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Gene Ludwig / Pat Martino Trio: Young Guns
by Jack Bowers
The name Young Guns seems ironically amiss until one learns that this recording dates from 1968-69 when organist Gene Ludwig was thirty years old, guitarist Pat Martino twenty-three and drummer Randy Gelispie somewhere in that neighborhood, long before he became fondly known as “Uncle G." The organ trio was in its heyday then, and this one was caught on tape during an exciting live date at Club 118 in Louisville, KY. How many other such performances have been lost forever ...
read moreGene Ludwig: Love Notes of Cole Porter
by Dan McClenaghan
The Hammond B3 organ combo has always seemed like a working man's jazz group. Drums/guitar/organ groups, often with a saxophone, was a brand of music brought to popularity in the mid-fifties by Jimmy Smith, with interest in the B3 soul jazz sound exploding in the sixties with the work of Jimmy McGriff and Jack McDuff, and the establishment of organ rooms in centers of working class cities like Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, Newark, and Gene Ludwig's home turf, Pittsburgh.
read moreGene Ludwig: Love Notes Of Cole Porter
by Dan Bilawsky
The release of Gene Ludwig's Love Notes Of Cole Porter is a bittersweet event. While this collection of music shines a spotlight on one of the great, under-recognized organ talents in the world of jazz, it also marks the final recording from this mainstay of the Pittsburgh jazz scene. Ludwig passed away suddenly in the summer of 2010, leaving behind his loving wife Pattye, a rich legacy and solid reputation within the jazz community, and an unreleased collection of Cole ...
read moreGene Ludwig: Love Notes Of Cole Porter
by Justin Vargo
Gene LudwigLove Notes Of Cole PorterBig O Records2011 Nearly two years prior to his untimely death in July of 2010, Pittsburgh organist Gene Ludwig recorded this tribute to composer Cole Porter. Thanks to the efforts of Ludwig's wife and the folks at Big O Records, Ludwig's final recording is now seeing the light of day. Coming off of the stellar Duff's Blues (18th & Vine, 2008), a date featuring Bill Warfield's ...
read moreGene Ludwig: Live in Las Vegas
by Terrell Kent Holmes
When Hammond B-3 maestro Gene Ludwig performed recently at JALC's tribute to fellow Pittsburgh native Stanley Turrentine, his playing was certainly up to the occasion. Unfortunately, the sound system at the Allen Room wasn't. On certain notes the organ faded out or crackled like poor radio reception. These audio problems might have diminished Ludwig's performance, but they failed to defeat his spirit as he forged ahead through the faulty connection. Live in Las Vegas, recorded at the Blue Note in ...
read moreGene Ludwig: Hands On
by David A. Orthmann
Hands On is the fourth Gene Ludwig release on the Blues Leaf imprint since the former Sonny Stitt and Pat Martino confederate was rediscovered by producer Jack Kreisberg in the mid-1990s. Amidst an ever-growing number of recordings featuring capable Hammond B-3 organists, Ludwig’s discs always stand out. This time he leads an able band of musicians from his home base of Pittsburgh, PA. A wide embrace of material and moods enables Ludwig and company to avoid the clichés and repetition ...
read moreGene Ludwig: Hands On
by Michael P. Gladstone
This is a very likeable B3 album, and notably for people who are not enamored of tenor sax-organ dates. Gene Ludwig, a longtime Pittsburgh musician with a history of 40 years of plugging away at this genre, has pulled out all the “stops." Ludwig has recorded seven sessions including one on Muse in 1979, all with local musicians, and on independent labels. You've got to hand it to someone who has consistently produced quality sessions and still comes back with ...
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