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Organ music has its roots in ancient Greece, played at games and events. Ed Alstrom plays modern organ music that has its own roots, deep in the blues. He is something of a newcomer to the 'blues scene', but he made a significant impact in 2025 with his self-produced debut album, Flee Though None Pursue, placing #15 in the 2025 Roots Music Report Top 200 and #1 in the Jazzy Blues category.
Alstrom started his journey in music when he began playing his family's Hammond M-3 at the age of five. Later, armed with a degree in Classical Organ Performance from Westminster Choir College in Princeton, N.J., and experience surviving disco lounges while playing in churches, Alstrom worked the stage with performers like Bette Midler, Chuck Berry, Leonard Bernstein, Herbie Hancock, Odetta, Dion -- and many others. But Alstrom hasn't ignored that ancient history of games with organ music – one of his weekend gigs is playing the organ at baseball's Yankee Stadium, which he has done since 2004.
With all that Hammond mastery, it was only natural, Alstrom says, that he would eventually become – a bluesman. His latest album, This Idea Of Humanity, finds him at the top of this blues game, crafting eloquent tales of love and life in fourteen original songs. Alstrom's majestic organ work simmers throughout, but his instrumental contributions also include piano, melodica, clavinet, synthesizer, Suzuki Andes, bass, guitar, percussion, and drums. Ed is in fact the sole musician and vocalist on a good portion of the album! His songs are intricately crafted visions of humanity that fascinate him; his gritty vocals enhance lyrical morality tales that spin from the whimsical to the sublime.
The album opens with a soaring Ray Charles-inspired love song, “Put You First,” sparked by a furious Hammond solo and Alstrom's fervent vocal proclaiming: “My love is deep and wide, a love that's strong and vast / I'm gonna put you first, and I'm gonna make it last.” The defiant blues anthem, “All I’m Gonna Do,” proclaims Alstrom's love for his music: “We’ve only so much time on this mortal coil / So I’m bringing my genius to a rolling boil / Communin’ with no one but my muse / And all I'm gonna do is play the blues.” This cut (as well as several others) features a melodic solo, which in Alstrom's hands works surprisingly well as a harmonica substitute.
The philosophical rhythms of “Humans” get to the essence of the album title: “See, I love this idea of humanity / It’s these humans I just can’t tolerate.” This and several other cuts feature the brilliant background vocals of Ula Hedwig. ”Nothing Good To Say” chugs along in a bluesy shuffle with its childhood lesson from Alstrom's past: “Son, hear me good, and I still hear my Daddy’s call / If you got nothing good to say, don't say nothing at all.”
“Bridesmaid” gets a sanctified church organ intro that becomes an updated blues version of the traditional “always a bridesmaid” theme: “Always the best man, never the groom.” Alstrom's childhood friend and fellow bluesman Jimmy Vivino shares the vocals on “Party Planner,” reviving their Sam and Dave-style gigs, with a soulful Hammond solo: “I say hey party planner, plan a party for me / I'm rid of this woman and I'm as happy as I can be.”
“Understanding” is Alstrom at his thoughtful best, not understanding the art of understanding, in an elegant slow blues: “I try to read expressions and feel synergy / Decode body language but all I get is ennui.” Alstrom's ode to the resilience of the blues, “Blues Keep Coming Back,” pushes the musical boundaries of the music in this multi-colored creation, adding drummer Don Guinta: “It's rooted in the cosmos, its fruit flowin’ with the streams / The blues keep coming back, unlikely as it sometimes seems.”
The upbeat “Go Ahead” explores the concept of letting others have their say, no matter what: “You can go on your tawdry spree, go ahead, go ahead / I ain't wasting no more energy, so go ahead.” The jazzy “Inquiring Minds” updates an old slogan: “Stop this division, hate and war / Inquiring minds can't take no more.”
“The Way Back” is a primal slow blues featuring Vivino on slide guitar: “But I got some kind of grip now, and there's still one thing that I know / Found my way most of the way back, but I still got a damn long way to go.” “Got To Stop” opens with a jaunty Ramsey Lewis piano vibe, listing personal vices that just have to go: “Got to shake my sordid past, or my next might be my last / I’ve got to stop.”
“So Hard” is a rocking song for the unsung workers of the world: “I’m sayin’ you should think about what other folks do / They’re doing it to make life better for you.” The closer, “Worry,” floats in on an airy progressive jazz intro enhanced by ethereal background vocals from Meredith Greenberg, offering Alstrom's key to happiness: “Don't worry about the world cause each spin might be its last.”
This Idea Of Humanity articulates Ed Alstrom's compelling musical visions of the humanity he tolerates with humor and compassion. It is a worthy follow-up to last year's successful debut and deserves an attentive listen. Jim White
BIOGRAPHY
Full bio @ www.edalstrom.com/ed-s-bio/
WEBLINKS
OS: www.edalstrom.com
FB: www.facebook.com/ealstrom
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