Favorites are one thing.......
But,.......
we're talking
"HOLY GRAIL" that shows the world bigger then life that HAMMOND SOUND!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbWULu5_nXI&feature=related

[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 11-01-2010).]

I am more in harmony with Dave...Maybe because I go back to more early years with the Hammond..What showcases the B3..is the soul and emotion from it..more so than the screaming , guitar lick type from the rock n roll stuff posted..I am not saying that some of the old classic rock stuff isn't cool..but for the most part it was very predictable...It was a case where the keyboardist wanted to be a guitarist...both can be annoying as they try to out do the other ..volume wise...

I much prefer the path ..jazz artist and players that were able to express the "standards" with more feeling...instead of trading licks ..Energy is one thing (and a good thing) but making the B3 talk is another..

What is incredible is that the Hammond B-3 covered nearly all genres; it's even used in Country music.

Jazz, R&B, Rock&Roll, and Rock music all have been "enhanced" by the B-3.

In A Whiter Shade of Pale, it is not just the organ line at the intro and between the verses...it is also the tasteful counter-melody played during the verse and chorus, and well as some pretty neat Leslie fast/slow at the perfect times.

A timeless song for sure.

Ian

I think the Holy Grail of the general Hammond B-3 category for organ/keyboard players is anything by Jimmy Smith. I think the Holy Grail of R&R Hammond "explosion" is Donny's find, and, to a lesser extent some of the others mentioned.

My Holy Grail Hammond Pop benchmark is the B-3 ride from the Three Dog Night song, "Out In the Country".

Point is, we AL grew up listening to that GREAT B-3 sound.

I have a B-3, a C-3, an M-100 and a useless little 1949 M., plus an XB-2, a C-1, 145 an 147RV Leslies, a 145 Motion sound and an old Motion sound top Rotor box (Sold the XK-1 system to a neighbor and re-did the little M-100 for the music room-looking for a C-122 to re-do to match).

Still get to play the B-3 3-5 times a month for Jazz Night at a local country club.

Great find, Donny; not off topic at all for us interested in the history of keyboards; the B-3 is, hands down, one of the greatest!


Russ

[This message has been edited by captain Russ (edited 11-01-2010).]

Funny thing is, the original Whiter Shade of Pale featured a L100, not really close to a B3.

124 you are correct....but my OP never stated a B3...

Actually, Matthew Fisher of Procol Harum used an M-102 on the 1967 recording "A Whiter Shade of Pale."

http://www.procolharum.com/awsoporgan.htm

The M-100/102 were very close to the B-3 in overall sound...they had different keys/keyboards (2X44 notes) than the B-3 and M-3 (it also had 2X44 notes).

Ian

[This message has been edited by ianmcnll (edited 11-01-2010).]

Yes, very Tasteful indeed perhaps due to the fact that "A Whiter Shade Of Pale's" melody is based on the Johann Sebastian Bach's Cantata 140 . More so, however, the song is based on Bach's " Air for G String ": if you hear that, you certainly recognise "A Whiter Shade of Pale", but different enough to say that Procol Harum's song's more than simply an adaption of "Air for G String". Scott

Scott Yee Entertainment

To me the term Holy Grail as used in your post means the sound, song or use of the instrument that moved me into a love for the Hammond organ. For me that was mostly Jimmy Smith. The video of Walk On The Wild Side that I linked to is a prime example; when he brings in the full drawbars on the second 5 chord at the end of the phrase shows how instantly dynamic the Hammond organ can be.

This can also be said to an extent with A Whiter Shade of Pale, but not quite to the same degree.

Sure, there are a lot of rock tunes as well as other styles that utilize the Hammond organ. I lean more toward groups like Santana and BS&T for some other great Hammond playing.

Another very great video I found a while back is one from the late, great Billy Preston. Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlxxmNP2MKw
That is a Holy Grail moment if I ever heard one.

Wm. David McMahan
The Modulators

[This message has been edited by WDMcM (edited 11-01-2010).]

I think what sends chills down my spine is the plaintive sound, almost like a human voice.

Very judicious use of the Leslie fast/slow...almost a perfect example of how to comp and adding excitement, and then solemnity to the song.

One of the better examples of the Holy Grail, if not the best example.

Another favorite organist/Hammond player was Earl Grant.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDc0IUh01uQ&feature=related

Ian