From iconic conductors to exclusive talent, jazz pianists have shaped the genre and revolutionized the piano’s role in music.

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From the smoky jazz clubs of New Orleans to the grand concert halls of New York City, the sound of the piano has been a cornerstone of jazz music. And indeed, there have been legendary jazz pianists who have taken this art form to new heights through their technical skills, cutting-edge improvisation, and natural love of music. In this article, we will celebrate the crème de los angeles crème, the jazz pianists who have left an indelible mark on the genre and continue to motivate new generations of musicians. .

While you read, pay attention to our Jazz Piano Classics playlist here.

The importance of the piano in jazz dates back to the days of Scott Joplin in the early 20th century, when ragtime – with its playful, percussive rhythms – proved to be a detail in the evolution of jazz music.

Ragtime piano gave rise to the more complicated and virtuoso “stride” style of James P. Johnson and Willie “The Lion” Smith (with its left-handed two-stroke locomotive accompaniment) in the 1920s and 1930s, which in turn once took Fats. Arguably one of the most productive jazz pianists in history, Tatum is a blind genius who created arguably the most densely polyphonic and complex pre-bebop piano style of all, fusing stride and swing.

In the mid-1940s, the bebop revolution, fueled by trumpeters Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, gave birth to a generation of artists (led by Bud Powell) who would swell the ranks of the most productive jazz pianists with a technique that tackled the Jazz Jazz Pianist. opting for syncopated melodies in the right hand with a trumpet-style phrasing. When the 1950s rolled around, others, such as Bill Evans, fused bop aesthetics with an informed sensibility through classical and romantic music, generating a densely harmonized, supremely lyrical, and richly expressive piano style. Evans’ influence, like that of Bud Powell before him, is ubiquitous, and many longtime jazz piano stars (from Herbie Hancock and Chick Korea to Keith Jarrett and, more recently, Brad Mehldau) are indebted to him.

The world of jazz has produced a host of incredibly talented pianists, many more than can be found on this list of the 50 most productive jazz pianists of all time. In fact, narrowing it down was no easy task, but we persisted and combined a list of names that constitute the ultimate vital ivory ticklers of the genre.

By our estimation, here are the 50 jazz pianists of all time.

There are divergent opinions about the importance of this blind pianist born in Chicago who played with Charlie Parker back in the 1940s and established himself as a musician with an exclusive sound and style. The truth is that Tristano is an uncompromising innovator whose unorthodox conception of melody and Concord heralded the birth of loose jazz. He also experimented with multitrack recording in the early ’50s, which most jazz musicians considered anathema, by layering improvised piano parts. Tristano was also a famous jazz instructor and it is claimed that his influence affected Miles. Davis (in Birth Of The Cool), as well as Dave Brubeck and Gerry Mulligan.

Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Kirkland had a successful deal with Marsalis brothers, Wynton and Branford, in the ’80s and ’90s, appearing as a sideman on several of their albums. Kirkland also played with jazz greats, trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and drummer Elvin. Jones, in the ’80s, and appeared on five albums by former police leader Sting. His own discography comprises only one solo album, 1991’s Kenny Kirkland, for GRP, most likely having he died prematurely, in the At age 43, due to downtown congestive insufficiency, Kirkland would have recorded many more solo albums.

Grusin, founding father of an accessible instrumental music style with influences from R

Born Columbus Calvin Pearson in Atlanta, Georgia, Pearson’s career took off when he moved to New York City in 1959. This year he recorded his first album for Blue Note and has become one of the most level-headed jazz pianists in the world. iconic stamp. . Enjoying a long engagement with Alfred Lion and Frank Wolff’s band, he not only recorded his own music, but also worked as an in-house arranger and manager.

Accompanist of the famous saxophonists Lou Donaldson, Sonny Rollins, Jackie McLean and Harold Land in the 50s, the New Yorker Hope (really called St Elmo Sylvester Hope), a bebop pianist with a brilliant sound, a dynamic touch and, like Thelonious Monk, a predilection for dissonance. He recorded for Blue Note, Prestige, and Pacific Jazz in the 1950s. Unfortunately, his life was ruined by drug addiction, leading to his untimely death at the age of 43.

As a teacher, this talented Philadelphia pianist can count Maynard Ferguson pianist Earl MacDonald and recent Blue Note signee Aaron Parks among his star students. Barron’s career began with stints as a sideman for Dizzy Gillespie and Stan Getz. Grammy-nominated Barron has been recording since the late ’60s and counts pianists Tommy Flanagan and Barry Harris among his many collaborators. A master of bebop and post-bop styles, Barron is one of the greatest jazz pianists alive today.

As one of the founding members of the Modern Jazz Quartet, a pioneering organization that fused bebop with the aesthetics of classical music, Lewis was an influential musician whose brilliant taste for staccato piano was indebted to Count Basie and saxophonist Lester Young. Before MJQ, he was a sideman for Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis. Outside of his band, Lewis made albums under his own name, the first in 1955.

Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, Mabern is one of the most no-nonsense jazz pianists for having started out as a drummer before moving on to the piano. Moving to Chicago, then New York, he was considered a key accompanist in the late 1950s and early 1960s (playing with Cannonball Adderley, Jackie McLean, Roland Kirk, and Wes Montgomery) before beginning his own recording career. Array that began at Prestige Records in 1968. A virtuoso with mastery of the bebop, modal and post-bop jazz styles, Mabern still records and performs actively today, at the age of 81.

The New York-born Drew, who was an apprentice accompanist to Buddy DeFranco, Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young, and Charlie Parker, was a much-loved bebop pianist and composer who enjoyed a long and fruitful arrangement with tenor saxophonist Dexter Gordon. Two musicians lived in Denmark in the 60s and 70s. Recording his first solo LP in 1953, Drew recorded for various labels until his death. He died and was buried in Copenhagen.

An eclectic and flexible pianist who also played the saxophone, Massachusetts-born Byard’s own music drew on each and every theme, from ragtime to loose jazz, and also encompassed any and all tastes in between. He played with trumpeter Maynard Ferguson in the late 1950s, but his career really took off when he moved to New York in the 1960s. He spent two years with Charles Mingus, as well as Eric Dolphy and Roland Kirk. Although respected by critics, Byard’s unique sound has not been so well won over by the public, yet he remains one of the greatest jazz pianists in history, not only for his influence on jazz in general, but also in relation to his role. in the evolution of the piano itself.

Originally from Dallas, Texas, this hard bop piano giant was raised as a child with Art Tatum, Nat “King” Cole, Bud Powell, and Thelonious Monk. Although his music infused Walton’s own style, he discovered his own voice on the piano and, after a stint with Kenny Dorham, John Coltrane and The Jazztet, joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in 1961 and recorded nine albums with the group. Array Walton’s career as a leader began in 1967, and in the 70s he ventured into jazz-funk and fusion. In addition to being a talented pianist, Walton is also a noted composer, having contributed “Bolivia” and “Mode For Joe” to the repertoire of jazz standards.

Born and raised in Detroit, Harris, whose mother played piano in church, was an early adopter of the screening tool at the age of four. As he grew up, he fell in love with jazz and fell under the spell of the modernists. Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk. In the 1950s, Harris was a professional pianist and worked with Miles Davis, Sonny Stitt, and Gene Ammons; In the ’60s he played with Cannonball Adderley. Stylistically, Harris is a staunch disciple of hard bop, reflected in the horn-like phrasing of his right-hand melodies, complex rhythmic syncopations, and dense vocals. One of the most productive jazz. pianists still perform from the bebop era.

Born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Pittsburgh, Williams was a self-taught pianist who rose to fame as a teenage prodigy in the 1920s. In the 1930s, he worked as a freelance arranger, writing graphics for Earl Hines, Benny Goodman, and the former Duke Ellington. When bebop came along in the mid-1940s, she had an affinity for the new revolutionary taste and was the mentor to Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie. Williams, a prodigiously talented musician, an inspiring and paved figure. the way for new and famous pianists such as Tania Maria, the late Geri Allen, Eliane Elias and Diana Krall.

One of the many musicians to emerge from Art Blakey’s “Hard Bop Academy”, The Jazz Messengers, this Philadelphia musician was the son of a pastor and grew up playing in church. Gospel music left an indelible mark on Timmons, and its DNA can be detected in his gambling and much of the music he wrote, which included the early songs “Moanin’,” “This Here” and “Dat Dere,” that earned him his prize. He is one of the greatest jazz pianists for laying the foundation for what became known as soul jazz in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Unfortunately, Timmons’ career was cut short at age 38 due to his alcoholism. chronic.

Originally from Chicago, Hill earned money playing accordion on the streets of the Windy City. He worked primarily as a sideman in the 1950s, but in 1963, after moving to New York City, Hill began a long deal with Blue Note Records that resulted in 16 albums. Although influenced by Thelonious Monk and Art Tatum, Hill forged his own unique and complex style, whether as a pianist or composer. His music tended to be chromatic and angular, and while he crossed barriers, he also remained rooted in the jazz tradition.

Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Mehldau is one of the most prominent pianists in fresh jazz. Although, compared to the more no-nonsense jazz pianists, his influences are wide and varied (from pop, rock, folk and classical to bebop, country and even electronic music), he has distilled them all into an exclusive taste that draws inspiration from the lyricism of Bill Evans and the captivating virtuoso improvisation of Keith Jarrett. Mehldau’s long-standing piano trio has also continually innovated with their almost telepathic collective improvisation and eclectic repertoire.

As much a poet as a pianist and composer, this New Yorker was a leading figure in the avant-garde movement of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Not for the faint-hearted, Taylor’s peppy taste is occasionally fiercely atonal, employing clustered discordant chords and dense, polyrhythmic complexity. He released his first LP in 1956 and recorded for many other labels until 2009.

