Alvin Schackman (born October 5, 1933) is an American jazz guitarist and arranger, most noted for his long association with Nina Simone as her accompanist from 1957 to 2000.
He learned the guitar under teacher Rector Bailey, who had previously worked with Nat King Cole, and in his teens began touring with mixed race bands in the South.
One night, when Nina Simone was performing at the Playhouse Inn in New Hope, Pennsylvania, where Schackman lived, she agreed to him joining her on stage.
[1] He is close to her daughter Lisa Simone Kelly, and sometimes cared for her for extended periods in her youth due to Nina's tempestuous marriage to manager Andrew Stroud and the singer's occasional mental health issues.
[4] Schackman also continued to work as a session musician, featuring on albums by Babatunde Olatunji, Harry Belafonte, Pearls Before Swine, Lee Konitz, and others.