Rudy Traylor

Rudy Traylor (August 28, 1918—May 22, 1992) was an American rhythm & blues and jazz drummer who worked and recorded with Earl Hines, Rudy Powell, Jimmie Lunceford, and Ella Fitzgerald.

In his later career, he worked as a music producer and arranger for Roulette Records and conducted or directed bands for jazz and pop recordings.

As a drummer, Traylor was involved in 17 jazz recording sessions between 1941 and 1959.

Rudy Traylor was born Rudolph A. Traylor in Providence, Rhode Island, on August 28, 1918, to Julia Traylor. He had a younger brother, Iverson H. Traylor (1920–1988).

Traylor began his professional music career in his teens as a house musician in a Philadelphia nightclub led by clarinetist George Baquet.

Later, he moved to New York where he replaced Alvin Burroughs) as a drummer for Earl Hines Orchestra in the early 1940s. In 1941/42, he made several recordings with Hines' band on Victor Records alongside Joe McLewis, George Hunt, John "Streamline" Ewing, Edward Fant, and Jerry Valentine (trombone); Pee Wee Jackson, Benny Harris, Freddie Webster, George Dixon, Tommy Enoch, and Jesse Miller (trumpet); Willie Randall, George "Scoops" Carey, Leroy Harris, Franz Jackson, Albert "Budd" Johnson, and Robert Crowder (saxophone); Hurley Ramey (guitar); Charles "Truck" Parham (string bass); and Madeline Green (vocalist).

Traylor's music life was temporarily paused when he registered for military service during the Second World War in 1942. Hines replaced him with David "Chick" Booth.

After his discharge from the army in 1946, he studied music at The Juilliard School in New York. In 1947, he joined Hines' band again and played drums on lyricist Walter Melrose's "Sweet Honey Babe" (MGM Records, 1949).

In the early 1950s, Traylor played with Rudy Powell (aka Musheed Karweem), Fred Williams, Bill Doggett, Skeeter Best, Jimmie Lunceford, Walter Page, Noble Sissle, and Herbie Lovelle.

In the following years, he worked mainly on Broadway as a theater musician, and as a session musician for the studio orchestras of Ray Brown and Sy Oliver. During this time, he also played with Jeri Southern, Lem Johnson, Buck Clayton, and Noro Morales.

In 1952, Traylor recorded with various musicians on Decca and Coral Records:

• "Air Mail Special" and "Rough Ridin'" with Ella Fitzgerald
• "Am I to Blame", "I Hear a Rhapsody", "Wheels of Fortune", and "Till the stars fall in the Ocean" with Arthur Prysock
• "That's How It Goes", "Sentimental Tears", "Two Wrongs Never Make a Right", and "One for My Baby (and one more for the Road)" with Ace Harris
• "Midnight Sun", "Pale Moon", "Moon Ray", and "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" with Morris Lane.

From 1957 onwards, Traylor worked as a recording manager, arranger, and producer for George Goldner's Roulette Records and was involved in the recordings for Count Basie Orchestra, Art Blakey, Maynard Ferguson, Tyree Glenn, Johnny Hartman ("I thought about you", 1958), Bud Powell (Bud Plays Bird) and William Russo. For Roulette, he also directed the studio orchestras on pop productions of The Teenagers ("My Broken Heart", 1958); The Cleftones ("Mish Mash Baby", 1959), and Frankie Lymon ("Little Bitty Pretty One", 1960).

In 1965, Traylor served as a sound supervisor and music editor for David E. Durston's mystery drama The Love Statue starring Peter Ratray, Beti Seay, and Harvey J. Goldenberg.

Traylor married Mary J. Barton on August 9, 1960, in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Traylor died in Brooklyn, New York, on May 22, 1992, at age 73. He was buried in Calverton National Cemetery in Riverhead, Suffolk County, New York.

• The World of Earl Hines by Stanley Dance
• The Jazz Discography by Tom Lord
• Jazz World by Buck Clayton and Nancy Miller Elliott