically acclaimed. He made his first appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1957.

Smith recorded for Blue Note Records until 1962. His album Midnight Special, featuring tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine and guitarist Kenny Burrell, spent almost a year in the pop charts, and the single “Midnight Special” was in both the R&B and pop singles charts. Switching to Verve Records, he hit the Top Ten of the LP charts with Bashin’ (1962), which featured “Walk on the Wild Side” (music by Elmer Bernstein), a Top 40 hit and Grammy nominee for Best Jazz Performance by a Large Group, Instrumental.

Smith continued to place albums in the charts consistently through 1970. In 1974 he formed his own label, Mojo Records. In September 1974 he married his manager, Lola Ward. After touring Europe in June 1975 he cut back on touring and moved to Los Angeles, where he opened his own jazz club. In 1982 he signed to the Elektra-Musician jazz label, run by record executive Bruce Lundvall, and released a new album, Off the Top. He followed Lundvall back to Blue Note Records in 1986 and re-signed to Verve Records in 1995.

Dlscography

A new Sound…A New Star: Jimmy Smith at the Organ, Vol. 1–3 (1956); A Date with Jimmy Smith (1957); Plays Pretty Just for You (1957); Confirmation (1957); Special Guests (1957); House Party (1957); Groovin’ at Small Small’s Paradise, Vol. 1, 2 (1957); The Sermon (1958); Softly as a Summer Breeze (1958); Home Cookin’ (1958); Six Views of the Blues (1958); Crazy! Baby (1960); Back at the Chicken Shack (1960); Midnight Special (1960); Prayer Meetin’ (1960); Bashin’: The Unpredictable Jimmy Smith (1962); I’m Movin’ On (1963); Bucket! (1963); Any Number Can Win (1963); Jazz ’Round Midnight: Jimmy Smith (1963); The Cat (1964); Christmas Cookin’ (1964); Organ Grinder Swing (1965); Peter and the Wolf (1966); The Dynamic Duo (1966); The Further Adventures of jimmy and Wes (1966); Respect (1967); Stay Loose (1968); The Boss (1968); Groove Drops (1969); Jimmy Smith in a Plain Brown Wrapper (1971); Root Down (1972); Other Side of Jimmy Smith (1973); Blacksmith (1974); Jimmy Smith (1975); Sit on It! (1976); It’s Necessary (1977); Tomorrow’s Sounds Today (1978); The Cat Strikes Again (1980); All the Way I Live (1981); Off the Top (1982); Keep on Comin’ (1983); Prime Time (1989); Fourmost (1990); The Master (1993); Sum Serious Blues (1993); Damn! (1995); Angel Eyes: Ballad & Slow Jams (1995); Platinum (1996).

—William Ruhlmann