Given his fame in the 1950s as a silky-singing pop singer, it’s perhaps not unexpected that many times the Alabama-born Cole was also one of the greatest jazz pianists of his time. time. Having begun playing gospel music on the organ before taking piano lessons, Cole studied classical music but temporarily turned to jazz. He was influenced primarily by Earl Hines, whose ornate and heavily decorated technique was the basis of Cole’s style, which evolved within the confines of his own trio in the 1930s and 1940s. From 1943 onwards, however, it is Cole’s voice that gets the most recognition, and his good luck as a singer overshadows his bets on the piano.

Born Conrad Clark, this hard bop pianist from Herminie, Pennsylvania, had a brief stint in jazz between 1955 and 1961. Influenced by Bud Powell and known for his right-handed trumpet-shaped melodies, Clark was Dinah Washington’s accompanist. Sonny Rollins and Charles Mingus, and also enjoyed a fruitful five-year stint at Blue Note Records, where he released nine albums, adding the vintage hard bop manifesto Cool Struttin’. Sadly, Clark was addicted to heroin and died at the age of 31 from a suspected (but never proven) overdose.

Although he suffers from a genetic condition that has stunted his growth, caused fragile bones and perpetual pain in his arm, Petrucciani, born in France, defied all odds before one of the most productive jazz pianists in the world and was encouraged to take He took advantage of the tool after watching Duke Ellington on television. When he was 13, he was already playing professionally and, by the time he was 18, he was recording the first of many LPs. Although his lyrical technique on the piano is undoubtedly due to Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett. Petrucciani, who died at the age of 36, however had a specific sound and style.

The older brother of trumpeter Thad and drummer Elvin, Jones, this Mississippi-born, Michigan-raised pianist had his early influence through Earl Hines and Fats Waller, but later fell in love with bebop. He recorded with Ella Fitzgerald and Charlie Parker before embarking on a brilliant solo career that flourished in the ’50s. Hired for his impeccable musical taste and sonic eloquence, Jones’ countless credits as a sideman ranged from Dizzy Gillespie and Dexter Gordon to Anita O ‘Day and Marilyn Monroe.

The music of this Texas pianist was largely forgotten until his song “The Entertainer,” which was used on the soundtrack of the 1973 hit film The Sting, starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman, rekindled interest in his work. At the beginning of the 20th century, Joplin was crowned king of ragtime, a fun, syncopated musical taste that is an amalgamation of African-American and Western European music. Although no recordings of Joplin exist, his prestige as one of the most productive jazz pianists in history is assured, thanks in part to piano rolls and sheet music of the time, which illustrate his exclusive taste, which later influenced James P Johnson.

Chicago-born Lewis, who emerged at Chess Records in the ’50s as the leader of a piano trio, racked up a trio of crossover pop hits in the mid-’60s (the biggest being 1965’s “The In Crowd”) before connecting his piano to the mains. socket and following the trail of funk and fusion in the ’70s. Lewis, a classically trained pianist, fused jazz with rhythm ‘n’ blues and gospel music to forge a unique flavor of soul jazz that generated a multitude of imitators.

Influenced by Teddy Wilson and Bud Powell, Brooklyn-born Kelly is known for his arrangement with Miles Davis between 1959 and 1961 (he played on the iconic 1959 LP Kind Of Blue). He also recorded a multitude of solo albums, all of which showcased his brilliant right-handed trumpet-shaped melodies and his penchant for block chord accompaniment. Contemporary pianists who claim to have been influenced by him include Chick Korea and Brad Mehldau.

Along with James P Johnson and Fats Waller, William Henry Joseph Bonaparte Bertholoff Smith (to give him his full name), an identified practitioner of the taste for stride playing. Born in New York, he became known in the 20s as a blues accompanist. Singers. His propulsive and dynamic taste, with his dazzling finger play, exerted a profound influence on the piano technique of Duke Ellington and George Gershwin.

This New Jersey pianist contributed to the transition from ragtime to jazz with his stride piano technique, which relies on the locomotive, saw-like lightness of ragtime but adds more complicated harmonies and more powerful blues detail. Although his music is now largely forgotten, Johnson, who was also a prominent accompanist for singers Bessie Smith and Ethel Waters, is a pioneer who deserves his position among the best jazz singers thanks to his strong influence on Fats Waller, Count Basie and Art Tatum.

Although Missouri-born James is widely identified as one of the founding fathers of elegant jazz, he ironically began his career at the forefront of the avant-garde scene of the early ’60s. However, in the ’70s, the star of James on the rise thanks to his role as in-house arranger on manufacturer Creed Taylor’s influential CTI label. He has produced 4 very popular radio albums for CTI, where he has established himself as the dean of a lighter and more available edition of jazz. fusion. Although he is an undisputed master of the Fender Rhodes electric keyboard (which dominated his early ’70s records), James has returned to acoustic piano in recent years.

Blind from birth, the very honourable London-born George Shearing (who, exclusive among the most successful jazz pianists, was awarded the title of Sir after being knighted in 2007), showed talent for piano and accordion from an early age. He earned a living as a pianist until he emigrated to the United States in 1947, where he temporarily carved out a niche for himself with his synthesis of swing, bebop, and elements of classical music. Pioneers of block chords, Shearing’s band – which includes the unique vibraphone sound – have become incredibly popular and influential in the 1950s.

Inspired by jazz after hearing Fats Waller’s “Honeysuckle Rose,” the Austrian-born Zawinul ventured to the United States in 1959, where he made his mark as a pianist and composer in the band Cannonball Adderley. Although Miles Davis tried to poach him (Zawinul worked on Miles’ hit albums In A Silent Way and Bitches Brew in the late ’60s), the pianist remained with Cannonball until 1970, then co-founded the prominent fusion pioneer, Weather Report.

Nicknamed the Marxist Mozart for his commitment to left-wing political causes, Texas-born Theodore Wilson, a virtuoso pianist who rose to fame in the swing era and worked as an accompanist for some of the biggest names in jazz, from Louis Armstrong to Benny. . Goodman to Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. He also made many recordings under his own name, but his role as Billie Holiday’s sideman is the most productive in memory today.

Born in Connecticut and of Cape Verdean descent, Horace Silver is an archetypal hard bop pianist whose rise to fame began when he co-founded The Jazz Messengers (later taken over by Art Blakey) in 1954. In addition to being a skilled pianist who enjoyed a long and fruitful period with Blue Note between 1952 and 1980, Silver is a prolific musician (among his most notable compositions is “Song For My Father”).

For a jazz pianist who began life as a welterweight boxer, Texas-born William “Red” Garland had a decidedly sensitive touch. He played as a sideman for Billy Eckstine and Charlie Parker, and in bluesman Eddie Vinson’s band with the young John Coltrane. Traces of him crossed Coltrane’s back in the 1950s, when the two joined the Miles Davis Quintet and produced several groundbreaking albums for Prestige and Columbia (including Workin’ and ‘Round About Midnight). Davis enjoyed Garland for his lightness of touch and his Ahmad Jamal-like use of space. Another hallmark of the Texan’s unique taste is his use of two-handed locked chords.

For many, the call of Detroiter Thomas Lee Flanagan is synonymous with saxophone giant John Coltrane. He played on Trane’s totemic 1960 masterpiece, Giant Steps, and as a sideman, also appeared on vital LPs via Sonny Rollins (Colossus Saxophone) and guitarist Wes. (Wes’s amazing jazz guitar). Describing his piano technique, Flanagan once said: “I like to play like a trumpeter, as if I were blowing on the piano. Although he was a much-loved accompanist, he also released many albums under his own banner for many other labels between 1957 and 1997. .

With his predilection for betting on an ornate style of rich chords, fluid sequences and intricate syncopations, this Pittsburgh Pennsylvanian, a child piano prodigy who first recorded in the 1940s, but flourished spectacularly in the 1950s, arguably who deserves his position among the most productive jazz pianists only for giving world jazz the ever-popular “Misty,” which he composed in 1954 and recorded several times thereafter. Arguably the most compelling album he made, 1955’s classic Concert By The Sea captures Garner in his entirety. the glory of him.

California-born Brubeck, one of the few jazz artists to score a major pop hit in the ’60s (“Take Five”), grew up on a ranch, studied to be a veterinarian and pursued music during college. An unexpected twist of fate in 1951 caused nerve damage to Brubeck’s hands and replaced the way he played the piano, where fast hand lines were replaced by dense block chords. Despite this, Brubeck can still play with a mental eye and elegance, and he composed music employing unusual and asymmetrical time signatures.

Although he once claimed to have single-handedly invented jazz, modesty was not a recognizable trait in the character of this New Orleans pianist born Ferdinand LeMothe: he deserves to be identified as one of the most productive jazz pianists. An arranger, Morton was a leading figure in the progression of early jazz (one of his most notable recordings is “Black Bottom Stomp”) and was also a renowned pianist whose propulsive, playful taste was born of ragtime and looked forward to the progression of step. .

Originally from Duquesne, Pennsylvania, Earl “Fatha” Hines was a key figure in the evolution of jazz piano. He began as an orthodox-style performer, but soon brought innovations. In an effort to be heard in a big band ensemble, Hines began articulating melodies with octaves (or what he called “trumpet notes”), as well as a tremolo effect (an immediate alternation of two notes). Although he began his recording career in 1923, he knew how to adapt to converting styles. of jazz and continued recording until 1981. A jazz piano colossus.

Like fellow jazz aristocrat Duke Ellington, Count Basie’s prowess on the piano was overshadowed by his role as a successful bandleader. Originally from Red Bank, New Jersey, Bill Basie rose to fame during the big band swing era with popular tracks like “One O’clock Jump. “He typically led from the piano, adhering to a minimalist less-is-more aesthetic and employing percussion accents and hard octaves so that his bluesy notes cut through the band’s full sound.

