Sad News: Joe Andersen Passes

It’s beautiful outside and I have many things to do, but everything must wait. I feel compelled to write something after reading about Joe Andersen’s death in today’s Wisconsin State Journal. “Cadillac Joe,” as he liked to be called, was a well respected jazz  and blues Hammond B3 organist for over 30 years in the Madison area. He played as a sideman for years until starting the Blind Wolf  Blues Band, and later the Cadillac Joe Band, and the Joe Andersen Jazz Organ Group. Among other accomplishments his band originated the Monday night Hammond B3 Night that became a tradition at Cafe Montmartre, was the house band at Luther’s Blues during it’s heyday, played at Jazz at Five, and won the 2001 Isthmus Readers Poll as Madison’s best blues band.

Joe had been dealing with a rare cancer over the last 3 years, but it still comes as a shock. Last week a friend told me Joe had been admitted to the hospital with a bad infection, the result of a weakened immune system from all the cancer treatments. Now Joe’s gone.

I knew Joe through his brother Don, another sax player. Our sax quartet recorded a few times in his basement studio, and once played as a horn section behind The Blind Wolf Blues Band. I went to hear his bands play, and I ran into him occasionally around town.

The last time I saw him was a few years ago when the great jazz organist, Tony Monaco, played at Jazz At Five. Joe was very excited to hear Tony. He described frequent emails and conversations with Tony and referred to him as his mentor. At the time, Joe had just finished his first series of chemo treatments, but was  focused on improving his playing and reforming a band. He needed a new guitar player since his son was now extremely busy with his own band, Aaron Williams and the Hoodoo.

I did not know Joe well but I know he was a dedicated musician, and a genuinely good guy. He will be missed by his family, friends, and the music community. You can read more about Joe at this site set up to promote a benefit for him last December, and in the excerpt below from the International Archives for the Jazz Organ site when he was chosen organist of the month.

According to the newspaper obituary, a memorial service will be held at 11 AM, Tuesday, August 4th at the Olson-Holzhuter-Cress Funeal Home in Deefield. The family will greet friends from 10 AM until the time of the service.

From the IAJO site:

Joe tells his story how he came to the organ: In the mid 60’s I bought a Farfisa organ and taught myself to play best I could by listening and playing along with records. I learned songs like 96 Tears, House of the Rising Sun and other “garage band tunes” of the day. I bought every record I could that had some organ on it. One of those records was a Spencer Davis Group album … There was a tune called “Blues In F” on this album that totally knocked me out. In fact I can listen to that cut today and still be amazed by the incredible Hammond/Leslie sound on that cut. At the time I had no idea who the organist was or how he got that sound, but I literally wore out that track listening to it. It didn’t take long however to figure out that I couldn’t make my Farfisa sound like that. A trip to the local “hippie” music store revealed the truth to me. In a separate little room was what I thought was a church organ. Of course it was a B3. I was not initially impressed. At the time it looked like something that should be in my grandma’s parlor. They assured me this was the best, so they started it for me and I sat down to play a little. I don’t know how to really describe what happened next but when the store closed, they politely asked me to leave. Frankly I was still a kid and not much of a player yet, but this instrument brought out things in me I didn’t know existed. I think that may be the true beauty of the Hammond organ, if you have anything at all inside you, it will coax it out of you if you let it. That was 1969 and I’m of course still playing the Hammond. I’ve also played pianos and synthesizers over the years but have never gone with out a Hammond. I think most Hammond players probably feel the same, but when I sit down in front of the instrument, it’s like I’m home, everything is right and day to day hassles are gone, at least for the time I get to play. Gigs are great, some amount of notoriety is nice, but simply playing the instrument is my greatest musical pleasure. Joe Andersen