Giacinto Figlia, known professionally as George Wallington, born on October 27, 1924 (with some sources citing 1923), in Palermo, Sicily, was an American jazz pianist and composer who moved to New York City in 1925. He began his career in the early 1940s, performing with Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker, and contributing to the development of bebop. During this era, his compositions “Lemon Drop” and “Godchild” achieved recognition through recordings by Woody Herman and Miles Davis, respectively. Wallington recorded as a leader starting in 1949 and released his debut album, George Wallington Trio, in 1952. Throughout the 1950s, he led various ensembles, including a quintet that featured rising stars Donald Byrd, Jackie McLean, and Phil Woods. After retiring in 1960 to work in a family business, he returned to music in 1984, subsequently releasing the solo piano albums Virtuoso (1984), The Symphony of a Jazz Piano (1986), and The Pleasure of a Jazz Inspiration (1992). He died on February 15, 1993, in New York City.
