Legendary vocalist Jon Hendricks died on Wednesday aged 96, The New York Times reported.

The singer's unique improvisational style helped him climb to the summit of the music world and saw him dubbed the 'poet laureate of jazz.'

His daughter Aria confirmed to The New York Times he passed away at a hospital in Manhattan.

Hendricks is best known for his part of the 1950’s jazz vocal ensemble, “Lambert, Hendricks & Ross,” the report said. In a style called vocalese, he would compose on the spot lyrics to well-known jazz songs, such as those by the Count Basie Orchestra and the Horace Silver Quintet.

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