Boyd Raeburn


Boyd Albert Raeburn was an American jazz bandleader and bass saxophonist.
His big band, which was active ca. 1944-1947, performed arrangements that were often quite avant-garde, like the arrangements of Stan Kenton during the same period. The compositions arranged by George Handy were the most contemporary, utilizing dissonance somewhat in the manner of Igor Stravinsky. He attended the University of Chicago, where he led a campus band but eventually left the music industry to pursue business interests in New York and the Bahamas.

Marriages

Raeburn was married twice, once to singer Ginny Powell, for whom he wrote "Rip Van Winkle". The couple had two children. He was previously married to Lorraine Anderson, with whom he had one child; that union ended in divorce.

Death

Raeburn died of a heart attack in 1966, aged 52. His son, Bruce Boyd Raeburn of New Orleans, was the curator of the William Ransom Hogan Archive of New Orleans Jazz at the Tulane University in New Orleans.

Discography