Raymond Allen Draper (August 3, 1940,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

– November 1, 1982) was an American jazz

tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

player.

Early life and education

Draper was born in

and attended the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

in the mid-1950s.

Career

As a leader, he recorded his first album, ''

Tuba Sounds ''Tuba Sounds'' is the debut album by tuba player Ray Draper recorded in 1957 and released on the Prestige label.Prestige Prestige refers to a good reputation or high esteem; in earlier usage, ''prestige'' meant "showiness". (19th c.) Prestige may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Films * ''Prestige'' (film), a 1932 American film directed by Tay Garnet ...

1957), at the age of 16, with a quintet. His second album, ''

The Ray Draper Quintet featuring John Coltrane ''The Ray Draper Quintet featuring John Coltrane'' is the second album by tuba player Ray Draper recorded in 1957 and released on the New Jazz label. Reception Scott Yanow of AllMusic reviewed the album: "Draper had ambitious dreams of making ...

'', was recorded at the age of 17 with slight changes in his quintet, including

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of br ...

. Imprisoned over his drug use, after his release in the late 1960s, Draper formed the first jazz rock fusion band composed of established jazz musicians of the day. This preceded

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

's ''

Bitches Brew ''Bitches Brew'' is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Miles Davis. It was recorded from August 19 to 21, 1969, at Columbia's Studio B in New York City and released on March 30, 1970 by Columbia Records. It marke ...

'', which is normally recognized as the first jazz rock fusion group and recording by two years. Original band members included

George Bohanon George Roland Bohanon, Jr. (born August 7, 1937) is a jazz trombonist and session musician from Detroit, Michigan. In the early 1960s, he participated in Detroit's Workshop Jazz ensemble, with Johnny Griffith (musician), Johnny Griffith, Paula Gr ...

on trombone,

Hadley Caliman Hadley Caliman (January 12, 1932 – September 8, 2010) was an American jazz saxophone and flute player.All ...

on tenor sax, John Duke on upright bass, Paul Lagos on drums and Tom Trujillo on guitar. This band, after its first live performance at Hollywood's

Whisky a Go Go The Whisky a Go Go (informally nicknamed "the Whisky") is a historic nightclub in West Hollywood, California, United States. It is located at 8901 Sunset Boulevard on the Sunset Strip, corner North Clark Street, opposite North San Vicente Boul ...

- where it shared the bill with

Nazz The Nazz was an American rock band formed in Philadelphia in 1967. The group was founded by guitarist and principal songwriter Todd Rundgren and bassist Carson Van Osten. Drummer Thom Mooney and vocalist/keyboardist Robert "Stewkey" Antoni joi ...

- was offered numerous record deals and booked solid at rock venues for the rest of the year. Paul Lagos went on to tour with

John Mayall John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, musician and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among it ...

and was one of the founders of the group Pure Food & Drug Act, featuring Don 'Sugarcane' Harris. Draper began using heroin again, whereupon the more experienced band members quit, except for the youngest member, guitarist Tom Trujillo and his landlord, Chuck Gooden. This led to a search for new members and hirings that included San Diego trumpeter Don Sleet and

Ernie Watts Ernest James Watts (born October 23, 1945) is an American jazz and rhythm and blues saxophonist who plays soprano, alto, and tenor saxophone. He has worked with Charlie Haden's Quartet West and toured with the Rolling Stones. On Frank Zappa's ...

. After two years of searching and many personnel changes, including getting clean from drugs, Draper brought drummer Paul Lagos back, along with saxophonist Richard Aplanalp, trumpeter Phil Wood, and bassist Ron Johnson. This new group was eventually named Red Beans and Rice, named after their favorite meal cooked by Draper's first wife, Cassondra. This group appeared on bills with some of the day's headlining groups including

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Chicago Transit Authority The Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) is the operator of mass transit in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and some of its surrounding suburbs, including the trains of the Chicago 'L' and CTA bus service. In , the system had a ridership of , o ...

, Jethro Tull, and

Gil Scott Heron Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011) was an American jazz poet, singer, musician, and author, known primarily for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jacks ...

