All praise the B-3

Long before R2D2 was a gleam in George Lucas's eye, there was the Hammond B-3. Okay, so it's not a robot per se, but I would venture to guess that we might get to hear a few more B-3s played live if someone could figure out a way to use robotics to move the dern things from place to place.

The Hammond B-3 is the famous organ used in such R&B masterpieces as Al Green's "Take Me to the River". It's an electric organ that forces the sound through a sort of fan called a Leslie, affording it a lovely whirring texture.

Tomorrow night, the sublime vocalist (and former Washington Redskin) Dick Smith will be accompanied by an all-star outfit at his gig at The Islander, including Hammond B-3 player and all-round keyboardist Greg LaMont. Throw David "Git" Cole into the mix, and you've got a hot night. The performance starts at 7:00 PM.

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