To say that Ralph T. Lofton is an organist is surely understating the situation.

With his fingers on the keyboard since the age of nine, and with significant duties both with Bobby Jones Gospel beginning in 1986, and then later with BeBe and CeCe Winans on tour. With numerous organ and songwriting credits on piles of Gospel projects over the years, he has recently added his genius as one of the players on the various instrumental projects from Harborwood Records. Lofton also serves as Music Ministry Overseer at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Nashville, TN.

In this article, Ralph T. Lofton offers his perspective on the art of the Gospel organ. He describes his influences and offers valuable advice:


There were four organists that inspired me in my growing up, two of them have passed on.

The first was the late great Alfred Bolden, an organist from the 1960's and early 70's. He was a recording organist who mastered the organ in such a way I thought was phenomenal, with the way he set the drawbars, the timing in which he controlled the Leslie speaker switch, the way he utilized his left and right hand cjord structures, and his solo ability. To me, he was one of the greatest. Most musicians would know him, but I recommend that if you can find any of his records, listen and you will be amazed and extremely blessed by his music.

Another influence was the late Jesse (Spooky) Butler, from Memphis, TN. He was a Gospel organist who also played in the jazz arena. He also mastered the art of setting the drawbars to get really great sounds out of the organ. His chord structures were phenomenal. The one thing that intrigued me about him was how he could utilize four fingers to create chords and sometime not use his thumbs. I found that to be fascinating.

David Flagg is another innovative organist, someone who can create some amazing sounds and chords around vocals that I found to be astonishing. And finally, there’s Booker T. Jones of Booker T. and MG's, who is the organist of an R&B rhythm section that was popular in the 70's early 80's. He has the amazing ability as a solo organist to create certain sounds utilizing the drawbars and the percussion unit on the Hammond B3.

I believe that every musician has his way of setting and performing the organ.

My perspective on the subject is based around the anointing from God and how you allow Him to work through you. Of course, there are technical and human areas that one takes in consideration.

For instance, the use of the drawbars is one of the major factors. And throughout this discussion, this area will appear. I’ve learned, and am flattered that, a lot of musician think I have some type of secret in what setups I use, but it’s generally some of the same that other musicians use.

My approach is according to the song. Each song has a different personality, so my setup follows suit.

Then, there’s the area of chord structures, which also play a major role in the performance. For instance, if you’re playing with a pianist, your chords should be limited, in order to give the piano the lead role. The organ should create a tasteful mood around the piano.

Playing with a rhythm section is another area. This teaches one to become a team player, because you are dealing with five aspects of instrumentation, namely drums, bass guitar, rhythm guitar, keyboards/piano, organ.

Piano, guitar, and organ co-ordinate their chord structures and at the same time, break into their separate things. Give the anointing the opportunity to intervene. Here again, the organist utilizes the drawbars to create the right sound for the mood of the song.

This next area revolves around the Leslie speaker switch control, how and when to effectively use it. This is also a function I allow God’s anointing to manifest its power.

But in a technical sense, I believe the proper time to change the switch is between certain chord changes, to give maximum effect. And I also believe, if one is in tune with the Holy Spirit, the song, and the atmosphere, it will just feel right when to switch it on and off.

One of the most challenging things for a young organist to understand is to know the art, the difference, in playing organ in a church service and in a recording session. Be it live recording, or a studio set, there is a difference. Number one, your timing has to be impeccable. It has to be what we in the industry like to call ‘staying in the pocket’. Secondly, it’s important that you be consistent in what you play. For

Ralph Lofton's Work

Ralph Lofton has appeared on countless projects, including the above which put special emphasis on his organ skills. . Click on the above album covers to connect with the respective reviews.

example, certain chords throughout a song should be repeated. A setting of the drawbars, which would give a sound when playing single or double note parts (what I like to term signature lines), is something you may hear throughout a song.

A common pitfall to avoid pertains to your drawbar setup. It is important to carefully set the bars according to the song you're playing to have the right sound. You can easily have too many pulled out, or not enough. This is something to be mindful of.

It’s good to be an aggressive organist, but know when to be aggressive and when to lay back. This means knowing how to control your volume, your chord structures, your solo lines being in the proper place, the Leslie speaker on and off switch, and last but not least, always be mindful that what you play is to bless God, to touch and inspire somebody's life and not for self gratification. Always pray for God to remove self and allow Him to work through you, so that people will be blessed.

In closing, you have to always give God the Glory and Praise, for he is the one who blessed you with the gift, study to show yourself approved unto God. Love your gift, so that when people here you, they know you love what you do, they can feel the anointing of God, and that they see you are really having fun. Be happy with the Lord, and he will give you desires of your heart.

Psalms 37:4.