John Bunch was an American jazz pianist born on December 1, 1921, in Tipton,
Indiana. He studied with George Johnson and performed with adult bands by age
14. During World War II, Bunch served as a bombardier in the Army Air Forces;
his plane was shot down in 1944, and he was held as a prisoner of war. After the
war, he earned a degree in linguistics from Indiana University. In 1956, Bunch
relocated to Los Angeles to perform with Georgie Auld and Jimmie Rowles before
moving to New York in 1958. He joined the ensembles of Eddie Condon and Maynard
Ferguson. Between 1966 and 1972, h...