Lyrics | Artists | Cal Tjader

Cal Tjader

Although his reputation in jazz was built upon his talent as a vibe player, Cal Tjader was also an accomplished percussionist and played the bongos, congas, timpani and drums. He was also a skilled pianist having been taught classical piano from a very early age. Tjader was born in St. Louis, the son of two Swedish vaudeville performers and his parents relocated to the west coast when he was two. After growing up in the Bay Area, Tjader enlisted in the military as a medic before going back to college training to be a teacher. It was there he met another former GI, the pianis...