Les was from Lexington, and I played with him several times; once in 1960 and then again in 2015 at the Lyric Theater, both times. I had a ball when he was honored with an honorary PhD in Music at the University of Kentucky, followed by a reception at the famous Lyric. The event was packed, and against everyone's best wishes, they gave Les a microphone.
First, with soccer moms and dads standing with kids, he tried to put the moves on a woman who was involved in the Les McCann School for the Arts.
When told she already had 4 kids, Les said, "stick around, babe and we'll make another one." (He was in his 80's at the time). Then, he looked down the aisle and said " see that trash can? I got my first B.J. right behind that."
I have a copy of a photo book Les Produced of photos of a lot of the people he knew in the business, published about 5 years ago when he was in his 80's.
Take a listen to "Compared to What?". Chas is right. It's as relevant today as any other socially conscious song ever recorded. Because of the controversial subject and a little fowl language, it never got the air time it deserved.
Sadly, the last few years (after he had a stroke) were not kind to Les. Luckily, he had a few lifetime admirers who did what they could to make his life better.
A real musical legend, in my eyes.
Russ
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