Donald Ray Payne (January 7, 1933 – February 25, 2017) was an American jazz double-bassist and electric bassist.[1]

Don Payne
Born
Donald Ray Payne

January 7, 1933 (1933-01-07)
DiedFebruary 25, 2017 (2017-02-26) (aged 84)
OccupationJazz musician

Life and career

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Born in Wellington, Texas, Payne was raised in California and first played trumpet before switching to double bass in high school. His first major gigs occurred in the mid-1950s; he worked in the second half of the decade with Georgie Auld, Ornette Coleman, Maynard Ferguson, Calvin Jackson, Joe Maini, and Art Pepper. In 1958, Payne relocated to New York City, where he played with Tony Bennett, Chris Connor, and Mundell Lowe, then joined Herbie Mann and Astrud Gilberto for international tours. He also worked with Stan Getz around this time. Payne led his own ensemble with a rotating cast of sidemen, including Mike Abene, Joe Beck, and Gene Bertoncini.

Payne began playing bass guitar in 1964, and worked in popular and rock idioms as well as in jazz as a session musician for New York studio recordings. He played on releases by Loudon Wainwright III, Judy Collins, Roy Buchanan, Leonard Cohen (New Skin for the Old Ceremony, 1974), Janis Ian, Luiz Henrique, Harry Chapin, and Melanie Safka. His later jazz associations included Bobby Hackett, Jackie Cain, and Roy Kral.

Collaborations

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With Melanie

With Richie Havens

With Janis Ian

  • Stars (Columbia Records, 1974)
  • Aftertones (Columbia Records, 1975)

With Loudon Wainwright III

With Leonard Cohen

With Judy Collins

References

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  1. ^ "Donald Payne Obituary". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 26 April 2017 – via legacy.com.