New Yorker Thomas “Fats” Waller did not live to be 40 (he succumbed to pneumonia at 39), but he proved to be an influential pianist, especially for his contribution to the evolution of the highly rhythmic stride style, a vital cornerstone of the piano. jazz Waller is also an organist and composer whose repertoire included the immortal tunes “Ain’t Misbehavin'” and “Honeysuckle Rose. “

It is forgotten that Edward Kennedy Ellington, born in Washington DC, was a formidable jazz pianist with his own inimitable style. This is because Ellington gained greater fame as a popular bandleader and songwriter during the big band swing era of the 1930s. There are a few solo piano entries in the band’s extensive discography. jazz aristocrat (in particular, perhaps, 1953’s The Duke Plays Ellington) that reveal the full extent of Ellington’s skills.

Pittsburgh native Ahmad Jamal has a delicate, agile touch and intuitively knows how to use space intelligently. It is this last quality that made Miles Davis a great admirer of his music in the 1950s, trying to reflect Jamal’s taste in music. soft piano in his bands of that time. Jamal first recorded for OKeh in 1951, but it was later in the same decade that he took his place among the most successful jazz pianists of all time, with the best-selling live album, At The Pershing. , which brought his music to a wider audience. A master of musical discretion.

Like Keith Jarrett, Armando “Chick” Corea, a native of Chelsea, Massachusetts, was one of the first to play the piano at the age of four. He later rose to fame as a sideman for the wonderful Miles Davis (replacing Herbie Hancock). Although influenced by the romanticism of Bill Evans, Corea’s music has had a palpable Latin inflection, ranging from straight jazz to electric fusion (he led jazz-rock giant Return To Forever in the ’70s).

Originally from Allentown, Pennsylvania, Keith Jarrett began playing the piano at the age of two and temporarily became a precociously gifted child prodigy immersed in classical music. As a teenager, Jarrett was seduced by jazz and temporarily mastered the language of it. He played with Art Blakey. Jazz Messengers in the mid-60s before joining the bands of Charles Lloyd and, later, Miles Davis. In the 1970s, at ECM Records, Jarrett – eschewing power tools – patented a lyrical taste and, in the same decade, released an improvised solo recital called The Köln Concert, which established a new benchmark for jazz piano without accompaniment. A fearless improviser whose mind knows no limits.

This Harlem-born musician was the first pianist to play the piano as if it were a horn instrument. Although he learned much from Art Tatum’s raucous left-handed style, alto saxophonist and bebop architect Charlie Parker was Bud Powell’s main source of inspiration. As a result, Powell proved to be highly influential, although his career was short (he died at the age of 41, after years of intellectual aptitude problems). The lack of link between Art Tatum and bebop, his prestige as one of the most productive jazz pianists of all time is assured.

McCoy Tyner, a Philadelphia local, rose to fame as a member of John Coltrane’s groundbreaking quartet between 1960 and 1965, betting on the saxophonist’s iconic 1965 album, A Love Supreme. A representative of modal jazz and a blues enthusiast, Tyner’s main characteristic is the use of chords with prominent fourths. He also attacks the piano with brute force, although he can also play excessively delicately, employing choppy strokes with his right hand. After Coltrane, Tyner established himself as one of the most prominent pianists in fresh jazz with a series of astonishing albums for Blue Note and, later, Milestone.

Originally from Quebec, Canada, Peterson is a classically trained child prodigy who came under the influence of Art Tatum and Nat “King” Cole. He made his first recording in 1945, but it was in the 1950s, after joining jazz impresario Norman Granz’s Verve label and leading a piano trio, that he became a household name. Known for his ornate filigree and ambitious style, Peterson is a skilled improviser.

Though he flirted with laughter, dabbled in disco, and even laughed at electro and hip-hop (as evidenced by his 1983 worldwide hit, “Rockit”), this Chicago-born musical chameleon is at heart a committed jazz pianist. Although influenced by Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock forged his own taste in the ’60s, either as a solo artist or as a member of Miles Davis’ post-bop exploratory quintet. Despite being almost 80 years old, Hancock still has the musical interest of a teenager.

A troubled soul, this New Jersey pianist has struggled with substance abuse throughout his adult life and professional career, but that hasn’t stopped him from generating a remarkably beautiful and coherent framework of work. Romantic, thoughtful ballads with rich chords were his undoubted highlight. However, Evans, who was inspired by both bebop and classical music, can also swing with verve, especially live. (Start with his legendary trio recordings with Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian, such as Sunday at the Village Vanguard or Waltz for Debby for proof of either. ) A host of pianists have fallen under Evans’s spell, among them Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett and, most recently, Brad Mehldau.

Misunderstood by many, this North Carolina-born maverick (who was rarely seen without a hat) is one of the world’s most productive and unique jazz pianists. Emerging at the dawn of bebop in the mid-to-late ’40s, he followed his own idiosyncratic path, creating a unique musical universe of angular yet humble melodies, dissonant organizing chords, and an oscillating rhythmic pulse. As a songwriter, Monk contributed several criteria to the jazz songbook, adding “‘Round Midnight” and “Straight, No Chaser” and, as a keyboardist, recorded several piano albums without accompaniment, adding the classic Thelonious Alone In San Francisco.

At the top of our list of the 50 most successful jazz pianists of all time is the man considered a keyboard deity. Ohio-born, visually impaired Art Tatum as a child learned to play the piano by ear as a child and, blessed with a very productive tone, temporarily excelled at the instrument. From a young age he patented a technically complex and especially flowery style, which mixed elements of stride, swing and classical music. Although highly influential (Oscar Peterson was one of his main disciples), Tatum’s life ended shortly after his 47th birthday.

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Wonderful list yet Phineas Newborn at least is in the top 20 most sensible; It’s not listed at all. Good arguments can be made in favor of John Lewis, James Williams, Mulgrew Miller, Don Pullen, Joe Sample, and Muhal Richard Abrams.

Have you forgotten about Marian McPartland? Mary Lou Williams?Diane Krall? Little Hardin?. . .

Diane Krall? Oh really? Just because she is a woman? Even she wouldn’t think she’s on this list!

Eddie, you want Diana Krall to listen. She is a brilliant pianist.

Also, Diana Krall is married to my favorite musical artist of all time, Mr. Elvis Costello!

I don’t think ? so, it’s false

Amen to that…She;s a terrific pianist…

Thank you!

Éliane Elías.

AMEN, Mary Lou Williams!

Totally agree with Mary Lou Williams and Marian McPartland. And I can’t, you didn’t come with Ellis Larkins, aka M. Feather Fingers.

While I don’t agree with every selection/ranking (who is?), I recognize that Diana Krall doesn’t belong anywhere near this list.

While I appreciate the highest opinion, you don’t belong anywhere on this planet.

I doubt you’re the REAL Diana Krall.

There are many wonderful jazz pianists, but we shouldn’t include women on the list just to be politically correct. Dianna Krall is a perfect musician, but is she a wonderful, avant-garde pianist or simply an intelligent pianist and flexible artist? I think you can make a strong case for including Mary Lou Williams on this list.

And so does Joanne Brackeen!

Patrice Rushin? Diane Krall? This list brings together the wonderful jazz pianists of all time. McPartland and Williams are likely on the list, but the other two?Let’s go.

APPARENTLY, WOMEN ARE NOT ENTERING, THOSE MENTIONED AND HAZEL SCOTT

Diana Krall is a wonderful singer but an above average jazz pianist.

I still can’t perceive how Vince Guaraldi didn’t make the list. I mean, it was definitely one of the greatest of all time. Oscar Peterson came in first place

Totally agree. He will be there.

My precise idea when reading this naïve list. After Tatum, Monk and Evans, it is difficult to identify a hierarchy, but we will have to pay attention to Newborn; he was far ahead of most recorded contemporaries.

I love Bill Evans, but he’s no bigger than Bud Powell or Oscar Peterson!They ranked it a little too high. It’s in my 5 most sensible.

Isn’t Lenny Tristano on the list?Dave Grusin on the list? Before Andrew Hill? Cecil Taylor #34?Keith Jarrett #8? I think all 3 can be a little taller. And Craig Taborn definitely deserves to be on the list! Since I’m not sexist, of course I can’t be one of my favorite Marilyn Crispells!

Lennie Tristano is number 50.

Earl Hines would be the most sensible place for me. Dorothy Donegan was another user who could keep her promises when the environment was perfect.

According to “Fatha”. Up at least.

What about Milt Buckner, Shirley Horn, Beegie Adair, Diana Krall, Joe Sample?

No Cubans.

For the record, Charles Thompson is the first to comment on this list.

How about Monty Alexander, Nina Simone, Dr. Billy Taylor, Les McCann, Denny Zeitlin and organist Jimmy Smith? (I think Marylou Williams would have a higher rating)

Absolutely completely agree with that. . . Phineas is one of the greatest of all time.

the list includes pianists, but what about Mal Waldron, Jaki Byard, Bobby Timmons, Paul Bley, Cedar Walton, Sun Ra, Alice Coltrane?

Thank you. Rodney Walton (son of Cedar).

The cedar was amazing. Listen to it all the time. Always inventive, funky. Maestro, without a doubt. I respect England.

Exact omissions, I thought!

Mal Waldron will simply be in the most sensible 5. And I’m surprised Brad Mehldau wasn’t mentioned. . .

illaysabag – What does your nickname mean? Are you still in the bag? Because all the pianists you mention in “But What’s Happening?” are all on this list, Alice Coltrane. I can’t be bothered to reread to make sure I’m right, because nothing will help you.

