Jazz Articles about Skip Heller

Skip Heller: Out of Time

by Chris M. Slawecki
November 30, 2005

Certain live recordings seem to maintain the feel of the performance and venue and lose nothing in the documentation of the event. This trio date recorded at a small Philadelphia club, with guitarist Skip Heller joined by drummer John F. Kennedy and organist Lucas Brown, is one of those special live recordings. You can almost smell the smoke and beer; you can definitely feel the warm, sympathetic, and swinging musicianship.

Heller's music makes him sound like an everyday ...

Skip Heller: It's Like That: The Organ Combo Anthology 1998-2004

by AAJ Staff
November 27, 2005

In its heyday during the 1960s, organ jazz was scorned by the critics and embraced by the people. It was a populist form of jazz that could be heard in many working class bars in seemingly every black neighborhood in America. The organ trio would hold forth--just organ, guitar, and drums--playing swinging, blues-drenched music. And no city was more synonymous with organ jazz than Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In the 1980s, when guitarist Skip Heller came up, he learned his ...

Skip Heller: Out of Time & Bear Flag

by Rex Butters
September 15, 2005

Guitarist Skip Heller continues his organ trio odyssey with two new releases, each featuring a different rhythm section and very different programs. Out of Time recorded live at Tritone in Heller's original home of Philadelphia features organist Lucas Brown and drummer John F. Kennedy. The program consists of a collection of old chestnuts chosen to evoke a period of Philly jazz in effect while an underage Heller snuck into clubs. Even with the Californiana of the title, Bear Flag includes ...

Skip Heller: It's Like That: The Organ Trio Anthology 1998 - 2004

by C. Michael Bailey
October 17, 2004

The hyper-eclectic Skip Heller has most recently been attending the often-abused genre of guitar-organ jazz. The guitarist's most recent recordings, Fake Book , Battle in Seattle , and Homegoing were all devoted to this time-tested format, and in each case Heller revealed some element not otherwise considered when thinking of Hammond B3-driven jazz. It's Like That is an anthology containing music from these three discs, plus Career Suicide, Couch, Los Angeles, and previously unreleased live and studio cuts. ...

Skip Heller: Fakebook

by Chris M. Slawecki
April 8, 2004

When you read that youngblood guitarist Skip Heller has played with a wide range of musicians, it means a wide range of musicians – Todd Rundgren to Yma Sumac to Big Jay McNeely to Susanna Hoffs to NRBQ and more.

On Fakebook , Heller leads John Wicks on drums, Robert Drasnin on flute, clarinet, and alto sax, guest trumpeter Jay Roulston, and organ player Joe Doria (who sounds like he pulls double duty on keyboard bass) through ...

Eight Questions for Skip Heller

by C. Michael Bailey
March 12, 2004

Skip Heller looks like the love child Charlie Sheen, Lenny Bruce, and the young Art Pepper. He is tall and thin (Mr. Heller is a runner) with a plume of dark hair that would appear more comfortable on the mid-1950s streets of his native Philadelphia than the sunny climes of Southern California. The music he makes has just as diverse as the pedigree of his appearance. February saw the release of his newest recording, Fakebook , on Joel Dorn's imprint, ...

Skip Heller: Fakebook

by C. Michael Bailey
February 24, 2004

Skip Heller FakebookHyena Records2004Ever since I heard of Career Suicide and Homegoing , I have enthusiastically anticipated the next Skip Heller release. In 2003, Mr. Heller continued his organ trio investigations that began with Homegoing with the well-received live recording Battle in Seattle , where he hooked up with his current rhythm section of organist Joe Doria and drummer John Wicks, AKA Dose. Following that mini-tour of the Northwest, Heller entered the ...