Mickey Tucker

Mickey Tucker (b. April 28, 1941, Durham, North Carolina) is an American jazz pianist and organist.

Tucker began on piano at age six, and played in church when young. He did studio work in the 1960s with R&B musicians such as Little Anthony & the Imperials and Damita Jo; he accompanied comedian Timmy Rogers. He switched to jazz music late in the 1960s, and in the late '60s and '70s played with Junior Cook, James Moody, Frank Foster, Roland Kirk, Eric Kloss, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, Roy Brooks, Eddie Jefferson, Billy Harper, Philly Joe Jones, George Benson, Willis Jackson and Final Edition. He played with and directed Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers in Europe in the mid-1970s.

In the 1980s, Tucker played with Art Farmer and Benny Golson's group the Jazztet, Richie Cole, Phil Woods, and Louis Hayes. In the 1990s he did work with Junior Cook and the Jazztet again as well as with Bob Ackerman. He has released a number of albums as a soloist or leader.

Discography

As leader

• The New Heritage Keyboard Quartet (Blue Note Records, 1973) with Roland Hanna, Richard Davis, and Eddie Gladden
• Triplicity (Xanadu Records, 1975)
• Doublet (Dan Records, 1976)
• Sojourn (Xanadu, 1977)
• Mister Mysterio (Muse Records, 1978)
• The Crawl (Muse, 1979)
• Blues in Five Dimensions (SteepleChase Records, 1989)
• Sweet Lotus Lips (Denon Records, 1989)
• Hang in There (SteepleChase, 1994)
• Gettin' There (SteepleChase, 1995)

As sideman

With Willis Jackson

• West Africa (Muse, 1973)
• Headed and Gutted (Muse, 1974)

With Eric Kloss

• Essence (Muse, 1974)

With James Moody

• Never Again! (Muse, 1972)

References

• Mickey Tucker at Allmusic