Blue Note's So Blue, So Funky, Vol. 1 is a 12-track compilation that highlights the funkiest soul-jazz organists that recorded for the label, whether it was a leader or as a sideman. Although there's a handful of cuts from the early '60s, such as "Face to Face" by the terrific, underrated Baby Face Willette, the compilation leans toward the funky fusions of the late '60s, such as Big John Patton's "Fat Judy," Lou Donaldson's "Everything I Do Is Gon' Be Funky (From Now On)," Jack McDuff's "Butter for Yo' Popcorn" and Grant Green's "Ain't It Funky Now." The best thing about this comp is that even though it has familiar names, not all of the material is readily available on CD, which makes it of interest to casual groove fans and serious collectors alike.

The Hammond organ, named after its inventor Laurens Hammond, debuted in 1935 as a cost-effective electro-acoustic alternative to the gigantic pipe organs mainly installed in churches. Among Hammond’s first customers were George Gershwin and Count Basie. Jazz pianists like Basie, Fats Waller, Wild Bill Davis and Milt Buckner were the founding fathers of the instrument’s international conquest, which led across all styles of popular music, from jazz to progressive rock, with its heyday in the 1960s and '70s…

Probably the greatest set in Baby Face Willette's all-too-slim discography, Stop and Listen matches the organist with the hugely sympathetic team of guitarist Grant Green and drummer Ben Dixon (the same trio lineup who recorded Green's debut LP, Grant's First Stand). With no saxophonist this second time around, it's just Willette and Green in the solo spotlight, and they play marvelously off of one another. As a soloist, Willette has a nimble, airy touch, and though he owes no debt to the modal style of Larry Young, he has a greater melodic imagination than many of his instrument's straight blues players…

Probably the greatest set in Baby Face Willette's all-too-slim discography, Stop and Listen matches the organist with the hugely sympathetic team of guitarist Grant Green and drummer Ben Dixon (the same trio lineup who recorded Green's debut LP, Grant's First Stand). With no saxophonist this second time around, it's just Willette and Green in the solo spotlight, and they play marvelously off of one another. As a soloist, Willette has a nimble, airy touch, and though he owes no debt to the modal style of Larry Young, he has a greater melodic imagination than many of his instrument's straight blues players…

Behind the 8 Ball (1965). Behind the 8-Ball was Baby Face Willette's second album for Argo and - unfortunately - the last one he would record as a leader, for reasons that aren't well-documented. Compared to his past releases, Behind the 8-Ball is short on original compositions (only two of eight tracks), but the emphasis here is more on Willette's deep roots in gospel and R&B, two circuits he worked extensively during his pre-Blute Note dues-paying days. This perhaps accounts for the brevity of the album - only two cuts top the five-minute mark - but it also provides a chance to hear Willette at his most soulful, playing the music he grew up with…