R&B pianist, songwriter, and recording artist Harry Vann “Piano Man” Walls (August 24, 1918 – February 24, 1999) was born Harry Eugene Vann in Middlesborough, Kentucky, to Elma Ealy. His mother, active in the Baptist church and a piano teacher, encouraged him to take lessons at age six, though he was reluctant at first. Before he turned 10, she remarried, adopted the Walls surname, and relocated to the Charleston area.

As a teenager, Walls began performing for others—first in his church and soon on the road—playing in medicine shows, minstrel productions, carnivals, and circuses. Influenced by musicians such as Count Basie and Jay McShann, he developed a unique style he called bluegrass blues and became known for standing and dancing while playing the piano.

In 1942, Walls joined the Charleston musicians’ union and quickly found steady work in clubs such as the Alhambra, Silver Slipper, and Gypsy Tea Room. He also hosted a weekly 30-minute radio program on Charleston’s WCHS, sponsored by Butter Krust Bread, where he caught the attention of noted radio bandleader Cal Greer.

Touring with Greer’s band across the coalfields, Walls later settled in Columbus, Ohio, performing in barrelhouses and legion halls while backing dancers, comedians, and singers. It was there that he was discovered by saxophonist Frank Culley, leader of Atlantic Records’ first house band.

After recording a session with Culley in New York, Walls returned to Columbus without his band and became Atlantic’s staff pianist and arranger from 1949 to 1955. During this prolific period, he played on more than 200 singles, including Ruth Brown’s “5-10-15 Hours,” the Drifters’ “Such a Night,” and Big Joe Turner’s “Chains of Love,” which he also co-wrote. Beyond Atlantic, he contributed session work for labels such as Grand, Apollo, MGM, Capitol, and Columbia.

In 1954, while visiting Atlantic City, Walls met members of Philadelphia’s Nite Riders and eventually joined their group, touring and recording with them for nearly a decade. On one Canadian tour, he met a woman in Montreal, where he later settled. There, he performed with Cap’n Vann & The Pirates and later as part of the duo Vann-Taylor, though his career began to slip into obscurity about this time.

A resurgence came in 1985, when Atlantic Records released a box set highlighting its earliest singles, sparking renewed interest in Walls’s work. He recorded the album They Call Me Piano Man in 1987 and performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival alongside his former student, Dr. John (Malcolm Rebennack). In 1997, he received the Rhythm & Blues Foundation Pioneer Award, presented by Aretha Franklin and Ruth Brown.

Walls continued to perform until his death in 1999. In 2015, he was posthumously inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame.