Here is an obscure one with a strange history, and even more strange leader.
Hermann Szobel arrived in NY in 1974 from Vienna at the age of 17, where he burst into the studio where Roberta Flack was recording an album. He arrogantly claimed to be the the "best piano player you've ever heard". Curious, the musicians and Ms. Flack let him sit at the piano, where he preceded to blow them away.
He got a record deal at Arista, where he recorded this one album. During the early sessions for his follow up album, he became increasingly unstable and demanding, then was dropped by the label.
Since then he has pretty much dropped of the map. No one, not even his mother, knows where he is. There are recent stories of him in Israel and Florida.
It's kind of sad, because his only album is really something special. His playing does not disappoint. He's got chops galore, but he plays with emotion. Very complex jazz/fusion with some Zappa influences.
The CD release (from 2012) gets the audiophile treatment from Bob Katz, with great liner notes from Michael Visceglia, the bass player on the CD.
