Jimmy Raney was the definitive cool jazz guitarist,
a fluid bop soloist with a quiet sound who had a great deal of
inner fire. He worked with local groups in Chicago before spending
nine months with Woody Herman in 1948. From then on he was in
the major leagues, having associations with Al Haig, Buddy DeFranco,
Artie Shaw, and Terry Gibbs. His work with Stan Getz (1951-1952)
was historic, as the pair made for a classic musical partnership.
Raney was also very much at home in the Red Norvo Trio (1953-1954)
before spending six years primarily working in a supper club with
pianist Jimmy Lyon (1954-1960). After playing with Getz during
1962-1963, he returned to Louisville and was outside of music
until resurfacing in the early '70s. During the 1970s, Raney recorded
often for Xanadu. He worked frequently with his son Doug Raney
(who has a very similar sound on guitar) and was less active in
the late '80s and '90s, up until his 1995 death.
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