The Sermon (Jimmy Smith album)

The Sermon! is the eleventh studio album by jazz organist Jimmy Smith recorded on August 25, 1957 and February 25, 1958 and released on Blue Note in 1959—Smith's fifteenth album for the label.

Background
The Sermon! was the second of two albums recorded on two dates at The Manhattan Towers Hotel Ballroom, the first was Smith's previous album, House Party (1958). Rudy Van Gelder used the ballroom as a recording studio for recording sessions in 1957-1958, while he was still using his parents' Hackensack, New Jersey home studio to record artists for Blue Note. He mainly used it for larger groups of musicians that would not fit in his parents' living room, or when New York was a more convenient location to record the artists involved.

Reception
AllMusic's Lindsay Planer described the album as "a prime example of Smith and company's myriad of talents."

August 25, 1957

 * Jimmy Smith – organ
 * Lee Morgan – trumpet
 * George Coleman – alto saxophone
 * Eddie McFadden – guitar
 * Donald Bailey – drums

February 25, 1958

 * Jimmy Smith – organ
 * Lee Morgan – trumpet
 * Lou Donaldson – alto saxophone ("The Sermon")
 * Tina Brooks – tenor saxophone ("The Sermon")
 * Kenny Burrell – guitar
 * Art Blakey – drums

Technical personnel

 * Alfred Lion – producer
 * Rudy Van Gelder – recording engineer
 * Reid Miles – design
 * Francis Wolff – photography
 * Ira Gitler – liner notes