Without Sun Ra? Something is wrong here.

ridiculous list: Crusin, Kirkland, all those “Jazzrock” losers. And there are other guys like von Schlippenbach, Tippett, Mengelberg, Morab, Ivers. . .

ridiculous list: Crusin, Kirkland, all the losers of “Jazzrock”. And there are other people like von Schlippenbach, Tippett, Mengelberg, Moran, Ivers. . .

I would love to be a “loser” like Kenny Kirkland. . . :). . .

OH, MY GOD! Kirkland, a “rock loser”? One of the main proponents of the jazz school, Herbie Hancock, who played with everyone, adding Marsalisis and Kenny Garrett, is a loser!And rock to start! Roll your ears and get information about a bit of lineage!!Next, he calls Mulgrew Miller, a folk musician who only played triads. Shut up!!

I knew Kenny very well when we were academics at MSM. . . Most importantly, he’s a glorious soul that made you feel important. . .

Kirkland, a jazz rock loser? No

Every time I scroll through those lists, I feel satisfied to find that my CD collection has so many other people on the list!

No Ellis Larkins? The list is a bit sexist. Is there no Marion McPartland? Barbara Carroll?

Sexist indeed! How come not Eliane Elias, Diane Schuur, Blossom Dearie?

Tanya Maria?

Or Geri Allen (RIP) and Marilyn Crispell!

Jessica Williams. Didn’t you hear it? Watch his rendition of Good Job If You Can Get It, on YouTube

Very well. . . many stopped. Marian in particular. And what is Joanne Brackeen? Phenomenal.

I would have Gene Harris.

Auf jeden Fall, I am too. . .

Damn!!

Andrew Hill at 36: ridiculous!

Exactly me too.

Mine too, Juan. And I upload a few others that are not on the list or previously discussed: Mary Lou Williams, Lennie Tristano, Stanley Cowell, Kirk Lightsey, Dave Burrell.

I’m sorry, friends. I wanted to say that Lennie Tristano is number 50.

No Eddie Higgins? Not Éliane Elias? Where are Marian McPartland, Bill Charlap, Joe Augustine?

I’ve heard most of them on the list and they are all good. . . however, Joe Augustine is in the top 5 sensible. . . His chord structures, nuances and inventiveness are unmatched!

In that case, why make a list of the 88 most important jazz pianists?

I can’t agree with this list. Everyone turns into monkeys in front of Art Tatum. But it was all arpeggios and flashes. Teddy Wilson and the Fats deserve to be much higher on this list. and Monk was a wonderful composer but a lousy pianist.

Nat King Cole is one of Ahmad Jamal’s favorites. Ahmad has told me personally on several occasions.

Yes, if you pay attention to Sinatra’s excellent 1946 recording of “Sweet Lorraine” with the Metronome All-Stars, Cole’s piano is wonderful.

Nat King Cole is probably better known for his voice than his piano. His piano seems to me too simplistic and banal compared to that of Red Garland and Oscar Peterson.

George Cables, Stan Tracy, Carla Bley, Monty Alexander, Pete Johnson, – Vote 88 otherwise not enough room on the piano stool.

I think even a hundred would be even better.

many omissions: Geoff Keezer, Vic Feldman, Bobby Timmons, Derek Smith, Jimmy Rowles, Marcus Roberts, Vince Guaraldi. Lou Levy, Marian McPartland, Gerry Wiggins, Pete Jolly, Hamp Hawes, Monty Alexander, Cedar Walton, Russ Freeman, John Lewis, Ray Bryant, Joe Sample, Billy Taylor, Mulgrew Miller

He would move Ahmad Jamal up the list and accompany the wonderful bebop pianist Al Haig.

They also come with Junior Mance.

31) Pettuciani => Petrucciani

No Lennie Tristano??

I saw that too!

In a list of 36 jazz pianists, Timmons’ Tristano, Billy Taylor is absolutely stupid.

And Paul Bley? At least he will be among the 10 most sensible.

Phineaso Newborn is a huge failure; as others have pointed out, Mulgrew and James Williams can easily be added ahead of some on the list (Billy Taylor too) and Hampton Hawes deserves to be in the top 20; I’m still sorry, Dave Grusin. and Bob James are perfect musicians, but they are a far cry from the virtuosos mentioned above – and that is why Monty Alexander can blow most of those guys away – and what about Dick Hyman? I love Joe Zawinul and all his music. however, the list is the pianists. And a lot of his recorded paintings are based on keyboards, so they’re not in the top 30, after all Fred Hersch has to be in the top 30, just because of the musical diversity of him, and there’s this guy Mehldau. . . .

You can’t have a list like that and let Al Haig!!!

And Michel Legrand!

It’s hard to believe a list like this without Brad Mehldau.

YOU HAVE DROIT. Et HAMPTON HAWES, TEDDY WILSON- DUKE ELLINGTON- BJORN SVENSSON- WINTON KELLY -HORACE SILVER-MAL WALDRON-CEDAR WALTON ETC.

MEHLDAU IS THE N°35!!

Keith Jarrett, for God’s sake, not Martial Solal yet?Please. (And if you think Monk wasn’t a wonderful pianist, you don’t notice anything about his compositions or his playing. )

I think it’s on one of the first lists that’s pretty good. . . I play a little piano and guitar and I have quite a talent for guitar, bass and drums. . . Maybe I know enough to get it in trouble. . . No one can agree on any list. . . never. But it is close without dissecting or criticizing it to death.

Where are Joe Sample, Brad Mehldau and Carlos Ruvacabla?

I have to agree that it’s possible that those names are compatible somewhere. I think we also want to outline criteria of express “judgment” – personally, never in the “best museum in the world” – it’s Art after all!

You will have to know the Spanish language: it is Gonzalo Rubalcaba from Cuba

MEHLDAU IS THE N°35!!

Good list, but perfect! Here are my thoughts:

BRAD MEHLDAU. The absence of Brad Mehldau is unforgivable: I checked him about 10 times to make sure I wasn’t missing.

In the case of Fred Hersch, I checked it five times.

I don’t agree with Monk’s classification, he’s a wonderful composer but not just any pianist.

I wouldn’t know who to put at number 1, but I would do it between Evans, Mehldau and Jarrett. I feel like there is some distance between those three and everyone else, as they achieve greater (even dramatic) intensity in their games of chance while still being as technically talented as the other greats. They also seem to find the best balance between restraint and expressiveness, while the others are on another level.

Just below, at the highest point of sensitivity and depth, I would place Fred Hersch, Ahmad Jamal, Michel Petrucciani and Marian McPartland.

Finally, if we took virtuosity into account (real virtuosity, which is made up of making it transparent and perfect), I would go up to Hancock, Tatum, Peterson and Corea; Hancock is the only pianist who can achieve the SOUND of a grand piano: he plays the chords to absolute perfection.

Hello Daniel, yours is one of the few comments to which I have been able to subscribe. Jarrett Monk? Never! As you said, the latter was a wonderful composer and actually played a vital role in the history of jazz, but he was not a wonderful pianist.

Jarrett practices monk.

MEHLDAU IS NO. 35!!!

Charlie Parker, when asked in an interview about his favorite pianists, temporarily replied “Al Haig. “The interviewer hesitated a little, openly waiting for other names. ” Any other names?”he finally asked. Charlie’s response: “AL HAIG!”

We can quote here the much-underrated Dave MacKenna, and Abdullah Ibrahim. And, from the younger generation, Robert Glasper. And, and, and. . .

Thank you for this knowledge, I am going to explore the world of this Mr. Al Haig!

I wonder if other people know how smart Al Haig was.

Grusin and James (good people!) are options. Hill, Cables and Hersch deserve to be higher. And what about Jess Stacy? Teddy W and Earl Hines felt that he was her equal and they are both deservedly on this list.

Isn’t it a single jazz piano played by a woman?

Personally, I think Mary Lou Williams is somewhere on the list, maybe even Elaine Elias, but there are far more wonderful jazz pianists than women. I am sorry. This is not the case with classical concert pianists.

No Dave Brubeck, what’s up with you?

Dave Brubeck is number 16!

Gene Harris? Fred Hersch? Brad Mehldau? Shelly Berg?

Yes. Where is Gene Harris?

Hmm, I didn’t see Kenny Barron there, you won’t have to like that muscular style. And Bill Evans was the master of them all.

There is more influence on jazz innovation than Bill Evans. I have some problems with some on the list, but the five most sensible ones (in another order) are very smart but questionable to some people.

Joanne Brackeen will definitely be on the list.

Kenny Barrón!

Dr. Billy Taylor, Geri Allen, Johnny Costa, Marian and Mary Lou, Claude Bolling

I would definitely include Phineas Newborn and Brad Mehldau on this list, and may just leave out Bob James and Dave Grusin. And if you ignore the United States, and you should, Abdullah Ibrahim and Jan Johansson have to be mentioned.

Yeah! Jan Johansson will be on this list. Steve Dobrogosz! (Fairy Tales)

Gonzalo Rubalcaba will be on the list.

Gonzalo Rubalcaba will be on the list.

Willie “The Lion” Smith is a wonderful oversight. His Commodore recordings are one of the wonderful peaks of jazz.

Willie (The Lion) Smith is number 26!

Great list where is Sun Ra?

No one has ever talked about Hampton Hawes.

little angebote in German Sprache

Gonzalo Rubalcaba would be on the list, somewhere close to the first. And Brad Mehldau, of course. If the list were longer, I would definitely go up to Jimmy Rowles, Bill Charlap and Georgy Szabados.

Hrrsch too

And what happens, for example? Head of Montuliú?

