Herbie Hancock

Herbie Hancock is an American pianist, keyboardist and composer, born in Chicago in 1940. He played in the second Miles Davis Quintet from 1963 to 1968 and recorded a series of albums for Blue Note in the 1960s. In the 1970s he moved to electric keyboards and funk, and Head Hunters (1973) reached a pop audience far beyond jazz. He wrote standards such as "Watermelon Man", "Cantaloupe Island" and "Maiden Voyage". Hancock debuted as a leader with Takin' Off (Blue Note, 1962), followed by Empyrean Isles (1964) and Maiden Voyage (1965).