Joey DeFrancesco

In the late 1980s, DeFrancesco helped bring the Soul Jazz sound back into the limelight with his blazing Hammond B-3 runs and sustaining draw-bar organ sound. Coming from Philadelphia, the home city for many early organ greats, he earned himself a spot in Miles Davis' band when he was fresh out of high school. DeFrancesco is a talented trumpet player as well, learning a thing or two from Davis' pinched, muted tone. His father, Papa John, is a veteran organ player and helped set Joey on the right path, dancing over the floor petals and playing lightning-fast bebop runs like his idols Jack McDuff and Jimmy Smith. In fact, DeFrancesco's duets with McDuff are some of his best, with both players melding into one greasy, soul-shack sonority and creating an endless groove in the process.