Shirley Scott was born on March 14, 1934, and she passed away on March 10, 2002. She was an American jazz organist. Her music combined different styles, including bebop, blues, and gospel. She was called "Queen of the Organ."
Life and career
Scott was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father ran a jazz club in the basement of the family home, and her brother played the saxophone. When she was eight years old, Scott started taking piano lessons. After she joined Philadelphia High School for Girls and received a scholarship, Scott switched to playing the trumpet and performed in the all-city schools band.
She earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Cheyney University, located in Cheyney, west of Philadelphia. Later in life, Scott returned to the university as a teacher.
In the 1950s, she played the Hammond B-3 organ. Her recordings with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis included the song "In the Kitchen." Influenced by gospel and blues, she played soul jazz in the 1960s with Stanley Turrentine, who became her husband during that time. The couple divorced in 1971. Although organ trios became less popular in the 1970s, they became popular again in the 1980s, and she recorded music once more. In the 1990s, she played piano in a trio and performed at venues in Philadelphia.
Scott’s success in the music industry led to her own recordings with Prestige Records. Her first album as a bandleader, Great Scott!, was released in 1958. She performed with bassist George Duvivier and drummer Arthur Edghill as the leader of the trio. The album included blues and soul songs, covers of Cole Porter’s "All of You," Latin-influenced tunes, and songs like "Brazil" and "Nothing Ever Changes My Love for You." Other covers included Ray Noble’s "Cherokee" and Miles Davis’s "Four," as well as her own song "The Scott." Scott chose to include a bassist in her recordings instead of a typical melodic instrument, which allowed her to focus on the organ.
Despite her talent, Scott faced challenges being taken seriously in a male-dominated industry. In the liner notes for her original release, it was written: "Shirley Scott is a girl. At the organ, she does a man-sized job." Scott continued to work and released a second album, Shirley’s Sounds, followed by small group albums such as Soul Searching (1959) and Soul Sister (1960). Throughout her life, she led many small group ensembles, showing her love for music.
Scott was interested in the business and academic aspects of jazz. She taught jazz history and piano at Cheyney University, Pennsylvania, and earned a bachelor of arts (B.A.) and a master of arts (M.A.) degree. She also received two Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, which helped support her academic work. Between 1992 and 1993, she appeared on the television show You Bet Your Life. She was hired as a musical director by Bill Cosby, who had first heard her perform in clubs in the 1950s. She also worked as a church choir director.
Scott was married to Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis for many years, and their collaboration in music was significant. After ending her marriage to Davis in 1960, she married saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, whom she met during a performance in Panama. They married in 1961 and worked together on many recordings, including Common Touch and Girl Talk. After her second marriage, Scott continued to tour and recorded over 50 albums. She also had five children: two sons from her first marriage and three daughters from her second marriage.
Instrument and style
Scott was an expert at playing the Hammond B3 organ and was known for her musical talent and creative melodies. She did not begin her career as a professional organist. Born into a family with a strong musical background, she was expected to play an instrument. As a child, she learned the piano and later played the trumpet in high school. She was skilled at the piano and in the mid-1950s played piano with John Coltrane at a nightclub in Philadelphia. One day, a club owner asked her to fill in as an organist, and she quickly developed her unique sound. In 1955, she began playing the organ and worked with Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, gaining recognition nationwide. One of her early successes was the Cookbook album, which featured saxophonist Eddie Davis and became a hit on the jazz charts. She was inspired by Jackie Davis and Jimmy Smith, who were the first organists to influence her. She said, "Davis and Smith were truly the first two organists who inspired me to pick up the instrument."
Scott introduced a new way to play the B-3 organ, making its sound feel lighter and more spiritual. Her music combined rhythmic bebop harmonies with expressive, lyrical playing. Her deep connection to the blues and gospel styles helped her stand out as a unique and talented organist. In her later recordings for the Cadet label, such as Mystical Lady (1971), Lean on Me (1972), and Superstition (1973), she explored different rhythms and blended funky jazz with pop and R&B music. Scott’s work showed her ability to adapt and expand the possibilities of jazz music.
Death
Scott received an $8 million agreement in 2000 from American Home Products, the companies that make the diet drug fen-phen. She died from heart failure in 2002 at Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia.
