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In the early `70s, low priced bargain LP's and cassettes where sold on gas stations in bulk bins, and this was my first$2 LP purchase and encounter with Kjell Öhman and his fist "Organ Jazz" album. A pivotal album today in the Scandinavian jazz organ heritage, a collector's item and unfortunately never released on CD. I don't know about the ownership and royalties to the early Kjell Öhman jazz organ albums, but Öhman took charge with label Opus 3 and invited his old friends to record "Hammond Connection", album covering three of the "Öhman trademark" tunes of "Skating in Central Park", "Stockholm Sweetin'" and "Summerwind" from the old albums, arranged and played just like in the old days. With solid backing of veteran guitarist Rune Gustafsson, drummer Leif "Gus" Dahlberg and double bass great Mads Vinding, the Öhman organ vibe is back on all tracks and his block chord and single-line solos are even more impressive now than in the old days. By adding the late great Arne Domnerius on alto saxophone on a handful of the tunes, classic standards like "Startdust", "Misty" and "But Beautiful", is a pleasant listing of interplay between five musicians having played together, on and off, for the last 40 years. "Blues for Opus", a musical tribute to the album label Opus 3, is in fact one of my favorite tracks on the album. All in all; "Hammond Connection" is a great mainstream organ ONLY album by the man with approx 3000 recordings under his belt as pianist, organist, keyboardist, arranger and composer, a very balanced and crisp Opus 3 recording filled with good memories from the hey-days of Scandinavian jazz organ scene today.
But we're still waiting for the CD re-issue of Öhman's original jazz organ albums from the late `60s and early `70s.....but someone out there needs to know where all original tapes are stored??
