The Leading Man is an album by pianist Harold Mabern.

Columbia Records released an album with the same title and some of the same tracks two years later.

The core personnel are Harold Mabern (piano), Ron Carter (bass), and Jack DeJohnette (drums).

[4] The AllMusic reviewer commented that the album "is considered a classic, both for its selection of material and the performances of the various ensembles Mabern assembled for the date", and that Mabern's "playing, while always inspired, is revelatory in its sense of full orchestration and the shifting timbres of his solos".

[1] The American Visions reviewer wrote that: "Out of the crucible of Art Blakey's band, Mabern held his own for many years and carried some neophytes along the way.