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| | Kansas City pianist and vocalist, known later in his life as Luqman Hamza. At the age of 12, Cummings was introduced to the world of music along the streets of the Historic 18th & Vine Jazz District in Kansas City. At age 17 in 1949, he became a member of Local 627, an African American musician's union founded in 1917; it is now known as the Mutual Musicians Foundation. Also, during that time he founded the vocal group Five Aces with the late Sonny Kenner, Eddie Saunders, Lucky Wesley, and Rico Kemp from New York. Luqman's experience with the Five Aces gave way to a delicate and smooth style of tenor vocalizing with influences of Nat King Cole, Charlie Brown, Billy Eckstine, and Bill Kenny of the Ink Spots. His talent did not go unnoticed and landed him in the studios of Chess Records' jazz division, Argo and Decca Records. |
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