Legacy
Scott was an important person in the jazz movement known as soul jazz. While musicians like Jimmy Smith and Jack McDuff are often mentioned when discussing the Hammond B3 organ, Scott developed her own way of playing the instrument and used it in a special way. In an industry where most people were men, Scott was willing to try new things with the organ and helped others value the instrument more in the world of jazz.
Discography
- 1958: Great Scott! (Prestige)
- 1958: Scottie (Prestige)
- 1959: Scottie Plays the Duke (Prestige)
- 1959: Soul Searching (Prestige)
- 1958–1960: Shirley's Sounds (Prestige) – released in 1961
- 1958–1960: The Shirley Scott Trio (Moodsville)
- 1960: Soul Sister (Prestige) – with Lem Winchester; released in 1966
- 1960: Mucho, Mucho (Prestige) – with The Latin Jazz Quintet
- 1960: Like Cozy (Moodsville) – released in 1962
- 1961: Satin Doll (Prestige) – released in 1963
- 1958–1961: Workin' (Prestige) – released in 1967
- 1960–1961: Stompin' (Prestige) – released in 1967
- 1961: Hip Soul (Prestige) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1961: Blue Seven (Prestige) – with Oliver Nelson, Joe Newman; released in 1966
- 1961: Hip Twist (Prestige) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1961: Shirley Scott Plays Horace Silver (Prestige)
- 1962: Happy Talk (Prestige) – also released as Sweet Soul in 1965
- 1963: The Soul Is Willing (Prestige) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1963: Drag 'em Out (Prestige)
- 1963: Soul Shoutin' (Prestige) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1964: For Members Only (Impulse!) – with Oliver Nelson
- 1964: Travelin' Light (Prestige) – with Kenny Burrell
- 1958–1964: Now's the Time (Prestige) – released in 1967
- 1964: Blue Flames (Prestige) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1964: Great Scott!! (Impulse!) – with Oliver Nelson
- 1964: Everybody Loves a Lover (Impulse!) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1964: Queen of the Organ [live] (Impulse!) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1965: Latin Shadows (Impulse!) – with Gary McFarland
- 1966: On a Clear Day (Impulse!)
- 1966: Roll 'Em: Shirley Scott Plays the Big Bands (Impulse!) – with Oliver Nelson
- 1966: Soul Duo (Impulse!) – with Clark Terry
- 1967: Girl Talk (Impulse!)
- 1968: Soul Song (Atlantic) – with Stanley Turrentine
- 1969: Shirley Scott & the Soul Saxes (Atlantic) – with King Curtis, Hank Crawford, David "Fathead" Newman
- 1970: Something (Atlantic)
- 1971: Mystical Lady (Cadet)
- 1972: Lean on Me (Cadet)
- 1973: Superstition (Cadet) – with Richard Evans
- 1974: One for Me (Stata East) – with Harold Vick, Billy Higgins
- 1978: The Great Live Sessions (ABC/Impulse!) [2LP] – with Stanley Turrentine; recorded in 1964
- 1989: Oasis (Muse)
- 1991: Great Scott! (Muse)
- 1991: Blues Everywhere (Candid)
- 1991: Skylark (Candid)
- 1992: A Walkin' Thing (Candid) – with Terell Stafford, Tim Warfield
- 2023: Queen Talk: Live at the Left Bank (Reel To Real/Cellar Music Group) – recorded in 1972
- 1969: The Best of Shirley Scott With Stanley Turrentine (Prestige PR 7707)
- 1970: The Best of Shirley Scott With Stanley Turrentine/For Beautiful People (Prestige PR 7773)
- 1993: Workin' (Prestige) (compilation of Workin' + Stompin')
- 1994: Soul Shoutin' (Prestige) (compilation of The Soul Is Willing + Soul Shoutin')
- 1998: Legends of Acid Jazz: Shirley Scott (Prestige) (compilation of Hip Soul + Hip Twist)
- 1998: Stanley Turrentine & Shirley Scott: Priceless Jazz (GRP) (includes 3 tracks from Scott's Queen of the Organ and 5 tracks from Turrentine's Let It Go, both originally on Impulse!)
- 1999: Soul Sister (Prestige) (compilation of Soul Sister + Travelin' Light)
- 2001: Like Cozy (Prestige) (compilation of The Shirley Scott Trio + Like Cozy)
- 2001: Shirley Scott: Talkin' Verve (Verve) (includes tracks from 9 albums: Impulse! AS-9051/AS-9067/AS-9073/AS-9093/AS-9115/AS-9119/AS-9133