The Three Sounds (also known as The 3 Sounds) were an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

piano trio A piano trio is a group of piano and two other instruments, usually a violin and a cello, or a piece of music written for such a group. It is one of the most common forms found in classical chamber music. The term can also refer to a group of musi ...

that formed in 1956 and disbanded in 1973. The band formed in

Benton Harbor Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is 46 miles southwest of Kalamazoo and 71 miles southwest of Grand Rapids. According to the 2020 census, its population was 9,103. It is the smaller, by population, of ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, United States, as the Four Sounds. The original line-up consisted of

Gene Harris Gene Harris (born Eugene Haire, September 1, 1933 – January 16, 2000) was an American jazz pianist known for his warm sound and blues and gospel infused style that is known as soul jazz. From 1956 to 1970, he played in The Three Sounds trio ...

on piano,

Andrew Simpkins Andrew Simpkins (April 29, 1932 – June 2, 1999) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Richmond, Indiana, he first became known as a member of the group The Three Sounds, with which he performed from 1956 to 1968.allmusic biography/ref> After ...

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

and

Bill Dowdy Bill Dowdy (August 15, 1932 – May 12, 2017) was an American jazz musician and teacher. He was the drummer with the jazz trio, The Three Sounds. The Three Sounds recorded over ten jazz albums from the 1950s through the early 1970s and played ...

on drums, along with saxophonist Lonnie "The Sound" Walker, who dropped out the following year. The group moved to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

and then

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, where, as the Three Sounds, they cut a record for

Riverside Records Riverside Records was an American jazz record company and label. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer, Jr, under his firm Bill Grauer Productions in 1953, the label played an important role in the jazz record industry for a decade. Riverside ...

, before signing an exclusive contract with

Blue Note In jazz and blues, a blue note is a note that—for expressive purposes—is sung or played at a slightly different pitch from standard. Typically the alteration is between a quartertone and a semitone, but this varies depending on the musical co ...

. Between 1958 and 1962, the group released nine albums for Blue Note. They toured nationally during this period, building a large following in jazz clubs across the country. The trio played and recorded with the likes of saxophonists

Lester Young Lester Willis Young (August 27, 1909 – March 15, 1959), nicknamed "Pres" or "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and occasional clarinetist. Coming to prominence while a member of Count Basie's orchestra, Young was one of the most i ...

Lou Donaldson Lou Donaldson (born November 1, 1926) is an American retired jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop ...

Stanley Turrentine Stanley William Turrentine (April 5, 1934 – September 12, 2000) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He began his career playing R&B for Earl Bostic and later soul jazz recording for the Blue Note label from 1960, touched on jazz fusion dur ...

and

Sonny Stitt Edward Hammond Boatner Jr. (February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982), known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of his ...

, cornet player

Nat Adderley Nathaniel Carlyle Adderley (November 25, 1931 – January 2, 2000) was an American jazz trumpeter. He was the younger brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, whom he supported and played with for many years. Adderley's composition " ...

, singer

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band appe ...

, and guitarist

Bucky Pizzarelli John Paul "Bucky" Pizzarelli (January 9, 1926 – April 1, 2020) was an American jazz guitarist. He was the father of jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli and double bassist Martin Pizzarelli. He worked for NBC as a staffman for Dick Cavett (1971) ...

, among others.

Samples in hip hop

The Three Sounds song ''"Put On Train"'', from the 1971 Gene Harris album The 3 Sounds was featured as the prominent background sample in the hip hop group

Beastie Boys Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...

song ''"What Comes Around"'' on their 1989 album ''

Paul's Boutique ''Paul's Boutique'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released on July 25, 1989, by Capitol Records. Produced by the Dust Brothers, the album is composed almost entirely from samples, and was recorded over two y ...

''. It previously stated here that this sample came from the Three Sounds album ''Live at the It Club'', recorded in 1970, however this was not released (on ''Live at the It Club Vol. 2'') until 2000.