Thanks Herman. I kept thinking that no one knows Tete Montoliu? And then I saw your message. I love Tete. Il is much more talented than many others on the list. And George Gershwin! One night he was having a drink with Frank Strazerri and he said, “George Gershwin might interrupt me. “

Eddie Palmieri and Chucho Valdez will be on the list

Me, Eddie’s brother Charlie, would be an even better choice!

Nina Simone

The lists are stupid. You can still stand up for any of those other people, but over time, other people enjoy the wonderful moments of a slightly older era. Dave McKenna and Marian McPartland would definitely be at my most sensible 36 and it’s hard for me to rule them out. Top 20, Dave definitely top ten most sensible.

Nat Cole, Lenny Tristano?

No women! What the fuck. No, Mary Lou Williams?

Such a list is a great provocation. . . The undeniable fact of remembering all those who are commented justifies the exercise. However, I believe that the inclusion of Lyle Mays, Dave Gruisin and Bob James cannot be justified alongside the exclusion of Sun Ra, Paul Bley, Tete Monteliu and Lennie Tristano. Duke deserves to be among the ten most sensible. . . I would have liked him to record a solo album. . .

A jungle of money with less and cockroaches.

I disagree with the order of the entire list, with the exception of Art Tatum. And it would move Bill Evans to the No. 2 spot, ahead of Monk.

The next time a survey like this is conducted, it will be among all living jazz pianists. I mean Brubeck is in the top five and Dave Grusin is in the top ten simply because of his contributions to jazz over the years. Apart from that, you can also throw darts.

No, Harry Conick Jr. ?

The fact that this list can forget John Lewis proves a point I always make: he is/was the most underrated pianist there is. He was there in the early days of modern jazz with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, etc. with Monk and much greater than Art Tatum in his contribution to jazz. As for Dave Brubeck, I like him but I wouldn’t give him a score of 16. What is the explanation for its omission?It’s beyond my abilities!!

Chucho Valdez.

How to compare pianists of other styles? It’s possible that Monk simply played as Tatum. The genius chose to draw his own style, adapted to his original compositions and improvisations. After a while, I find Tatum’s piano boring compared to Monk’s dissonant notes and spaces.

And the discussion continues! If this surprises anyone. Look, they’re all great, even the one you thought would be at the top or bottom of the list.

I think those lists are made to come with hopefuls so that when their agents or publicists are hanging around, they can set off the bomb “. . . they came in on the Best Of. . . ” list. And for the budding enthusiasts, it’s the latest and for lovers. It is a crime of omission. (yes, McPartland, Dearie and Les McCann should not have been supplanted by anyone) Hell, even José Iturbi is a better jazz pianist than some of the listeners.

I’m primarily interested in classical pianos, but I appreciate jazz pianists who possess a solid, deep strategy AND play anything resembling a delicious tone of singing. The taste of percussion almost devoid of dynamics that many show does not serve me. I agree with a few dozen people on the list, but I would have thought Maryanne McPartland deserved an access somewhere. I agree with the guy who thought Iturbi was a better jazz pianist than many on this list.

Wow, as a jazz piano lover, I don’t mind the commission, it would be great to see a list of living pianists. You deserve to see the list I put together with the pianist discussed further in the comments here. My list has 90 players, some of whom I have never heard of before. I’m going to enjoy the journey just listening and enjoying. . .

Scott Joplin is on this list. Hmmm, have you ever heard Scott Joplin play?No, that’s the answer. How ridiculous this list is.

Scott Joplin made about 6 hand-played piano rolls, adding a composition through W. C Handy, but it shouldn’t be on this list. He is not a jazz pianist and, in any case, he is more of a composer than a performer.

Lamont Johnson, Rubalcaba, Phineas Newborn Jr. ,

Great artists. I miss Erroll Garner!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A great list, but as many other people have already said, there is a lack of very intelligent pianists! Gil Evans?

I will support the nominations of Jimmy Rowles and, even more strongly, Hampton Hawes. The best-selling jazz LP of 1956 was “My Fair Lady” by Andre Previn and Shelly Mann. Andre was a young European who was in Los Angeles at the time. Listen to Andre’s skills and then pay attention to Hampton Hawes. Guess where Previn was inspired!!

There are so many wonderful jazz pianists !!! Not everyone can be compatible on a list of 36 musicians!!I guess the first 36 pianists are among the best!That’s how we see things!

Jessica Williams. WHO? “The unknown jazz pianist”

For me, Art Tatum, Oscar Peterson and then everyone else.

Lists are a clever way to get to mind, making us think about who else might be present. I would go with Herbie Nichols, Richard Twardzik.

It would come with Richard Twardzik, Herbie Nichols, Mal Waldron and, of course, the wonderful Curley Kale, who died young (before he was born, in fact), but he would have been the most productive if he had lived long enough to be recorded. He is on a par with George Hedges, another lost legend who was never given the chance to play with anyone. And what a ***********-headed idiot is guilty of adding the clumsy and unoriginal . . . . . . . . . .

Don Pullen!

Duke Ellington! He may not have been the virtuoso that Tatum was (nor would Monk), but as the greatest composer and orchestrator of jazz, he had developed what each and every classical pianist aspires to and fails to achieve: an infinite palette of piano colors. What makes a wonderful pianist, in any musical taste, is not the speed or the number of notes he can play, but his ability to expand the richest variety of colors. This is the true and wonderful challenge presented by the piano.

Brad Mehldau

Mehldau is number 35!!

Errol Garner?

Danny Zeitlin? Claire Fischer? Marian McPartland? Mr. Roland Hanna?

And Gonzalo Rubalcaba?

Great list! It would have moved Dave Brubeck up the list a bit, as he was the first jazz artist to help jazz go mainstream by aggressively touring the school circuit in the ’50s and popularizing jazz among young people. At one vital point, he and his band, “The Dave Brubeck Quartet”, were the first to compose, advertise and perform very complicated and surprising rhythmic signatures that were very progressive for the time. Paul Desmond, Eugene Wright, and Joe Morello, members of The Quartet, were also progressive, and Joe adopted the odd types of time signatures they used. Take Five is still considered to be, for many, the most important jazz track of all time. Dave was also the second jazz artist to appear on the cover of Time magazine. , a moment only for the venerable Louis Armstrong.

What are people???

At least Art is number 1, but Oscar, Bud and Bill are 2,3,4. . .

One of my favorites in my house is Alan Broadbent!

Oscar Peterson????

Moïse Allison

Lists are useless when other people like this: where is Sun Ra, who was far more influential and indeed more entertaining than the large number of other people on this list?Barry Harris? Nina Simone with the keys, a natural pianist as wonderful as any other?Billy Taylor? Randy Weston? DON PULLEN Who played until his hands bled?Doesn’t it deserve a place in the most sensible 36th!?

Michel Camillo. La people clapped and cried at the 2003 Monterey Jazz Festival.

Where are Alan Broadbent, Milgrew Miller, Brad Mehldau?

Mary Lou Williams was not selected?

Oscar Peterson? We are good and best!!

What about Brad Mehldau or Vijay Iyer?

I think it’s hard work. However, we will have to find a way to meet with several notable Americans who are not on the list, in my order of priority: Johnny O’Neal, Phineas Newborn Jr, Terry Pollard, and Mulgrew Miller.

I think it’s hard work. However, we will have to find a way to meet with several notable Americans who are not on the list, in my order of priority: Johnny O’Neal, Phineas Newborn Jr, Terry Pollard, and Mulgrew Miller. In time, Benny Green will also deserve to be on the list.

No list is complete Vince Guaraldi, Monty Alexander, John Beasley and Nat King Cole

Why 36 men?

Great list. WK is in the top 10 most sensible for me. But the big calling that is often overlooked is Sonny Clark, an incomparable feeling. Sonny is a “musician’s musician”: he would get a higher rating if he were interviewed only among a group of jazz pianists.

Erroll Garner is a forgotten genius, he deserves to be placed at number 1 or 2, his diversity in the game was so wild and his taste so distinctive, his musical ability is exceptional. he was left-handed and ambidextrous, occasionally fusing classical elements in his improvisations, this type of fact revolutionized jazz piano, No. 10 Ahmad Jamal said that Erroll Garner and Maurice Ravel were the ideal melodists of the twentieth century, maximum of Those most productive jazz pianists, the list will be like Art Tatum, Herbie Hancock, Bill Evans and such, I mean, they’re good, but other people want to pay attention to more music.

No list of notable pianists can be taken seriously if it omits the artist who, more than any other, shared and lived the aesthetics of the romantic poet John Keats (from “Ode on a Grecian Urn” – Beauty is a fact is beauty – recommendation Bill gave to Tony Bennett in 1978). After leaving Miles Davis in 1958, Miles called him back for a truly groundbreaking recording: the result was “Kind of Blue,” the most successful jazz album of all time (artistically and commercially, still among the most successful). ). of jazz). And this brought models and greater freedom to jazz.

