Les McCann(1935-2023)

He took a few piano lessons as a child, and played drums and sousaphone in high school band. He worked at a local theater, helping musicians unload their equipment in return for tickets to the concerts. After high school, he joined the Navy and won a talent contest as a singer, leading to an appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show". He didn't devote himself to playing piano until he was 20; one day in the post exchange, he heard a recording of pianist Erroll Garner playing "Lullaby of Birdland" and was enthralled.