Gary Carney was a central figure in the Columbus, Ohio jazz scene. He was inspired to become a musician by Les Brown. Carney attended the West Lake School of Music in Los Angeles and became a freelance musician in the late 50s, working in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Lake Tahoe with the Harry Ranch Review, and later with the Don Ellis Band. He moved to Columbus, Ohio in the mid-1960s and played with Charlie Pickens and Rusty Bryant's Boss Four. Carney was a featured soloist with the Jazz Arts Group and the High Street Stompers, as well as a composer, teacher and arranger. Carney also performed and arranged for the Columbus Jazz Orchestra. Gary Carney passed away in 2009 at the age of 70. CJO drummer Bob Breithaupt notes that Carney “had an incredible melodic gift...He was a triple threat, which is really rare” (Beck, The Columbus Dispatch 2/11/2009).