Jack McDuff

"Brother" Jack McDuff (17 September 1926 - 23 January 2001) was a jazz organist and bandleader prominent during the soul jazz era of the 1960s. Born Eugene McDuffy in Champaign, Illinois, McDuff began playing bass, appearing in Joe Farrell's group. In the 1950s, McDuff moved to studying the organ and began to attract the attention of Prestige Records when appearing in Willis Jackson's group. McDuff soon became a bandleader, leading groups featuring a young George Benson, Red Holloway on saxophone and Joe Dukes on drums. McDuff recorded many classic albums on Prestige in the sixties with this quartet. After his tenure at Prestige, McDuff recorded through out the seventies, eighties and nineties despite battling health problems. McDuff died of heart failure at the age of 74. (taken from wikipedia)