Odell Brown

Odell Elliott Brown Jr. (February 2, 1940 – May 3, 2011) was an American jazz organist. Brown was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He was mainly active in the late 1960s and early 1970s, playing in a soul jazz and jazz funk vein, and was often billed with his backing band as Odell Brown & the Organ-Izers. The band was originally formed in Nashville in 1961. His most popular record was 1967's Mellow Yellow, which reached #173 on the Billboard 200. The band's personnel was O'Dell Brown, organ, Artee "Duke" Payne and Tommy Purvis, tenor saxophones, Curtis Prince, drums.^[1]

Brown also co-wrote Marvin Gaye's hit single "Sexual Healing". He played electric piano with Marvin Gaye in the late 70's, early 80's. Brown also accompanied singer Johnny Nash in the 1970s, and arranged and conducted an album with Minnie Riperton on Epic records.

Brown has been living in Richfield, Minnesota since the early 1990s, to stabilize his professional and personal life. He died in 2011 in Richfield, Minnesota.

Discography

As leader

• Raising the Roof (Cadet Records, 1966)
• Mellow Yellow (Cadet, 1967)
• Ducky (Cadet, 1967)
• Odell Brown Plays Otis Redding (Cadet, 1969)
• Free Delivery (Cadet, 1970)
• Odell Brown (Paula Records, 1974)

As sideman

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• with Sonny Stitt-Bunky Green Soul in the night (Cadet, 1966)
• with Dorothy Ashby Dorothy's harp (Cadet, 1969)
• with Eddie Harris "The reason why I'm talking S**t !"(Atlantic, 1975)
• with Marvin Gaye Live (Tamla, 1976)

References

1. ^ Charts, Allmusic

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