. In a 1970 ''Billboard'', reviewing a

Dr. John Malcolm John Rebennack Jr. (November 20, 1941 – June 6, 2019), better known by his stage name Dr. John, was an American singer and songwriter. His music encompassed New Orleans blues, jazz, funk, and R&B. Active as a session musician from ...

performance mentioned that "His excellent support included Ray Draper on tuba....". They went on to record the album produced by Jackie Mills titled ''Red Beans and Rice Featuring Sparerib Ray Draper'' on Epic Records. But when the band saw that Draper and his manager Forrest Hamilton had put only Draper's picture on the cover, the whole group quit and Draper was on his own once more. After this, he got hooked back on heroin and he sporadically performed and recorded but he was no longer able to recreate the band sound with other players. He left California and spent a couple years in London before returning to New York in the hopes of becoming clean once again. He remarried and had two children, Kayella and Hakim, with his second wife, Anne, continuing to compose for other musicians. Draper played for a time with

Max Roach Maxwell Lemuel Roach (January 10, 1924 – August 16, 2007) was an American jazz Jazz drumming, drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in h ...

, as mentioned in the 2004 book, "Drummin' Men": "For a time, the Roach group included a tuba, played by young, talented Ray Draper. The instrument was used both as a rhythmic presence and as part of the front-line sound." In 1982, Draper joined the orchestra of

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, and bandleader. Hampton worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles M ...

. In 1982, coming out of a bank in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, he was held up by a gang of juveniles. The 13-year-old leader of the gang shot him, after Draper had given him his money. Draper had been clean of drug use and was working on a composition, found in his attaché case upon his death.

Discography

As leader

* 1957: ''

) * 1957: ''

'' (Prestige/New Jazz) * 1958: ''A Tuba Jazz'' (

Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

), reissued as John Coltrane album, '' Like Sonny'' (

Roulette Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning ''little wheel'' which was likely developed from the Italian game Biribi''.'' In the game, a player may choose to place a bet on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the ...

, 1990) * 1968: ''Red Beans and Rice'' ( Epic)

As sideman

With

Sonny Criss William "Sonny" Criss (23 October 1927 – 19 November 1977) was an American jazz musician. An alto saxophonist of prominence during the bebop era of jazz, he was one of many players influenced by Charlie Parker. Biography William Criss wa ...

*''

Sonny's Dream (Birth of the New Cool) ''Sonny's Dream (Birth of the New Cool)'' is an album by saxophonist Sonny Criss recorded in 1968 and released on the Prestige label.Brother Jack McDuff Eugene McDuff (September 17, 1926 – January 23, 2001), known professionally as "Brother" Jack McDuff or "Captain" Jack McDuff, was an American jazz organist and organ trio bandleader who was most prominent during the hard bop and soul jazz era ...

*'' Who Knows What Tomorrow's Gonna Bring?'' (Blue Note, 1970) With

Jackie McLean John Lenwood "Jackie" McLean (May 17, 1931 – March 31, 2006) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and educator, and is one of the few musicians to be elected to the ''DownBeat'' Hall of Fame in the year of their deat ...

*'' Jackie McLean & Co.'' (Prestige, 1957) *'' Strange Blues'' (Prestige, 1957) *'' Fat Jazz'' (Jubilee, 1957) With

*'' Max Roach + 4 at Newport'' (EmArcy, 1958) *''

Deeds, Not Words ''Deeds, Not Words'' is an album by American jazz drummer Max Roach featuring tracks recorded in 1958 and released on the Riverside Records, Riverside label.

'' (Riverside, 1958) *''

Award-Winning Drummer ''Award-Winning Drummer'' (also released as ''Max Roach'') is an album by American jazz drummer Max Roach featuring a session recorded in 1958 and released on the Time label.

'' (Time, 1958) With

Archie Shepp Archie Shepp (born May 24, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist, educator and playwright who since the 1960s has played a central part in the development of avant-garde jazz. Biography Early life Shepp was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but ...

*''

There's a Trumpet in My Soul ''There's a Trumpet in My Soul'' is an album by avant-garde jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp released in 1975 on the Arista Freedom label. Reception The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow states: "Two vocals and a poem recitation weigh down the music ...

'' (Arista Freedom, 1975) With

*'' The Sun, Moon & Herbs'' (Atlantic, 1971)

References

External links

Ray Draper at Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Draper, Ray 1940 births 1982 deaths American jazz tubists American male jazz musicians Hard bop tubists Manhattan School of Music alumni Prestige Records artists 20th-century American musicians American murder victims 20th-century American male musicians 1982 murders in the United States Deaths by firearm in Manhattan