Reviewed by Larry Davis, Atlanta Chapter, American Theatre Organ Society

Larry-Douglas Embury, Organist-in-Residence at Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, is well on his way to becoming an Atlanta institution and one of Atlanta’s most widely-known musicians. After all, for the past seven years, he has played the great concert organ for hundreds of shows each year to audiences in a theatre of unparalleled size. From the summer season, when he has been called “the Star of the Coca-Cola Film Festival” by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, to the winter season with his sold-out “Larry, Carols and Mo” Christmas concerts, and in all other times and seasons, Larry Douglas is the musical fixture at the Fabulous Fox.

So well known and respected is he that audiences in other venues have been known to applaud and cheer when he is introduced.

Larry-Douglas’s life has been a musical journey, one that started at age four when his father acquired a piano for him. On his journey, he performed publicly from the age of ten, acquired degrees in piano and organ, did post-graduate study, and worked for various organ companies with several major instruments to his credit. He was organist at Bill Brewer’s famous “Pizza and Pipes” in California, and many of his most treasured moments come from his years of serving as music director for several churches. During his career, he has performed with Bette Midler and Audra McDonald, and accompanied numerous artists, including Ethel Waters, Tony Curtis, and Jennifer Holiday.

In 2002, Larry-Douglas visited the Fox Theatre for the first time, and immediately felt at home at the console of the great Möller organ. Those listening felt the same, and invited him to make Atlanta and the Fox his home.

The Möller concert organ of the Atlanta Fox Theatre is unique among theatre organs for many reasons. It is set apart by its size, one of only three original theatre organs with more than forty ranks of pipes. This vast supply of voices, including the marvelous orchestral reeds and the string bass, along with an ample supply of tuned and un-tuned percussions, make it a perfect instrument for the jazz repertoire. Mr. Embury says, “Mighty Mo is capable of handling any musical literature that you throw at it,” and he makes his point here not only in the jazz motif, but with his forays into popular theatre organ and classical styling.

Jazz is the unique American musical art form, and, as Larry-Douglas Embury demonstrates, “jazz” is an overall approach to music composition, arrangement and performance. When you think of a jazz, you think of piano, string bass, saxophone, clarinet horns, drums, cymbals, maybe a marimba or glockenspiel.  You may add strings, woodwinds and other voices and expand to a jazz orchestra.

These are the voices that Larry-Douglas uses here for the foundation of his music. In addition, Larry-Douglas has evoked a Hammond sound from the pipes of the Möller, and his extensive use of the Baldwin grand piano, played from the organ keyboards, reminds us of his skill as a cabaret pianist.

This recording includes selections from 1918 to the 1990’s and demonstrates that the art of jazz is not restricted to any time period, composer or performer, but is universal. Those who are theatre organ enthusiasts will find that that this recording is very different from others that you’ve heard, even on this organ. So, sit back and imagine yourself in the Fabulous Fox Theatre – jeweled curtain displayed, stars and clouds overheard – and enjoy Mighty Mo and All That Jazz.

Blue Skies

            In 1926, Irving Berlin composed what would become one of his most enduring and popular songs for Rodgers and Hart’s Betsy. So powerful was this music that the opening night audience demanded twenty-eight encores of the song, and a year later it was featured by Al Jolson in The Jazz Singer. From the initial clarity of solo piano, these blue skies gradually grow stormy and wild – and even a little gothic!

Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man of Mine

            Composed for the blockbuster musical Showboat, this Jerome Kern composition has been a blues favorite since 1927.  The beautiful Möller reeds and the glockenspiel take us back to that smoke-filled jazz club.

Oh, Lady Be Good

            Common wisdom in the theatre organ community is that no concert is complete without a Gershwin work, and this song written for the 1924 Broadway show, is the offering for this jazz collection. The most famous recording of this song was the 1947 “scat” version by Ella Fitzgerald. It is that kind of excitement that you find here in driving rhythm dominated by piano, horns, and the Hammond sound.

Moon River

            This enduring and enchanting Henry Mancini/Johnny Mercer song was written in 1961 for the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s and won the Academy Award for Best Song of that year. This is easy listening, featuring the harp and, once again, the saxophone.

Joe’s Song

            The original composition/arrangement by Larry-Douglas Embury is based on the simple pentatonic scale “black keys” melody often heard. Larry-Douglas honors his mentor, the legendary Joe Patten, with this arrangement, Joe having played the opening notes on the piano, and the closing ones on the great concert organ that is his legacy to the Fox Theatre and Atlanta.

Moonlight in Vermont

            In 1943, Margaret Whiting recorded this Blackburn/Suesdorff composition and it has since become a standard, performed by dozens of musical artists. Organ harp, glockenspiel, saxophone, and French horn are featured here.  

Ain’t Misbehavin’

            In 1929, Fats Waller recorded this song, which he had written with Brooks and Razaf, for Victor. It has been a favorite of the jazz world, having been recorded by almost every major jazz artist. It has proven popular among rock artists and even reached the top of country music charts. The Grammy Hall of Fame, National Recording Registry and RIAA Songs of the Century have all honored this song by inclusion in their lists. Undergirded throughout by the “Phantom Piano,” this song romps through voices in every chamber of the Möller, including full theatre organ.

When You Wish Upon a Star

            On Christmas Day 1929, when theatre goers entered the auditorium of the Fox Theatre for the first time, they saw above them the twinkling stars and wispy clouds of the “atmospheric” theatre. When Larry Douglas Embury came to Atlanta, he immediately appreciated the fascination of Fox audiences with the “stars and clouds,” and introduced When You Wish Upon A Star as a regular feature of organ programs. Originally written in 1940 by Washington and Harline for Walt Disney’s Pinocchio, the song has become an enduring and treasured part of our country’s musical heritage, as well as a favorite of Atlanta Fox audiences.

After You’ve Gone

             The oldest song of this group was written in 1918 by Layton and Creamer and has been recorded by numerous jazz performers from Armstrong to Hampton.  Here once again, the song opens, in true period style and tempo, with grand piano, string bass, cymbal, and horns. Then it evolves into modern tempo, with horns, Hammond, and the grand sound of the Möller in full theatre combination.

Don’t Blame Me

            McHugh and Fields published this song in 1933 and it was almost immediately recorded by both Rudy Vallee, Ethel Waters, and the Leo Reisman orchestra. Kate Smith included it in her Carnegie Hall program in 1963, proving the enduring popularity of this song. This is once again the cool jazz of the brush cymbals, sax, and French horn.

Slaughter on Tenth Avenue

Richard Rodgers is widely considered to be one the greatest composers of the American musical theatre. His profound compositional skills were applied to this great orchestral work, written to accompany a ballet sequence in the show “On Your Toes” in 1936.  The show for which was written has faded into obscurity but this work remains a favorite wherever great music is performed.

The piano part of this performance was recorded in-studio on a Steinway Grand, with Larry-Douglas imagining that he was accompanying himself on Mighty Mo. The organ part was recorded six weeks later. The effectiveness of the theatre organ both as a solo instrument and as part of an ensemble is evident here, and all of the grand theatre organ sound emerges in this grand finale.