Hammond eggs

Grits let "The Cat" out of The Bag

by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

They say you can't know whether or not you like something until you've tried it. In that case, John Davis should know exactly what he likes. In the last 15 years, Davis has left footprints all over the musical map. The bassist, who cut his teeth with garage punk superstars The Gruesomes, has toyed around with the blues, jazz, jive, funk and even hillbilly swing. And these days, Davis lends his plucking skills to his latest labour of love, Grits.

It's difficult to classify this particular style of music as jazz, soul or blues because it represents a brief and exhilarating period in the late '60s when the three genres met on equal ground and shook hands. This cross-pollination, in turn, had a profound effect not only on the three styles that informed it, but also on much of the music that would follow, particularly funk and acid jazz. "People are familiar with this sound through sampling," remarks Davis. "If you've heard 'Chilly Hot' by US3, you've heard the riff from Jimmy Smith's 'Funky Broadway.' Likewise, The Pharcyde have sampled 'Yeah You're Right' by The Meters."

With the acid jazz connection in place, it's not surprising to find Bullfrog's Don Cummings (keys) and Chris Swain (guitar) joining Davis and his fellow Crazy Rhythm Daddy Robert Kraft (drums). The backbone of Grits's easygoing stew is Cummings's Hammond organ. Not as a flashy focal instrument, but rather as the glue which holds the mix together. "The organ fills in all the space," Davis points out. "The guitar's at one end, the bass is at the other, and the Hammond is right between them."

While it would be nice to hear Grits using a genuine Hammond B-3, the sheer mass of such an instrument prohibits that possibility. "I've known a few people who owned B-3s," says Davis. "It takes five people to move one." Thus audiences will have to be content with Cumming's xb-2, a sleeker, space-age variation on the classic B-3 blueprint. "Although Don still has an old, vintage Leslie organ at home, the kind with the revolving speaker inside. It's always exploding on him, so he's constantly reading books like 'Small Motor Repair.' I swear, every time I visit him, the thing's in 50 pieces."

Grits serve it up every Monday at Monkey House (20 Roy E.) for two cheap bucks, 10pm