Dr. Lonnie Smith — the American jazz Hammond B3 organist who was named an NEA Jazz Master in 2017 — has died. Blue Note Records confirmed that Smith passed yesterday (September 28) at his home in Fort Lauderdale, FL, from pulmonary fibrosis. He was 79.
"Doc was a musical genius who possessed a deep, funky groove and a wry, playful spirit," Blue Note president Don Was shared in a statement. "His mastery of the drawbars was equaled only by the warmth in his heart. He was a beautiful guy and all of us at Blue Note Records loved him a lot."
Born in Buffalo, NY on July 3, 1942, Smith credited his mother for fostering a love of gospel, blues, and jazz music. In the 1960s, Smith was gifted a Hammond B3 organ, and his first gigs in Buffalo caught the attention of Lou Donaldson, Jack McDuff, and George Benson, the last of whom would invite Smith to move to New York City to join his quartet.
After appearing on Benson albums It's Uptown (1966) and The George Benson Cookbook (1967), Smith released his debut album Finger Lickin' Good in 1967. He would sign to Blue Note as a bandleader the following year, and would release five albums through the storied jazz label in the late '60s and early '70s.
Smith's aforementioned 2017 NEA Jazz Master honour is the self-proclaimed highest honor that the United States bestows upon jazz musicians.
His compositions have notably been sampled by the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, Madvillain, Beastie Boys, Drake, Nightmares on Wax, De La Soul and many more.
The organist's most recent album Breathe, which arrived through Blue Note earlier this year, featured multiple collaborations with Iggy Pop.
"Doc was a musical genius who possessed a deep, funky groove and a wry, playful spirit," Blue Note president Don Was shared in a statement. "His mastery of the drawbars was equaled only by the warmth in his heart. He was a beautiful guy and all of us at Blue Note Records loved him a lot."
Born in Buffalo, NY on July 3, 1942, Smith credited his mother for fostering a love of gospel, blues, and jazz music. In the 1960s, Smith was gifted a Hammond B3 organ, and his first gigs in Buffalo caught the attention of Lou Donaldson, Jack McDuff, and George Benson, the last of whom would invite Smith to move to New York City to join his quartet.
After appearing on Benson albums It's Uptown (1966) and The George Benson Cookbook (1967), Smith released his debut album Finger Lickin' Good in 1967. He would sign to Blue Note as a bandleader the following year, and would release five albums through the storied jazz label in the late '60s and early '70s.
Smith's aforementioned 2017 NEA Jazz Master honour is the self-proclaimed highest honor that the United States bestows upon jazz musicians.
His compositions have notably been sampled by the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, Madvillain, Beastie Boys, Drake, Nightmares on Wax, De La Soul and many more.
The organist's most recent album Breathe, which arrived through Blue Note earlier this year, featured multiple collaborations with Iggy Pop.