Jazz Insights with Johnny O'Neal

After 50 years as a professional pianist, vocalist and entertainer, Johnny O’Neal has rightfully earned the title of “master” with fellow musicians and audiences around the world. In 2025, he was selected to be in the inaugural cohort of 20 Jazz Legacies Fellows sponsored by the Jazz Foundation of America in partnership with the Mellon Foundation—an hour that represents the pinnacle of creative achievement, technical mastery and boundary-pushing expression.

Highlights of his awe-inspiring career include performing with Ray Brown, Milt Jackson and Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, as well as making his Carnegie Hall debut in 1985 with a solo piano opening for Oscar Peterson. He was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame in 1998. While playing with Blakey, he accompanied some of the great jazz divas, including Sarah Vaughan and Carmen McRae. O’Neal has also been invited to perform by legends such as Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Pass, Nancy Wilson, Anita O’Day, Lionel Hampton, Kenny Burrell, Sonny Stitt, Benny Golson, Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis and Clark Terry, among others.

Performances across Canada, Europe, Australia, Japan, China, Israel and South Africa have earned him an international following, and he remains beloved by audiences across the United States. Yet, he is still very much a fixture on the New York jazz scene, regularly playing in local clubs or stopping by jam sessions to check out and support young talent. A stint in his band has become a coveted apprenticeship for emerging musicians, much like those once offered by Betty Carter or Art Blakey. O’Neal is a vital link between classic jazz traditions and the evolution of the form—making him legendary in his own right.

A Detroit native, O’Neal considers himself a pianist first but was encouraged to incorporate more vocals into his sets by blues great Joe Williams, who once told him, “If you’ve got it, flaunt it!” Astonishingly, he is largely self-taught. His playing reflects the deep influence of his idols Oscar Peterson and Art Tatum, with a nod to bebop master Barry Harris, who first heard O’Neal perform as a teenager in Detroit. Over time, he has moulded these elements into a distinctively swinging and melodic style all his own.

In live performances, O’Neal often surprises audiences with his blues shouting, soulful yet unpretentious vocal stylings, and seemingly effortless scatting. No two sets are ever alike. As he explains, “I’m a tune guy. I know 1,500 songs. My father was a pianist and singer who emphasized that learning lyrics creates dynamics and a better interpretation of melody. I rehearse so that the bassist, drummer and I can get familiar with each other’s styles—not to set the songs we’ll play.”

Spoken like a true legend.