0
John Patton
John Patton
American organist
1
Kenny Burrell
Kenny Burrell
American jazz guitarist
2
Bill Hardman
Bill Hardman
American musician
3
Cedar Walton
Cedar Walton
American hard bop jazz pianist
4
Ronnie Mathews
Ronnie Mathews
American musician
5
Curtis Fuller
Curtis Fuller
American jazz musician
6
Sam Jones
Sam Jones
American double bassist and cellist
7
Louis Hayes
Louis Hayes
American drummer
8
Earl May
Earl May
American musician
9
Horace Parlan
Horace Parlan
American-Danish jazz pianist
10
Baby Face Willette
Baby Face Willette
American jazz musician
11
Larry Young
Larry Young
American jazz musician
12
Idris Muhammad
Idris Muhammad
American drummer
13
Blue Mitchell
Blue Mitchell
American musician
14
Calvin Newborn
Calvin Newborn
American guitarist
15
Harold Land
Harold Land
American musician
16
Junior Cook
Junior Cook
American saxophonist
17
Dennis Irwin
Dennis Irwin
American jazz musician
18
Barry Harris
Barry Harris
American bebop jazz pianist
19
Charles Earland
Charles Earland
jazz musician
20
George Coleman
George Coleman
American musician
21
Billy Higgins
Billy Higgins
American jazz drummer
22
Richard Holmes
Richard Holmes
American organist
23
Dave Bailey
Dave Bailey
American drummer
24
Jimmy Garrison
Jimmy Garrison
American double bassist
25
James Moody
James Moody
American jazz musician
26
Al Harewood
Al Harewood
American jazz drummer
27
Melvin Sparks
Melvin Sparks
American soul jazz, hard bop and jazz blues guitarist
28
Billy Mitchell
Billy Mitchell
American jazz tenor saxophonist
29
Horace Ott
Horace Ott
American musician
30
Sonny Clark
Sonny Clark
American musician
31
Johnny Coles
Johnny Coles
American trumpeter
32
Seldon Powell
Seldon Powell
American musician
33
Bennie Green
Bennie Green
American musician
34
Frankie Dunlop
Frankie Dunlop
American jazz drummer
35
Ike Isaacs
Ike Isaacs
American jazz bassist
36
George Duvivier
George Duvivier
American musician
37
Ben Tucker
Ben Tucker
American double-bassist
38
Eldee Young
Eldee Young
American jazz musician; double-bass and cello player
39
Barry Galbraith
Barry Galbraith
American guitarist
40
Billy Butler
Billy Butler
American musician
41
Lorez Alexandria
Lorez Alexandria
American musician
42
Donald Byrd
Donald Byrd
American recording artist; jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter and vocalist
43
The Jazz Messengers
The Jazz Messengers
American jazz band
44
Albert Dailey
Albert Dailey
American musician
45
Major Holley
Major Holley
American jazz upright bassist
46
Jimmy Ponder
Jimmy Ponder
American guitarist
47
Ben Riley
Ben Riley
American drummer
48
Frank Foster
Frank Foster
American jazz musician and bandleader
49
Jamil Nasser
Jamil Nasser
American bassist
50
Sonny Stitt
Sonny Stitt
American jazz saxophonist
51
Kenny Washington
Kenny Washington
American musician
52
Vincent Herring
Vincent Herring
American jazz saxophonist and flautist
53
Ernie Royal
Ernie Royal
American jazz trumpeter
54
Jimmy Witherspoon
Jimmy Witherspoon
American jump blues singer
55
Jack Wilson
Jack Wilson
American pianist (1936-2007)
56
Thad Jones
Thad Jones
American jazz trumpeter
57
Peck Morrison
Peck Morrison
American musician
58
George Adams
George Adams
musician
59
Wild Bill Davis
Wild Bill Davis
American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger
60
Jack Walrath
Jack Walrath
Jazz Trumpeter, Composer, Bandleader
61
Woody Herman
Woody Herman
American recording artist, clarinetist, band leader
62
Bill Dowdy
Bill Dowdy
American musician
63
Ed Thigpen
Ed Thigpen
American jazz drummer
64
Cecil Brooks III
Cecil Brooks III
American musician
65
Lonnie Smith
Lonnie Smith
American jazz musician
66
Carl Perkins
Carl Perkins
American jazz pianist
67
Stephen Scott
Stephen Scott
American musician
68
Bob Berg
Bob Berg
American musician
69
Jimmy Smith
Jimmy Smith
American jazz musician
70
Grant Green
Grant Green
American jazz guitarist and composer
71
Al Grey
Al Grey
American jazz musician
72
Kiane Zawadi
Kiane Zawadi
American jazz musician
73
James Williams
James Williams
American jazz pianist
Intro
pianist
Genres
Music

Herman Foster (April 26, 1928 – April 3, 1999) was an American bebop jazz pianist.

He was blinded during childbirth through the carelessness of a doctor. He began his musical career early playing the violin, clarinet, saxophone, and piano. He became a self-taught pianist. His family moved from Philadelphia to New York City in 1947 where he began to attend jam sessions and then played with Eric Dixon, Dick Carter and the big band of Herb Jones. Then he met Lou Donaldson and they played together from 1953 to 1966. He also worked with King Curtis, Bill English, and Seldon Powell in the 1950s, and with Al Casey and Gloria Lynne in the 1960s, in addition to playing with his own trio. He returned to work in Donaldson's quartet in the 1980s. In 1996 he married Hisayo Tominaga, a jazz vocalist.