Herman Foster was born on April 26, 1928 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began his musical career before age ten playing the violin, clarinet, saxophone, and piano. A self-taught pianist, Foster created a distinguished earthy sound. When his family moved to New York City in 1947, Herman began to attend jam sessions and then played with Eric Dixon, Dick Carter and the big band of Herb Jones.

His success came when he met Lou Donaldson and the two played together for thirteen years from 1953 to 1966. During the 1950s he worked with King Curtis,…