John Taylor (25 September 1942 – 17 July 2015) was a British jazz pianist born in Manchester, England, who occasionally performed on the organ and the synthesizer.

John Taylor was a self taught pianist. With his family, he moved from Manchester, first to the Midlands and then to Hastings where he played locally. In 1964 Taylor became a civil servant, moved to London and became involved in the free jazz scene.

Taylor first came to the attention of the jazz community in 1969 when he partnered with saxophonists Alan Skidmore and John Surman. He was later reunited with Surman in the short-lived group Morning Glory and in the 1980s with Miroslav Vitous‘s quartet. In the early 1970s, Taylor was accompanist to the singer Cleo Laine and started to compose for his own sextet. He also worked with many visiting artists at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London, and later became a member of Scott’s quintet.