Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio
I Told You So
Colemine Records [2021]
Great music always finds a way to captivate its audience and find new listeners. That is the way I feel about this excellent new record from Seattle-based soul-jazz group Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio. The group’s sophomore studio album, I Told You So, will turn your ears and erase any expectations upon hearing it as it is fair to say that the jazz charting DLO3 is not a typical artist we feature. With that said, we ask you take a trust fall on our word because the Organ Trio will catch you!
I Told You So contains nine smoking instrumental tracks that are glued together by Lamarr’s quick organ key playing. He really never stops keeping the tracks moving but then you combine that with the complex guitar playing of Jimmy James and the backbone beats of new drummer Dan Weiss and you have something special. What helps I Told You So soar is that each member gets a showcase and the record never feels dominated by the Hammond. The super funky “Call Your Mom” lets James breakout like a classic Johnny “Guitar” Watson with its edgy out front playing while Lamarr steers “Girly Face” with top notch runs as his fingers move at high speeds. On “From The Streets” it is time for Weiss to make himself known as every strike on his kit hits with a snap that pops out of your speaker.
There is not one track on this album that doesn’t bring 110% energy. The warmth, the style and sheer soul just pours out of every note here. Lamarr’s organ playing is above so many grades that it for sure has Milt Buckner smiling down from above. The mere fact that DLO3 can turn the Wham hit “Careless Whisper” into a new jazz staple speaks for itself. The Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio has created an upbeat celebration on I Told You So that not only places nods to the Stax and Motown past but looks forward with their own modern flare that will flex its timelessness years from now!
Key Tracks: “Call Your Mom” / “Girly Face” / “Fo Sho”
Artists With Similar Fire: Jimmy McGriff / The Meters / Jimmy & Wes
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio Website
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio Facebook
Colemine Records
-Reviewed by Christopher Anthony
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