McCoy Tyner (1938–2020) was one of the most popular pianists and composers in modern jazz. Tyner made a name for himself in the 1960s as a piano player for John Coltrane’s famous quartet.
Despite their shared reputation for maximalist styles of playing, the combination of Coltrane’s saxophone and Tyner’s piano remains one of the most legendary fits in jazz history. As a sideman and in his own compositions, Tyner combined a complex, near-percussive style of playing with a knack for the subtlety and tenderness of modal jazz that made him both a revered name on the scene, and a composer with crossover appeal.
