Born Thomas Wade Vaughn on October 14, 1936, in Benton, Kentucky, he began his music study on the piano around the age of five under the tutelage of his mother, Elizabeth.
[4] One year later, Wein brought Vaughn to New York City, where he recorded Jazz In Concert At The Village Gate with Art Davis on double bass and Elvin Jones on drums.
[3][4] Father Vaughn left St. John's Church in Midland in 1967, deciding that Los Angeles would be more conducive to his two passions, music and the ministry.
He played in festivals and concerts during the late 1960s and early 1970s, and appeared on local television and national talk shows, including Johnny Carson, Steve Allen and Merv Griffin.
Three years later, he performed a jazz concert in the parish hall to raise funds for the "Fireside Room", then began serving as assistant rector.
As part of the service, he invited a quartet of eminent musicians to play in her honor, but did not join the group himself, instead opting to listen and enjoy the music as a spectator.
[7] By the early 1990s, his children were grown and Vaughn played at local clubs a few times each year; a 1990 performance at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel received positive reviews.
[4] Vaughn was interviewed by the Los Angeles Times in 1991 and asked why he chose to remain a priest rather than accept fame and fortune as a touring musician.
[3] At an interview in 1996, he acknowledged splitting piano time between playing the classics (Bach, Beethoven & Chopin) and improvising jazz with touches of blues and bebop.
Today, Vaughn's version of Battle Hymn of the Republic can be heard every Saturday night at 8:00 pm EST on WABE 90.1 in Atlanta.