Les McCann

https://www.washingtonpost.com/obituaries/2024/01/02/les-mccann-jazz-pianist-dead-compared-to-what/

 

I’m admittedly very late on this one, as jazz pianist and vocalist Les McCann died back on December 29^th. Although I’m largely unfamiliar with his body of work, I finally decided that there were three reasons why I should note his passing:

 

·        He discovered Roberta Flack and got her signed to Atlantic Records. (The rest is history.)

·        He and his trio backed the great Lou Rawls on his splendid 1962 debut album, Stormy Monday.

·        Last, but certainly not least, his fiery 1969 Montreux Jazz Festival performance of “Compared To What” (with the rest of his trio, along with Eddie Harris on tenor saxophone and Benny Bailey on trumpet) brought this classic protest anthem to the attention of the wider world.