Roots of Les McCann

Eugene Booker McDaniels was an American singer, producer and songwriter. He had his greatest recording success in the early 1960s, reaching number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with "A Hundred Pounds of Clay" and number five with "Tower of Strength", both hits in 1961. He had continued success as a songwriter with "Compared to What".

Eugene Booker McDaniels was an American singer, producer and songwriter. He had his greatest recording success in the early 1960s, reaching number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with "A Hundred Pounds of Clay" and number five with "Tower of Strength", both hits in 1961. He had continued success as a songwriter with "Compared to What".

Robert Henry Timmons was an American jazz pianist and composer. He was a sideman in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers for two periods, between which he was part of Cannonball Adderley's band. Several of Timmons' compositions written when part of these bands – including "Moanin'", "Dat Dere", and "This Here" – enjoyed commercial success and brought him more attention. In the early and mid-1960s he led a series of piano trios that toured and recorded extensively.