Hammond B3x

The cleverly-conceived cover shot tips you off to the fact that this 1967 record–comprised of outtakes from sessions for his John Hammond, Big City Blues, So Many Roads, and Country Blues albums–displays two different sides of the great white bluesman John Hammond, one electric, one acoustic. The electric side features a backing band for the ages, consisting of Band members Levon Helm and Robbie Robertson plus Mike Bloomfield (on piano!) and Charley Musselwhite, while the acoustic side is just Hammond on guitar.

Although it kicks off with the first (and only) song John Hammond has ever written, Ready for Love is a worthy and unusually varied follow-up to the surprise success of 2001's Wicked Grin. It would have been easy and possibly expected for Hammond to churn out another album of Tom Waits songs to capitalize on the unanticipated momentum created by Wicked Grin. After all, at age 60, considering he's been chipping away at his craft for the past 40 years, Hammond has certainly earned the right to coast on some better-late-than-never success. And the Waits catalog is bursting with plenty more gems perfect for the singer/guitarist to wrap his throaty, emotional blues voice around.

I Can Tell boasts an all-star backing band of rock & roll stars, featuring everyone from Bill Wyman to Robbie Robertson. John Hammond leads the band through a set of Chicago blues standards, reaching deep into the catalogs of Willie Dixon, Elmore James, Howlin' Wolf, and many others. Although the performances can occasionally sound too studied, the album is by and large an unadulterated delight – the affection Hammond and his band have for the material is quite clear.

Out of all the soul-jazz organ players, only one was so thoroughly funked out that he personally adopted the name of his favorite keyboard, the B-3: Johnny "Hammond" Smith. While not as important in the development of jazz styles as other keyboard players such as Jimmy Smith, "Hammond" displayed an earthy, swinging talent worth listening to. Legends of Acid Jazz: Johnny "Hammond" Smith compiles under a single cover two albums Smith recorded in 1969, Soul Talk and Black Feeling! (complete with the liner notes from both original issues). On Legends, Smith gets down in the heady company of, among others, tenor saxophonist Rusty Bryant, funky drummer Bernard Purdie and guitarist Wally Richardson; Richardson here pays tribute to his bandmates with his compositions "Purdie Dirty" and "Johnny Hammond Boogaloo"…

This is one of the best efforts of John Hammond's career. It features the old blues numbers that have been a staple of Hammond's work, but with a slippery, playful funkiness that was never there before. Hammond has always had a strong voice, and the music flows out of him more naturally and appealingly than ever before. In fact, he sounds so at ease that he falls right in with Charles Brown on the two numbers where Mr. "Drifting Blues" himself plays piano. Little Charlie & the Nightcats back up Hammond on seven of the album's dozen tracks. They introduce an easy-going swing to numbers by Little Walter, Johnny "Guitar" Watson and Howlin' Wolf that allows Hammond to give these old songs a new spin and make them his own.

Something special occurred when John Hammond's powerful vocals, guitar, and harmonica were paired with the legendary Muscle Shoals "Swampers" - studio musicians who had a magical ability to infuse all their recording projects with a terrific combination of soulful RnB and country-flavored blues feeling. The added presence of their frequent guest collaborator, Duane Allman, on lead and bottleneck slide guitar for several tracks doesn't hurt either. If this album were to be recorded today, the production and sound quality would undoubtedly be fuller, but the feel of the players could not be bettered. A solid rhythm section, tasteful supporting keyboard and guitar work, and judicious use of a potent horn section all yield marvelous results - plus Hammond's vocals and harmonica work here are knockouts. The raw passion and energy of his performance offset the other musicians' more polished and relaxed approach so that things don't sound too smooth and laid-back.