Killer B3
Killer B3 is a 90-minute documentary that puts you in front, behind and inside the more than four hundred pound keyboard often called the beast, the Hammond Organ. Killer B3 captures the spirit and passion of the players who have committed a lifetime to master the Hammond Organ, during a time when portable keyboards offered a more simplistic and portable way to make music.
The Hammond B3 is the signature model. It is like a pipe organ on steroids. At times, Producer/Director Murv Seymour and Director of Photography Joe Bamford will use a half-dozen cameras to show how organist navigate the HammondÂ’s two keyboards, thirty-six drawbars, twenty-five foot pedals and its host of buttons and switches which make the B3 come alive. You need the dexterity of an octopus to control a Hammond Organ. Many of those best at playing it are as old as the eighty year old instrument.
Killer B3 takes you cross-country, with stops in over a dozen cities in eight years. This includes; New York City, Harlem, Trenton, NJ, Philadelphia, Chicago, Berkeley, CA, Columbus, OH, Tampa, FL and Ft. Lauderdale, FL, Scottsdale, AZ, Maricopa, AZ.
An engineering marvel, the Hammond Organ was a fluke discovery by a man obsessed with inventing the next best thing. Laurens Hammond, a clock maker, accidentally created an instrument he couldnÂ’t even play.
Viewers will recognize the Hammond B3's sound, and maybe its look. The massive instrument is often heard but subtly seen. Its wooden legs are unmistakable. Some describe it as looking like a coffin on four legs, or a large piece of furniture. The Hammond Organ spits out one of the most unique sounds used in all styles of music, including; gospel, jazz, blues, rock, country, reggae and commercial soundtracks.