July 8, 1930 – September 18, 1992
Nicknamed “Chunk O Funk” or “Big Funk” by his session-mates, Earl Van Dyke was a piano player, keyboardist and band leader for the Motown in-house band collectively known as the Funk Brothers. Van Dyke stepped into the role when Joe Hunter left Motown in 1964 and played on hit records for artists like the Temptations, the Four Tops and Marvin Gaye. He also recorded and played his own records, many of which were Motown inspired or covers of classic Motown songs.