{"id":4662,"date":"2022-07-04T18:22:05","date_gmt":"2022-07-04T23:22:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=4662"},"modified":"2022-07-11T09:26:18","modified_gmt":"2022-07-11T14:26:18","slug":"reboot-ronnie-foster-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/reboot-ronnie-foster-i\/","title":{"rendered":"Rebooting the Connection : A Conversation with Ronnie Foster (Part One)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

While Fats Waller, Count Basie, and Wild Bill Davis charted the organ trio\u2019s course across the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s, the format did not hit its zenith until the late 1950s. Central to the emergence of the organ trio was the rise of soul jazz, an amalgamation of influences from jazz, blues, soul, gospel, and rhythm and blues that seems destined to be the soundtrack of a late-night session in a smoke-filled bar or club. While many labels released several fine soul jazz organ recordings during the 1950s and 1960s, Blue Note largely stood above the rest, partly because it was the home of the king: Jimmy Smith. Through his over twenty Blue Note albums released between 1958 to 1963, it is no exaggeration to say that Smith essentially invented the modern soul jazz organ. In the process, Blue Note picked up even more followers enamored with the label\u2019s clear, warm, and distinct aesthetics that were ripe for the organ. After Smith left for Verve in 1962, Blue Note began releasing- along with Smith albums in their vault – music by other masters of the Hammond B3, including Big John Patton and Jack McDuff. Larry Young tied the soul jazz tradition to the burgeoning jazz-rock fusions and experimental music scenes. All of this gets us to Ronnie Foster. By the time Foster signed with Blue Note in the early 1970s, many thought that the soul jazz organ trio was a relic of an era past. As George Benson noted in Benson<\/em>: The Autobiography<\/em> (Da Capo, 2014), by the time Ronnie came on the scene, \u201corgans were going the way of the Model T.\u201d But if Foster\u2019s Reboot<\/em> (Blue Note, 2022) is any indication, the soul jazz organ trio is still a road-ready, well-oiled machine. It\u2019s just been restored and upgraded over the years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reboot<\/em>\u2019s direct connection to the Blue Note organ lineage is most evident on \u201cSwingin\u2019,\u201d a scorcher that recalls the vibrancy of the environments in which soul jazz thrived. Driven by Jimmy Brantly\u2019s high octane drums, the piece sits comfortably alongside the ancestors of the idiom. The influence of 50s and 60s soul jazz is less apparent on Reboot<\/em>\u2019s other tracks, though nonetheless present. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since his debut, Two Headed Freap<\/em> (Blue Note, 1972), Foster has always focused on transporting the contributions of artists like Jimmy Smith to other realms. A perfect example exists in \u201cMystic Brew,\u201d whose slow groove straddled a line between soul jazz, R&B, and funk. The next generation heavily sampled the song, stretching the sonic family line further to acid jazz and hip hop. Five decades later, it seems Foster\u2019s core mission remains unchanged. The steady groove of Reboot<\/em>\u2019s title track is similarly ripe for a future artist to sample. Three pieces bring the organ to Latin-influenced contexts. \u201cSultry Song II,\u201d and \u201cAfter Chicago\u201d are particularly indebted to Bossa Nova and \u201cCarlos\u201d to Santana\u2019s jazz-rock. On \u201cJ\u2019s Dream\u201d and \u201cHey Good Lookin\u2019 Woman,\u201d the organ\u2019s relationship to church music and the blues is also further underscored. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the closer, \u201cAfter Conversation with Nadia,\u201d Foster puts aside his custom Hammond XK-5 to sit behind a grand piano. The piece is somewhat reminiscent of Keith Jarrett\u2019s solo works; wistfully looking for a way to express the human condition through the resilience of the blues, the ecstasy of jazz, and the structure of classical music. The result, though unexpected, is a high point of the album. It is also a reminder that the soulfulness you hear in the organ trio is more than just a set of specific instruments. Remove the electricity, and the excitement remains. It is emotional substance, not flash or technology, which matters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the first part of our conversation with Ronnie Foster, we discuss the significance of his return to Blue Note and his experiences with Jimmy Smith, Grant Green, Herbie Hancock, George Benson, and Dr. Lonnie Smith. In the second part, we go on a much deeper dive into Reboot<\/em>. We also cover his relationships with Stevie Wonder, Carlos Santana, and Stanley Turrentine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PostGenre: <\/strong>Reboot<\/em><\/strong> is your first new album since 1986. Why did it take 36 years to release a new record?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ronnie Foster: There were times I thought I wanted to do other projects during those years, but I ended up going into some production work for a while. I was just more in the mood to produce than perform. I also wrote for other people, which I enjoy a lot. I write a lot of music; I have enough written at home to make up 20 hours of recordings. But recording a new album was not at the front of my mind.<\/p>

At some point [Blue Note Records President] Don [Was] and I were talking, and he mentioned that if I wanted to come back to the label, it would be huge. I thought it was beautiful the label would take me back so openly. It\u2019s been great. I’m very excited to be back at Blue Note, and I’m humbled at the same time that such an impressive label decided to sign me almost fifty years after I left.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n

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