Three masters of Hammond B3 organ -- Reuben Wilson, Jimmy McGriff and Joey DeFrancesco -- come to Tokyo in June for a rare communal display of their soulful hard bop sound.

In the '60s, Wilson was one of the stalwarts of the Philadelphia club scene, a city dotted with B3 organ clubs. After retreating to the studio for much of the '70s and '80s as a sideman, he re-emerged as a leader again after his organ licks became regular samples for hip-hop DJs. His latest recording, "Organ Blues," offers his signature "greasy" finger work and blues-based jams.

McGriff, in contrast, has hardly let a year go by without a release since his first in 1963. One doesn't have to go back to the just re-released "Giants of the Organ in Concert" (a quintessential 1973 session on P-Vine Records) to hear his mastery; he remains as vital and soulful as ever.

DeFrancesco, the youngest of the three, led the pack of new, young organists in the early '90s. Inspired by his father, also a Philly-based master of the B3, he's the jazziest of the three, with long, lean boplike solos, and plenty of experience jamming with jazz players of all persuasions.

Unlike horn sections, organ players rarely get a chance to show off their chops by trading solos with other organists. With drums, sax and guitar, it'll be crowded on stage, but hearing them trade their unique styles will show just why there are so many addicts of "vitamin B3."