Discography

*1958: ''

Introducing the 3 Sounds ''Introducing the 3 Sounds'' is the debut album by jazz group The Three Sounds featuring performances recorded in 1958 and released on the Blue Note label.

'' (Blue Note) *1958: '' Introducing the 3 Sounds Vol. 2'' (Blue Note) *1958: '' Branching Out'' (Riverside) with

*1959: ''

Bottoms Up! ''Bottoms Up!'' is the second album by jazz group The Three Sounds featuring performances recorded in 1958 and 1959 and released on the Blue Note label.

'' (Blue Note) *1959: ''

LD + 3 ''LD + 3'' is an album by jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson and The Three Sounds recorded for the Blue Note label and performed by Donaldson with Gene Harris, Andrew Simpkins, and Bill Dowdy.Lou Donaldson Lou Donaldson (born November 1, 1926) is an American retired jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist. He is best known for his soulful, bluesy approach to playing the alto saxophone, although in his formative years he was, as many were of the bebop ...

*1959: ''

Good Deal ''Good Deal'' is the third album by jazz group The Three Sounds featuring performances recorded in 1959 and released on the Blue Note label.

'' (Blue Note) *1960: '' Moods'' (Blue Note) *1960: ''

Feelin' Good "Feeling Good" (also known as "Feelin' Good") is a song written by English composers Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for the musical ''The Roar of the Greasepaint – The Smell of the Crowd''. It was first performed on stage in 1964 by Cy Gr ...

'' (Blue Note) *1960: '' It Just Got to Be'' (Blue Note) *1960: ''

Blue Hour The blue hour (from French ; ) is the period of twilight (in the morning or evening, around the nautical stage) when the Sun is at a significant depth below the horizon. During this time, the remaining sunlight takes on a mostly blue shade. T ...

'' (Blue Note) with

*1961: '' Here We Come'' (Blue Note) *1961: ''

Hey There "Hey There" is a show tune from the musical play ''The Pajama Game,'' written by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. It was published in 1954. It was introduced by John Raitt in the original production. In the show, Sid sings it to a recording device ...

'' (Blue Note) *1961: '' Babe's Blues'' (Blue Note) *1962: '' Out of This World'' (Blue Note) *1962: '' Black Orchid'' (Blue Note) *1959/62: ''

Standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

'' (Blue Note) released 1998 *1962: '' Blue Genes'' (Verve) *1963: '' Anita O'Day & the Three Sounds'' (Verve) with

*1963: '' The Three Sounds Play Jazz on Broadway'' (Mercury) *1963: '' Some Like It Modern'' (Mercury) *1964: '' Live at the Living Room'' (Mercury) *1964: '' Three Moods'' (

Limelight Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a type of stage lighting once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illumination is created when ...

) *1965: '' Beautiful Friendship'' (Limelight) *1966: '' Today's Sounds'' (Limelight) *1966: ''

Vibrations Vibration is a mechanical phenomenon whereby oscillations occur about an equilibrium point. The word comes from Latin ''vibrationem'' ("shaking, brandishing"). The oscillations may be periodic, such as the motion of a pendulum—or random, such ...

'' (Blue Note) *1967: '' Live at the Lighthouse'' (Blue Note) *1968: '' Coldwater Flat'' (Blue Note) *1968: '' Elegant Soul'' (Blue Note) *1969: '' Soul Symphony'' (Blue Note) *1970: '' Live at the 'It Club''' (Blue Note) - released 1996 *1970: '' Live at the 'It Club' Volume 2'' (Blue Note) - released 2000 *1971: '' The 3 Sounds'' (Blue Note) - actually a Gene Harris 'solo' album (Source: The Three Sounds Catalog - album index
accessed January 25, 2018)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Three Sounds, The American jazz ensembles from Michigan Blue Note Records artists Mercury Records artists Musical groups from Michigan Jazz musicians from Michigan 1956 establishments in Michigan