Bill would next form a jazz trio that would revolutionize the piano trio by making each instrumentalist not only a supporter of the pianist, but an equally vital collaborator. Additionally, Bill kept the flame alive, traveling the world, too busy to enter a recording studio. Fortunately, his most recent threesome with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera is well documented. Everyone is obsessed with his 1961 Vanguard recording, but his farewell was the jazz equivalent of Mozart’s or Verdi’s Requiem: an eight-night stand in San Francisco that ended a week before his death in New York. . It is the music that consolidates Bill Evans’ position as one of the two most important musicians of the moment in the history of jazz. Coltrane was the first (although after Elvin and McCoy left, the music of his last year was chaotic, obvious, cacophonous), which led to some great releases. Trane’s romanticism was celestial and spiritual. Bill, for his part, has finished his archetypal adventure coming full circle. He began as the first jazz “impressionist” (cf. Debussy, Ravel); He ended up being a full-fledged “expressionist” (think of Mussoursky, Rachmaninov): two opposite sides of the same coin of “romantic art. ” Bill had the largest and heaviest hands of any pianist: his touch, “deep in the keys,” can extract from the most stubborn piano the fullest ppps and fffs in tight-voiced harmonies or the maximum normal fast runs thanks to the minimum. of power. Heavy and exact frame and finger movements. He never forced anything while maintaining the same hand structure and position during difficult or comfortable passages (Keith simply lacked this physical advantage, which made matters worse when he stood up while playing). We forget about this last era of Bill, whose drug addiction was due not only to the terrible tragedies of his life but also to his determination not to betray either his art or the two young musicians who, for the first time, constituted “his ” trio. , expressing his vision and aesthetics. It was one of the few, one of the last jazz teams, that continued to carry the flame. While Keith chose his “places” based on crowd size, money, etc. , Bill was still an active soldier, about to embark on some other global excursion when his body betrayed him. (The lives of other Romantic composers – Schubert, Schumann, etc. – are equally dark. ) But the sublime beauty and harsh emotion (often thunderous in his last era, 1978 to September 15, 1980) were proportional to his suffering.

Bill Evans is number one on the list, bum!

It is very disrespectful to other readers to write paying attention.

You forgot that Kenny Drew and Cecil Tayler had a higher rank. And Scott Joplin on the list? The lists are stupid.

Gene Harris will be in the top 10 most sensible!!

I love Joshua Rifkin’s performances of Scott Joplin, but they don’t make him a jazz pianist. He is a classical performer, conductor, and musicologist whose impeccable performances gave Joplin’s ragtime compositions the respect they deserved.

Jessica Williams isn’t well known to most jazz lovers (even if she’s released dozens of perfect CDs: http://www. jessicawilliams. com/). It is greatly admired by jazz pianists and the few jazz radio stations that still exist (e. g. KCSM). I think she’s been on the list.

Monk Telonius?? What? Not in the most sensible 36?

Thelonius Monk is number 2!!

Are other people not paying attention, or is this list changing?

Tete Montoliu heads the list.

It’s a wonderful list, but I’m willing to bet that every time you interview the same people you’ll get other results. No one has an eternal list of the most wonderful ones. For example, we can just make a list of the most productive percussionists, the list would be completely replaced, if you understand what I mean.

The still forgotten late Nat “King” Cole, an accomplished jazz pianist before his voice surpassed “88”.

Kenny Barron and Cedar Walton!!!!!!!

No Linus?

Bill Evans is my No. 1. And Shirley Horn will be on the list.

Brad Mehldau is also glorious.

I need to turn up Stevie Wonder. . . yeah. . . he doesn’t do bopping or extravagant jazz rifts. . . yet no one can play like him and no one can get a handle on the incredibly beautiful and complex phrasing. And frankly, I’m getting tired of the “patterns” that some of the people mentioned above reproduce over and over again. . . no matter how technically difficult they are to execute.

Where are Dave Brubeck and Nat King Cole? In reality they will have to be among the best. Brubeck was one of the most innovative pianists of his time. Nat King Cole was a jazz pianist before becoming a singer. So please give credits where credit is due.

I think there are two to go. First of all, Lennie Tristano has had a greater influence on jazz piano than most people realize. Tristano brought incredibly engaging rhythmic perspectives.

Secondly, Clare Fischer was a huge influence and no one (that I know of) talked about him. Herbie Hancock, on several occasions in interviews, credited Clare with a vital component of his harmonic wisdom. Clare’s vocal arrangements were unique, starting with the Hi-Lo. . : And she used all this harmonic wisdom in her interpretation.

Ok, I’ll take it down. Two other people spoke of Clare Fischer. My religion has been restored! ?

And the list has 36 pianists and there are 36 black keys on the piano?My god. . . ?

Hank Jones is much taller. . . and I’m the biggest Basie fan you can imagine, but don’t think that as a PLAYER, he ranks among the players who were/are provided in trios and quartets. . . as some have said. , Mary Lou Williams will be here.

Does anyone think Herbie deserves to be moved for causing “Watermelon Man” to hit the world and continuing to play it in public well into his twenties? (But he IS one of the wonderful interviewers, commentators, rappers and talkers of the jazz world. . . . and, in the 1960s, he contributed to the direction the music would take. )

My top ten list would include Kenny Barron. And Bill Charlap, in the most sensible 36.

Wow, Bill Evans before Oscar Peterson. Not even Bill would agree with that. Certainly, Fats Waller deserved to have been high on the list, and what about James P. Johnson, whose decision deserved to have been above Waller’s? There’s also the lead figure of Jelly Roll Morton, the flamboyant nemesis of Jame P. Speaking of archenemy, what you can call Donald Lambert, one of Art Tatum’s rivals, I know what’s hard for you to understand. How did Oscar Peterson’s opponent, Phineas Newborn, get left off the list, or Al Haig or Lenny Tristano, or Clyde Hart or Kenny Drew, just to name a few? Hampton Hawes is another deserving pianist whom Art Tatum and Oscar Peterson both admired. Why is Bud Powell so poorly valued when most pianists of his time “and long after” tried to imitate him? How Nat King Cole was left out is mind-boggling, he alone played a huge role in the progression of the Jazz Trio, a format that made Bill Evans and so many others so popular.

Bill Evans is the greatest of all jazz pinaists. Oscar Petersson, as you mentioned, misused his technical talent and his acting stereotype and he may be waiting until you get bored. the sound, the avant-garde chords and the complicated rhythm were exceptional. He can still play at such a high level despite his drug problem. He is a genius who contributed to music like the wonderful classical composers.

Bill is overrated. Herbie ranks high as a pianist in general. And he’s not above Bud Powell on the list by any means. There are clever reasons to think Bill is in the top 10 pianists, but that’s where the accolades end.

The 10 most sensible is MINT. . . . . . . . . . JIMMY SMITH is a HUGE oversight. “The Sermon” replaced the game.

I can’t stop talking about Dorothy Donegan at all! This amazing musician has to be the most ignored jazz pianist of all time!

According to many comments, especially Marion MacPartland and Vince Guaraldi. And did I miss Dr. Billy Taylor? And George Gershwin?The list goes on, doesn’t it?

I can’t, no one mentions Kenny Barron.

I can’t get anyone to talk about PHINEAS NEWBORN JR. !

I would have included John Lewis and each has their own list, but this is YOUR list, so it doesn’t deserve any criticism. No one can create a favorites list for anyone else. If you were among the top hundred most sensible on this list, there would be other people whose favorites weren’t on it. You explained this at the beginning, so I didn’t want to complain. I have remembered some names that I propose to locate for my own listening pleasure.

Johnny Costa is comparable to Art Tatum. I don’t see him on the list, maybe he is 37 years old and there is no place for him. Some pianists here are GOOD but not great. Costa is awesome. Discover his FLYING FINGER’S CD. DAN CELLI.

A staple in Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood.

Erroll Garner, Dave Brubeck, “Count” Basie, “Fats” Waller and “Duke” Ellington in the top ten. . . . “SCANDALOUS”! Who conducted this survey? A group of rock musicians ?????

You did something unbeatable because everyone left an unmistakable mark on jazz, from Tatum to Evans, Brubeck and Jamal. . . but Chick. . . Let’s go.

Ahmad Jamal’s The Awakening cements his position as one of the pianists of all time, if not the greatest.

No, Kenny Barron, do you have this crazy Keith Jarrett on this list?. . . Please. . .

I love Monk, but I respectfully disagree with putting him at number 2. As Leonard Feather wrote in The Encyclopedia of Jazz when rating pianists, Monk’s influence primarily as a composer and leader, not as an instrumentalist.

Following my comment:

Let’s also take the white keys of the piano? Many other jazz pianists! I present to you two European pianists: Jan Johansson, from Sweden and Louis van from Holland.

Shall we also take the white keys of the piano? Many other jazz pianists!I introduce them to two European pianists: Jan Johansson, from Sweden and Louis van from Holland.

I accepted the list of 36 pianists, but the greatest and my favorite idol is OSCAR PETERSON.

And what about Hadda Brooks?

All men? Not Mary Lou Williams, Geri Allen, Renee Rosnos, Marian McPartland. . .

Also Jessica Williams and Alice Coltrane.

You forgot to come with Mal Waldron and Paul Bley.

@cualquiera you haven’t heard Mal Waldron: it’s the first time I’ve met, I’d love to hear your opinion. https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=rgckQmjUtcU

Come on people, what about Barry Harris?

What about Herbie Nichols and Kenny Drew, both pianists?

I enjoy Monk’s music but I wouldn’t put him in the number two spot. Probably the ten most sensible. There were greater natural pianists. But art deserves to be number one.

These lists are never definitive, but they are made to be debated and argued; Thinking of them in any other way is useless. What I take away is that we get to enjoy live music from various all-time greats – Ahmad, Chick, Keith, McCoy, Herbie – it doesn’t matter if they’re in the Top 10 or not.

Alexander Von Schlippenbach, Aki Takase, Marilyn Crispell, Paul Bley, Joel Futterman, Connie Crothers, Stanley Cowell, Sun Ra, Fred Van Hove, Mal Waldron, Misha Mengelberg, Don Pullen, Alice Coltrane and many others. AND WHEN WILL MOSAIC GO FORWARD WITH ANY OF THESE ARTISTS, PLEASE??? Can we move beyond Count Basie, Benny Goodman, the 1940s and 1950s and at least start to lose jazz in a meaningful way? Ok, you gave us a Braxton and Threadgill game. . . MORE???

How about the five most sensible on the list?

