Junior Mance

Junior Mance is normally famous for his soulful bluesy design, but he’s also professional at playing bop standards. He began playing skillfully when he was ten. Mance caused Gene Ammons in Chicago during 1947-1949, used Lester Youthful (1950), and was using the Ammons-Sonny Stitt group until he was drafted. He was the home pianist at Chicago’s Bee Hive (1953-1954), proved helpful as Dinah Washington’s accompanist (1954-1955), is at the very first Cannonball Adderley Quintet (1956-1957), and spent 2 yrs touring with Dizzy Gillespie (1958-1960). Following a few months using the Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis/Johnny Griffin group, Mance produced his very own trio and it has mainly been a head since. He provides led periods for Verve, Jazzland, Riverside, Capitol, Atlantic, Milestone, Polydor, Internal Town, JSP, Nilva, Sackville, and Bee Hive, among various other labels.