Charles Earland

Charles Earland was born 1941 in Philadelphia. His first contact with musical instruments was the alto sax which he played in the high school band. For a short time, Charles worked together with Jimmy McGriff, but had then his own band. It was in 1963, when Charles discovered his own interest for the organ, after some organists had left his group. Lou Donaldson engaged Charles in 1968 as the organist of his band. But in 1969, Charles formed his own trio and recorded the famous album "Black Talk" which cleared the way for his sweeping success. From 1970, Charles toured with his own group, appearing also at jazz festivals such as Montreux and Newport. Charles died in december 1999 in Kansas City.