I never understood the Art Tatum cult. He had a flashy strategy with all those runs and arpeggios, but I never heard him swing. A list like this will never please anyone. That a brilliant musician like Marian McPartland is left out is inexcusable. And no Billy Taylor? In any case, the list is an attractive exercise because it makes you think.

Don Shirley and Mariana!

Any Billy Taylor list has no credibility. It is also said to include Bobby Timmons, Marian McPartland, Mary Lou Williams, Dick Hyman, Bill Charlap. To me, Keith Jarrett is very overrated.

It is glorious that so many enthusiasts are discussing the list of pianists: JAZZ IS ALIVE!!!!!

Myra Melford has disappeared, and yes, Diana Krall belongs to her. I listened very well to Gene Harris, but, nevertheless, “Live in Paris” shows that she is a very intelligent pianist. Mulgrew Miller will have to be there permanently. Fred Hersch has disappeared.

Stan Getz didn’t play the piano, did he?

It’s disappointing to see that no one has talked about Satoko Fujii until now. Extraordinarily versatile, both composer/arranger and pianist.

Jaki Byard is a maximally apparent omission.

I agree with most of the choices, but Gene Harris and Beegie Adair have been included.

It’s very cheesy to make a list, especially when it comes to greeting the advertising stars of the recent era. sad!

I agree with the many serious omissions commented on by others. First, Phineas Newborn Jr. When Memphis musicians and Newborn’s friends first heard musicians like Bud Powell, they weren’t inspired because whatever Bud did, Newborn could do more easily. He described him through Leonard Feather in the 1950s as the most important American pianist of his time (after Art’s death).

I also am shocked that there are no women on this list. Any of these women in my opinion were superior to several names on this list: Marian McPartland, Mary Lou Williams, Joanne Brackeen, Renee Rosnes, Eliane Elias, Geri Allen, Jessica Williams, Hiromi, and a few others.

Some foreign pianists should also be seriously considered: Gonzalo Rubalcaba (amazing insights and ideas), Eldar Djangirov (I listened to him and spent time with him when I was still a teenager – made me want to stop playing), Tete Montoliu, Bobthrough Enriquez (amazing Filipino pianist who is not talked about even once in this thread), Adam Makowicz (from Poland; I also saw him live and spent time with him. Nobody is talked about in this thread), Marian Petrescu (amazing), Michel Camilo.

Yes, let’s expand this to 88 pianists and rank them.

Great additions!!

Um. . . Lennie Tristano. . . where is he?

NUMBER 50!!

This is not a bad list. Of course there will have to be a detail of subjectivity and many pianists who were not on the list may simply have been there. Oscar Peterson is too good for my taste. While Herbie Hancock and McCoy Tyner really deserve to be there, they shouldn’t be ahead of Bud Powell.

Throughout my musical career, my favorite pianists have been Wynton Kelley, Oscar Peterson, and Bill Evans.

There is a choice list of the hundred most sensible on Ranker. com. I think it was liked by some of you (and includes 3 women among the 36 most sensible). This list is voted on by average Joes and Jills. http://www. ranker. com/list/greatest-jazz-pianists-of-all-time/ranker-music However, be careful when trying to sign up for Ranker. Two of their “hookup” sites told me that the site was not secure.

I’m inspired that Art Tatum is number one (no argument here) and that Fats Waller and James P. Johnson came in first, they are expected to be much higher. It’s hard to come up with Joplin, who was a wonderful composer and, possibly, the first, who left no recordings, except for his (probably published) piano roll of Maple Leaf Rag.

As one of the greatest Monk enthusiasts of all time, owning each and every one of his recordings (well, it’s still not the newest soundtrack, in the meantime), having an exclusively Monk ensemble in college for which I arranged 35 of his compositions. Array and my biggest influence as a jazz pianist, to call it No. 2 among jazz pianists is insane. Considering his compositions and his position as a pioneer of bebop, he deserves to be near the top, but only as a pianist, not at No. 2, nor in the Top 10. As for other people who have been excluded from the list, Jessica WIlliams (another Monk fan) deserves serious consideration.

Does anyone else have the Mingus Plays Piano album? There’s some wonderful stuff there, let’s just say it could have made it into the Top 36 if it had focused on the piano instead of the bass, not in terms of ability yet to extract the music from those 88 keys. Very underrated album.

So you come with Duke Ellington and exclude BILLY STRAYHORN from a RED CROWN? Do you agree with the ten most sensible ones?

I like the other articles that mention those not on the list, especially the more “obscure” and “forgotten” players like Bobby Enriquez (whom I don’t very well forget seeing in Newport) and Dorothy Donnegan. to this list Hazel Scott, Horace Tapscott and Bobby Scott (pun intended?Planned).

I can agree with the first three, but Herbie Hancock is bigger than Keith Jarrett.

I’m far from being a fan of these types of lists. Regardless, I’m convinced that Tete Montoliu will be somewhere on this list.

Do you have Bob James and Cecil Taylor on this list, but you don’t have Elmo Hope?You’ll be embarrassed!

DID YOU INCLUDE DAVE MCKENNA? She had the most impressive LEFT HAND of them all. . . and NEWSWEEK IN THE LATE 70’S CALLED HIM THE GREATEST JAZZ PIANIST IN AMERICA!

Missing: Ellis Marsalis, Bill Charlap, Fred Hersch, Diana Krall, Barry Harris

I think Ellis Marsalis is a trumpet player.

No one talked about Don Friedman.

Lost Mark / Abdullah Ibrahim

It doesn’t matter who’s on the list. There will be someone who will come and refute it.

Dave Grussin and Bob James? As others here have already pointed out, there are some vital omissions: Mal Waldron, Brad Mehldau, Don Friedman, Barry Harris, Lenny Tristano, Mary Lou Williams, Marian McParland. . . Putting Kenny G in the same category as Steve Lacey and Dave Liebman for Best Jazz Soprano Saxophone!?

You missed Dave Zoller. One of the greats. End of paintings in an anniversary album by Theloneous Monk. It’s amazing!

1. Bill Evans

Perhaps this list deserved to have contained 88, still corresponding to the number of keys. Too many smart people were left out, as commented in the comments. If you needed to make room at 36 for blatant omissions, cutting Shearing, Mays, Grusin and James.

…and Nat King Cole?

Brad Mehldau

At least a dozen other people complain that the mediocre Diana Krall is on the list, but no one mentions Horace Tapscott. IT IS OK.

If there wasn’t room in all this beautiful list for Lennie Tristano, who wrote this list, we’d have to do some homework.

Jaki Byard?

Bad Waldron? I don’t know who wrote this list and where he will get the data from, but it’s a bit disappointing. . .

Missing are Mulgrew Miller, Barry Harris, Kenny Barron, Fred Hersh and Don Grolnick from the older generation, Gerald Clayton, Christian Sands, Bill Charlap and Robert Glasper from the younger generation. The rating is ridiculous (Monk for 2d, etc. ) IMO.

No, Paul Bley??? Unacceptable. No Fred Hersch? Unacceptable. Jason Moran? Oh, come on!

Bill-“the emotion-Evans.

That is why I oppose lists or counts of those who are greater in this or that. Everything depends on subjective judgments in time and area and on the user who judges. They are all wonderful pianists, but there are many that we have. I have never heard of them and some of them have been excluded. Are there no women? By the way, isn’t there Denny Zeitlin?

Monk is my favorite

Rick Wake, man? ?

IT’S NOT A BAD LIST BUT YOU LEFT A LOT OF SOME OF THE BEST PLAYERS.

The Modern Jazz Quartet took me and many others to trendy jazz, as opposed to classic jazz and Dixieland. Where is John Lewis? How can you do this?Out of shame. Out of shame.

Bobby Enriquez is my favorite! He is a savage! Fast fast fast! Others mentioned: Monty Alexander, Roger Kellaway, Billy Taylor, Dave McKenna, Gene Harris, Steve Kuhn

And Marcial Solal? Does everyone have to be American?

Bill Evans will be number 1. And where is Brad Meldau?

Elmo Espoir. Walton Cedar. Stanley Cowell.

Sun Ra?

Oh man. Don’t you have a heart? Without Albert Ammons and Pete Johnson?Boogie woogie wizards. Bearers of joy.

I can identify most of the pianists I like, but if the number of albums in my collection is a metric, I miss Monty Alexander. It gave me (and still does) goosebumps.

It’s hard to take seriously a list of 36 jazz pianists that doesn’t include Mary Lou Williams. . .

I will miss Eddie Haywood, and as pianist Nat King Cole, and in spite of everything Slim Gaillard, not yet for his skills to make me happy, with his swing. I love it.

Nobody, Herbie Hancock.

Totally agree with your assessment, and Gene Harris deserves a spot.

A useless exercise.

Mal Waldron

Jessica Williams is one of the most underrated jazz pianists today. She has played with other amazing musicians for years and I discovered her recently. She is an artistic jazz pianist with heart and soul.

I agree 100%

Are Cedar Walton and Mulgrew Miller at the most sensible point but getting lost?

Whoever compiled this list has obviously never heard Gene Harris play.

Eldar Djangirov, Mike Garson?

Let’s not argue about who’s missing, it’s having all the names available, but in genuine terms, it’s okay because Bud Powell and Monk are there.

Considering that Oscar Peterson and Georg Shearing claim to have been greatly influenced by him, I think Nat King Cole is rarely on their list.

No, Brad Mehldau? Amazing!

Mehldau is number 35!!

Barry Harris is expected to be in the top twenty. John Hicks may just burn the keys, and Brother Newborn was tied with the wonderful Oscar Peterson.

