Jim Viner’s Incredible B3 Band
Comango!
jimvinersincredibleb3band.bandcamp.com
Jim Viner’s Iowa City music resumé goes back a ways, at least to the 1990s, in the bands Head Candy, Bent Scepters and Brother Trucker. Jim Viner’s Incredible B3 Band is chock full of IC veterans, like the organists Radoslav Lorković and Nate Basinger. The band’s personnel overlaps with The Diplomats of Solid Sound, led by Doug Roberson, who also plays here.
The musicians in this band have known each other and played together for many years, in various bands, but the strongest influence on the sound of Comango! is the Diplomats, who have a lock on the sixties-influenced rhythm and soul sound in Eastern Iowa. What’s different here is Viner’s leadership and song writing. Viner does a great job of making something new out of the soul sound of earlier bands like The Meters and Booker T and the MGs.
The drums and organs dominate the sound, which is true to Viner’s influences, but with players as accomplished as Basinger and Lorković, it’s more than a retro gesture. The Hammond B3 Organ sound is warm and sensual; in the hands of the best players (as we have here) it can both provide a smooth backdrop to the groove, and cut through the mix without ever sounding harsh. It’s actually quite difficult to play without sounding stiff and churchy, but both organists here have what it takes.
I suspect that one strong impetus behind this recording is to get tracks placed in film and television shows, as Viner has had some success in that field, notably with his song “If You’re Wrong (I Don’t Want To Be Right)” which was used in Madea’s Big Happy Family. The performances on this album are quite short; the title track is less than two minutes. This works for TV and film, but these songs beg to be stretched out into longer grooves. But if the worst that can be said of Comango! is that it really needs to be longer, it means that this is some mighty fine music.
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