Les McCann, a prolific and influential musician and recording artist who helped found the soul-jazz genre and became a favourite source for sampling by Dr Dre, A Tribe Called Quest and hundreds of other hip-hop performers, has died aged 88.
McCann died on Friday in Los Angeles, a week after being admitted to hospital with pneumonia, according to his longtime manager and producer Alan Abrahams.
A Kentucky native, McCann was a vocalist and self-taught pianist whose career dated back to the 1950s, when he won a singing contest while serving in the US navy and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, the top variety programme of its time.
With admirers including Quincy Jones and Miles Davis, he went on tour worldwide and released dozens of albums, starting in 1960 with Les McCann Ltd Plays the Truth.
Jazz pianist and singer Les McCann leaves us at age 88. He was a very soulful musician and passionate performer. https://t.co/rOs3CgpAhl
Advertisement— Ted Gioia (@tedgioia) January 1, 2024
He was best known for Compared To What, a funky protest song on which he first teamed up with his future musical partner, saxophonist Eddie Harris.
Written by Eugene McDaniels and recorded live at the 1968 Monteaux Jazz Festival, Compared To What blended jazzy riffs and McCann’s gospel-style vocals.
The song condemned war, greed and injustice with such couplets as “nobody gives us rhyme or reason/Have one doubt, they call it treason”.
Among those covering Compared To What was Roberta Flack, a McCann protege whose career he helped launch by setting up an audition with Atlantic Records.
McCann was a pioneer in merging jazz with soul and funk.
He would record with Flack and tour with such popular musicians as Wilson Pickett, Santana and the Staples Singers.
His other albums included Talk To The People (1972), Layers (1973) and Another Beginning (1974).
Last month, Resonance Records issued Never A Dull Moment! – Live from Coast to Coast (1966-1967).
