Shirley Scott was born March 14, 1934, in Philadelphia, where her father ran a jazz club in the family home's basement and her brother played saxophone. Her recordings with tenor saxophonist Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, including the hit "In the Kitchen," established her as one of the leading voices of the Hammond organ, blending bebop, blues, and gospel elements into a style distinctly her own. She recorded more than 50 albums for the Prestige and Impulse! labels, most often alongside Davis and tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, whose own career is covered in full in his JazzProfiles.com profile.

Scott and Turrentine played together from 1960 to 1969 and married during that same decade, divorcing in 1971; their joint recordings represent some of the most enduring soul-jazz records of the era. Beyond performing, Scott taught jazz history at Cheyney University. She was widely known by the nickname "Queen of the Organ."

Scott died March 10, 2002, in Philadelphia, four days short of her 68th birthday.

Scott's playing, a distinctive blend of bebop harmonic sophistication with blues and gospel feeling, made her one of the defining voices of soul-jazz organ alongside Jimmy Smith, and her decade-long musical and personal partnership with Stanley Turrentine produced some of the genre's most enduring recordings.