John Abercrombie - While We’re Young. Manfred Eicher (prod.), James A. Farber (eng.). ECM 1489. CD.

The Free Spirits featuring John McLaughlin - Tokyo Live. John McLaughlin (prod.), Tatsuya Morokaji (eng.). Verve 314 521 870-2. CD.

Michael Shrieve - Fascination. Kurt Renker (prod.), Don Gilmore (eng.). CMP Records CMPCD 67. CD.

Soon after Jimmy Smith set the jazz world on its ear with his revolutionary organ playing back in the Fifties, it seemed that jazz organ trios became mired in formulaic repetition. Although the Hammond B-3 organ can be played with great expression, its monotonic sonority just doesn’t offer the diversity of a piano, sax or even electric guitar. But after years of neglect (and domination by the synthesizer), the organ has been on the comeback trail of late.

In quick succession, several new releases showcase the resurgence of organ/guitar/drum trios. While sharing the common challenge of having to rely solely on the organist for the bass line, these fusion-era musicians provide uniquely different presentations of the old formula.

On While We’re Young, guitarist John Abercrombie headlines a trio with Dan Wall on organ and Adam Nussbaum on drums. Those familiar with Abercrombie’s releases on ECM will hear a consonant tonality with his liberal use of add-on devices to mold the guitar into a soft, round electronic instrument. This approach meshes very nicely with the intrinsic tonal color of the Hammond organ and the overall sound is harmonically very rich. Nussbaum’s busy, but understated, drumming helps offset Wall’s rather uninspired bass organ lines. Though Abercrombie will display some of his rock roots with an occasional bent-string growl, While We’re Young is steeped in the bop organ trio tradition and has some difficulty getting off the ground.

John McLaughlin clearly had more of a jam-fest in mind when he brought in organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Dennis Chambers for Tokyo Live. From the first cut, this is a spirited, athletic romp with the spotlight on virtuoso soloing. DeFrancesco has the walking bop bass line down in his sleep and McLaughlin obliges him with his patented lightening guitar runs. Chambers provides tight, precise muscle on the drums, but ultimately even this trio can’t escape a certain sameness in expression that hampers repeated listening.

The real surprise of this survey, though, is Michael Shrieve’s Fascination. The erstwhile Santana drummer enlisted guitarist Bill Frisell and organist Wayne Horwitz in a moody, twisting exercise in jazz-rock discovery. From the opening notes of "Sam the Man," with a brooding bass line borrowed from Miles Davis’ Agartha, Fascination thoroughly eschews the old, worn jazz organ clichés. Horwitz casts wide swatches of massive organ notes over which Frisell sweeps his infinitely variable guitar pastiches. In characteristic understated fashion, Shrieve provides clear, sinewy propulsion without superfluous polyrhythmic posturing.

The apparent lack of excitement on While We’re Young may be due in part to ECM’s characteristic airless sound. While all the tonal structure and texture is carefully reproduced (even in the cymbals), this recording lacks a certain air and sparkle. It also requires a good boost on the volume control to get it to wake up. Tokyo Live is better, with stronger bass and a better sense of stage, but it suffers from a dryness that plaques many Japanese live recordings (vide the various Budokan releases and Eric Clapton’s Just One Night).

Fascination, on the other hand, is another tour-de-force from the German label CMP Records. Their sound can best be described as combining ECM-like precision with that cavernous quality one hears on Andreas Vollenweider’s offerings. On "The Glass Tent," Shrieve tunes his bass drum very low and loose and its contrast with the shimmering cymbal work is astonishing. Horwitz joins in with spacey, stereo organ effects and Frisell’s guitar pierces through the air with great power and drama.

Upon reflection, the sonic quality of these releases certainly impacts the musical experience, but Fascination more than holds its own musically. While Jimmy Smith’s invention of the jazz organ language can’t be denied, it’s great fun to hear the efforts of a new generation.

Siegfried P. Duray-Bito