Royce Murray, Hammond Organ Player, 2024 | Phoenix, AZ

Royce is a master of the Hammond organ, used in many genres of Black music: Gospel, the blues, R&B, and jazz. His apprentice is Dominique Holley.

Royce began taking music lessons at the age of 7 and continued until he was 17. He studied under various teachers to become proficient in playing every genre of music on both the organ and piano. His education included classical music from Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin; popular and jazz music from Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, and Fats Waller; and Gospel music from James Cleveland, Thurston Fraser, and Andre Crouch. He also learned from the approaches of renowned organists like Billy Preston, Maceo Woods, Jimmy Smith, and Earl Grant, interpreting music with deep emotional expression.

The Hammond organ, particularly the B3 model, has been a cornerstone in Black music genres like Gospel, Blues, R&B, and Jazz due to its affordability and versatile drawbars, which mimic pipe organ sounds. Paired with a Leslie speaker cabinet, it offered a rich, full sound that made it a staple in Black churches and a key part of Gospel music, eventually influencing jazz greats like Count Basie and Duke Ellington. Royce distinguished himself from the piano by using foot pedals to play bass lines, enabling them to perform bass, melody, and harmony simultaneously. He prioritized the bass pedal technique over modern simplifications that rely on the left hand for bass. This approach preserves the Hammond’s full functionality, offering greater freedom for expressive melody, harmony, and drawbar adjustments, continuing the legacy of African American church organists.

During the early 70s, Royce wrote for Barry White through Vadetta Publishing Co. and performed at a supper club called The Hanger in Compton, CA. He has played the organ at numerous churches in Southern California and the Phoenix, AZ Metropolitan area, as well as at nearly every jazz club in Maricopa County with the Royce Murray Jazz Ensemble.

Currently, Royce is playing traditional and contemporary Gospel music at Greater Progressive Christian Church in the Phoenix area under Pastor Christ Ransom’s leadership. His background in playing every genre of music allows him to express the traditional artistry associated with Black music culture as a universal language.