27 Mar
Soul Serenade by Gene Ludwig
- Written by Lee Prosser
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One of the unsung heroes of the Hammond B-3 organ, Pittsburgh's Gene Ludwig has been a healthy presence on his hometown scene for over four decades now, yet he's far from being the household name that brings major record deals and tour dates. Ludwig's dominant claim to fame has been the brief time he spent working with celebrated guitarist Pat Martino, hitting the Prestige studios once for a Sonny Stitt date, and a long unavailable mid-60's side he cut for the Mainstream label, ORGAN OUT LOUD!, that also featured drum whiz Randy Gillespie. Thanks now to his alliance with Loose Leaf Music, Ludwig can now be heard on SOUL SERENADE, his latest disc for the label and a follow-up to the critically-acclaimed BACK ON THE TRACK. Ludwig's sound is footed in the blues and the type of soul-drenched material that has been making it big thanks to a revival of the B-3 playing style. We even get to hear Ludwig take a seat at the piano thanks to the multi-tracking applied to his own "Rejoicin'." The title track hits that medium "in-the-pocket" type of groove that drummer Kenny Washington likes to call "the adult tempo" and it proves to be the centerpiece of the entire set. Supported nicely by drums, guitar, and tenor saxophone, the classic organ combo instrumentation, Ludwig's backing musicians have just as much to say as he does and solo space is dealt out evenly. Taken as a whole, SOUL SERENADE makes its mark as one the more enjoyable organ sets as of late and it keeps in the forefront one of the music's unacknowledged talents. For information on obtaining this and other Loose Leaf releases by mail, contact them by writing
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Additional Info
- Artist / Group Name: Gene Ludwig
- CD Title: Soul Serenade
- Genre: Straight-Ahead / Classic
- Year Released: 2000
- Record Label: Loose Leaf Music
- Musicians: Gene Ludwig (Hammond B3 organ), Ken Karsh (guitar), Tom Wendt (drums), J. Willis (tenor sax on tracks 1 & 4), Don Aliquo Jr. (tenor sax on tracks 2,6,7 & 8)
- Label Website: -
- Rating: Five Stars
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Straight-Ahead / Classic - CD Reviews
