Billy Taylor

Pianist Billy Taylor swallowed whole the Swing and Bop idioms while accompanying the likes of Ben Webster and Charlie Parker. He can play in front of '50s-style Cool charts or lead a funky Hard Bop trio and never abandon his own voice. Though he has recorded prolifically over the past five decades, Taylor became a household name by doing weekly jazz reports on the CBS news program Sunday Morning. Taylor, who has always stayed firmly in the acoustic mainstream, looks so young much younger than his 80 years and works with such seemingly effortless grace that it is easy to take him for granted. Don't -- his recordings are consistently delightful.