John Hicks, a monster on the piano

It’s a sad list of the most important jazz pianists. How can Chick Correa and Kieth Jarrett get ahead of Earl Hines and Horace Silver?Phineas Newborn is here. This is nonsense in general. This was published through Johnny Venus Lately.

Jazz pianists? Have you ever heard “Mack the Knife” via Nina Riche?

Thanks to you, Talking Stein, I went. . . and no, thank you!

Anyone who can make “Mack The Knife” attractive will have to be good!

In preparation for this year’s Piano Day (March 29), I expanded and reorganized this list and added some of your suggestions. Take a look more and let us know what you think!

Nor did any Armenian pianist. Tigran Hamasyan is by far one of the world’s pianists.

This is a clever summary of jazz pianists. But to describe them is ridiculous. Everyone has their own style. If you’re doing a rating, what are your criteria?If you don’t have criteria, what’s the point?

hilton ruiz

Horacio Parlan

This is a limited list of 50 (instead of 36, which is an improvement), and is not intended to be a clinical classification. That’s his list, and if it were longer, he might have only included a few that have been omitted. . But it’s as big as that. Maybe I’ll propose another list. You too. I think the list captured most of the mainstream players, left out a few that I would have included (McPartland and Newborn, to name a few), and some of the ratings are idiosyncratic. . . But well, it generated reflections and memories and encouraged listening. (at least on my part) and discussions, which I think is the point. So, despite my disagreements, a great list.

How do you get Joe Sample off this list???/

Herbie Nichols.

There’s a Japanese pianist that probably no one knows about, but I think he’s on this list, not because of the revolutionary spin he put on jazz piano, which I don’t think he did, but simply because of the good looks of his music. His name is Ryo Fukui.

Damn! Come to think of it, there is another Japanese pianist and yet we have her on this list! Hiromi Uehara! If you don’t know it, pass out, stop what you’re doing and pay attention to it, and make that list again! She’s a fucking genius! A technique full of power and creativity, she wrote beautiful songs and arrangements. An essential!

Hiromi Uehara! Easily qualify for the top 10 most sensible!

One vote for Hiromi Uehara! Top 5!

DUKE JORDAN, AL HAIG, SIR WALTER BISHOP, RED GARLAND, JUST TO NAME A FEW DISAPPEARED ARTISTS.

Sun ra

Count Basie said that Earl Hines was “. . . the greatest pianist in the world”. And I agree.

Me too. If you want confirmation, watch the glorious one-hour documentary on Hines @ https://vimeo. com/58414566

The one who stands out as a performer and educator is Dick Hyman.

Where is Joe Sample? He will definitely be included among the greats!

This is a reaction to someone above who said Lennie Tristano wasn’t on the list and discussed Dave Burrell’s name.

I’m sorry, friends. Once again, Tristano is ranked 50th.

I AM SORRY. Lennie Tristano is number 50.

Yes. Tommy Flanagan is smart but not smart enough to follow John Coltrane in GIANT STEPS.

I AM SORRY. RAMSEY LEWIS ON THE LIST, BUT HE SHOULDN’T BE!

https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=GLLHZmRvMj4&list=OLAK5uy_kYNmW4pdq99QhTC5Q7VajuN48GPfk4DfA&index=1

https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=fa99q-vq4bI

BENNY VERDE?!

Gene Dinovi and Tom Szczesniak?

How can you let go of HIROMI UEHARA?

DEFINITELY THE BEST PIANIST IN THE WORLD WHO WAS BORN IN THE 21ST CENTURY: JOEY ALEXANDER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=f4V_uaxBVOw

Bill Evans is too high. Herbie and Bud are too low. Kenny Barron wants to be included in the conversation.

I agree, especially Hines with the number 1. Basie also said that Hines is “the greatest pianist in the world. ” Check out Hines’ documentary @ https://www. youtube. com/results?search_query=earl hines, surely WONDERFUL.

Especially Earl Hines at No. 1

VINCE HURLEY from JIVE ACES!?

you forgot about Wray Downes

https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=MEJE2TVQ16M

Sorry folks. In fact, it is:

Jon Ballantyne

Hampton Hawes!

I will say that I enjoyed this list overall. There were many of my favorites. However, I don’t support Art Tatum very much; it’s usually about flash rather than substance and I feel the same way about Oscar Peterson as well.

I miss Victor Feldman very much; I understand that I probably wouldn’t have had the career I could have, basically staying in school. But you can also just hear how wonderful it is on the records it appears on. On the other hand, it’s smart to see Sonny Clark succeed. It’s been my wonderful discovery over the last few years with “Leapin’ and Lopin'” and “Cool Struttin'” in particular.

I think John Lewis is the most underrated here. A brilliantly attractive player; most of those players can’t touch the good looks of his concepts and the one he gets when he’s at his best.

but 4) Duke Ellington, who played the greatest jazz piano solo I know, simply composes a chorus on “In a Sentimental Mood” with Coltrane, and sets up an excellent close-up with Trane. Duke is like Monk, inimitable, and of course part of that is that he is, first and foremost, a wonderful songwriter.

ATTILA FIAS???!!!!!

https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=UXHYy3f93uo

How is it imaginable to have such a long list without Chucho Valdés or Bobby Enríquez? Both may be among the 10 most sensible, and indeed among the 25 most sensible.

BOB JAMES and JUSTIN-LEE SCHULTZ

https://www. youtube. com/watch?v=sUft48cLcVU

Maybe there will be others on the list, and maybe the order will be renewed, but one thing is for sure. . . Tatum Art number 1 absolutely!

Good list, but stay away from Bob James and put a wonderful pianist in it. The most sensible 50 is too high for Mr. James.

Thanks for posting this. This is sobering and will never satisfy everyone. I’m intrigued by James P Johnson, who is only 25th on the list. The King of Harlem Stride pianists are expected to be in the Top 10. And where is Mal Waldron? I don’t see Herbie Hancock at number four, ahead of Oscar Peterson, Fats Waller, you’re kidding! And John Lewis in the 40s, deserves a lot more respect than that. Well, although I love Monk, I can’t see him at number 2. Maybe for composing, but not for playing.

No Harris gene! Amazing!!!! ? This is definitely biased. Gene Harris will easily be among the 3 most sensible!

Well, you’re right, Art Tatum. It’s more or less that. They’re all great, but in the wrong order. You deserve to pay attention to some Ronnie Ball. People don’t know him and he deserves to be heard. Recommend Lee Konitz in concert in Storyville for the more level-headed Ronnie!

At some point, Emmet Cohen will have to find a top-10 spot. The effect that it’s had over the last year and an unprecedented role in jazz, which is greatness in itself.

When it comes to skills, most of the names on this list don’t fit your bill. He is on par with Oscar and Art.

In addition, Harold Mabern, 43, is stiff. Show the guy some love, please.

Any list of the 50 most sensible will be flawed, but by far the biggest mistake was not adding Hampton Hawes!If you don’t understand me, pay attention to All Night Session. He was probably the greatest of all Bop’s pianists. Put it in front of Bud Powell.

Just a woman? Light up the fridge! Eliane Elias, Marian McPartland, Joanne Brackeen, Hiromi, etc. etc. se embarked on this bloody program.

Thanks for Barry Harris on the list. Playing and training until the end, he passed away in December 2021.

https://www. washingtonpost. com/obituaries/2021/12/10/barry-harris-dies/

And Blossom Dearie? Miles Davis said she was “the only white woman with a soul. “Her piano play also influenced Bill Evans’ use of fourths in chord vocals and he also named her as one of his piano playing models.

These ratings are absurd. I don’t want to cite examples. However. . .

I didn’t even see Gene Harris on this list. He hasn’t traveled much, but he writes enough to update Oscar in Ray Brown’s band. His last recording, “Gene Harris Live at Otter Creek,” is his most productive album. The most exciting jazz recording that ever existed is by Gene Harris with Roger Kelleway. check it out on YT.

Not having Oscar Peterson #2 makes the list suspect.

This list was obviously made up of other people who were very far from jazz. Where is the eminent master of jazz Cedar Walton?Where is surely Mulgrew Miller? Where is Horace Parlan?Where is John Hicks? Where is James Williams?Where is Albert Daly? Where is Joe Bonner?Where is Mickey Tucker? In general, jazz is understood in the same way as pork with oranges????. Erroll Garner is ranked 17th ?????? He is a genius and deserves to be the first among the greatest.

Yes, we can all agree or disagree, and everyone’s list will be different. Actually, mine would have included Joanne Brackeen, whose amazing album “Breath of Brazil” (unfortunately somewhat out of print and fleetingly available on YouTube) had been on my car’s CD player for two years, played many times without becoming obsolete. To get an idea of his scope, check out his monstrous abilities in the album he made with Toots.

The other omission, arguably even more glaring and for which there is compelling evidence on YouTube that he not only belongs on the list, but is also near the top, is that of Chucho Valdés. Chick Korea is legitimately on the list, but pay attention to the duets they did together on YouTube and you can only conclude that if Chick is on the list, then Chucho Sin Argumento will be there too.

If Dorothy Donegan is on this list, you all want to do your homework.

Keep rocking!

Keep rocking!

Another vote for Dave McKenna, infinitely gratifying. Their absence is disconcerting.

Jaynie Guarnieri defended her late father, Johnny Guarnieri, well. Johnny is ranked number 3 on my list of the most stride pianists of all time, James P. and Fats. Va between 3 and 4 indistinctly with Don Ewell, who is also unfortunately underrated. Johnny plays Tiger’s Tatum arrangement Rag. Es possible that he and Art just sway while playing at an inhuman speed, though they were more productive and enjoyed betting on more general beats. Johnny was also a prolific songwriter and played in small bands led by artists such as Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Roy Eldridge, Ben Webster, Slam Stewart, Lester Young, to name a few.