Deep in the Stacks: Your Daily Jazz LP Podcast
Every day, Danny from Kissa Kissa -- the Japanese-style jazz vinyl bar in Crown Heights, Brooklyn -- pulls one album from the stacks and tells you who made it, why it matters, and what to listen for. Three minutes, one record you need to hear. Calendar-driven picks tied to recording dates and artist birthdays, plus deep cuts from the Kissa Kissa collection.
Deep in the Stacks: Your Daily Jazz LP Podcast
Black Drops — Charles Earland (Prestige, 1970)
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Before Charles Erland ever touched an organ, he was a saxophonist in a Philadelphia high school band that also featured Pat Martino on guitar, Lou Tobacken on tenor, and, believe it or not, Frankie Avalon on trumpet. He switched instruments after watching Jimmy McGriff work the Hammond night after night, teaching himself organ by observation alone. By 1970, he had his own sound, lighter and more agile than McGriff or Jimmy Smith, with one of the best walking bass pedal techniques in the business. This is Deep in the Stacks. Today's album, Black Drops, by Charles Erland. Erland was born in Philadelphia in 1941 and started gigging on tenor sacks while still a teenager, joining McGriff's band at 17. When McGriff let him go, Erland pivoted to organ full-time, forming a trio with Martino and drummer Bobby Durham. By the late 60s, he was playing on Lou Donaldson's Blue Note sessions, building a reputation as a musician who could burn, but also knew when to pull back. Blackdrops was recorded on June 1st, 1970, at Rudy Van Gelder's studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and released on Prestige. The session was produced by Bob Porter. Erland assembled a tight six-piece unit, Virgil Jones on trumpet, Jimmy Heath on tenor and soprano saxophone, Clayton Prudent on trombone, Maynard Parker on guitar, and Jimmy Turner on drums. The tracklist covers serious ground, a funky reimagining of Sly Stone's Sing a Simple Song, a swinging take on John Coltrane's Lazy Bird, and the Bert Bacarak hit Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head. The album hit the Billboard charts, peaking at number 131 during a ten week run, solid numbers for a jazz organ record in 1970. It was the kind of album that proved Erland could play the room and the radio without losing the music. Go to Lazy Bert. Erland takes Coltrane's composition and gives it a completely different center of gravity. The organ grounds everything while the horns push the tempo forward. Jones and Heath trade lines with real heat. For something different, try Letha. It's one of the longer tracks on the album and gives Erland room to stretch. His left hand keeps the bass moving while his right hand explores the melody. The whole band settles into a pocket that feels effortless. He was already a veteran arranger and bandleader by this point, and his lines have an architectural quality that elevates everything around them. Virgil Jones matches him note for note. This is a soul jazz organ album that never dumbs anything down. Erland just made hard music feel easy. Black Drops by Charles Erland, a prestige organ date with a band so virtuosic it hit the charts. I'm Danny from Kissa Kissa in Brooklyn. Go put on a record. We'll see you tomorrow.