Melvin Rhyne
1936 – 2013
Melvin Rhyne (organist) was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on October 12, 1936, and began playing piano as a child. By age 19, Melvin was playing piano with tenor saxophonist (Rahsaan) Roland Kirk but soon switched to the Hammond B3 organ. In 1959, he joined the newly formed Wes Montgomery Trio, recording historic albums on Riverside Records, including Wes’s debut as a leader, The Wes Montgomery Trio: A Dynamic New Sound. Melvin toured with Wes off and on until 1964.
In the late 1960s, Melvin moved to Madison for a few years and then to Milwaukee. During the 1970s and ’80s, he performed at the Brother’s Lounge (later the Jazz Oasis), the Pfister Hotel, the Wyndham Hotel, the Main Event, The Jazz Estate, and Eddie Jackson’s, among many other places. Melvin was a local hero, admired by the jazz community for his ability to play hip, sophisticated, melodic lines with his right hand while maintaining beautifully constructed bass lines with his left. However, the rest of the world was unaware that he was continuing to perform at the height of his powers until he was “rediscovered” in the early 1990s. Brian Lynch invited Melvin to perform on his album At the Main Event, recorded for Criss Cross Records in December 1991. This began a string of recordings by Melvin on Criss Cross, including eight of his own albums and recordings with guitarist Peter Bernstein and others.
In 1997, Melvin received the Arts Midwest Jazz Masters Award. Soon after, he moved back to Indianapolis and continued to perform and record. He died of lung cancer on March 5, 2013, in his hometown.
Listen to Melvin Rhyne perform “At the Main Event” with the Brian Lynch Quintet featuring Brian Lynch on trumpet, Ralph Moore on tenor sax, Peter Bernstein on guitar, and Kenny Washington on drums, recorded December 29, 1991 in New York City.
