Raelene Claire Claussen, known professionally as Sue Raney (born June 18, 1940, in McPherson, Kansas), is an American jazz singer. Raney was signed by Capitol Records in 1957 at age 17. That same year, she recorded her debut album, When Your Lover Has Gone, produced by Nelson Riddle.
Biography
Raney was born to Richard LeRoy Claussen (1913–1967) and Mildred Augusta Vonderfecht
(maiden; 1915–2005). She began singing at age four, and, encouraged by her mother, began singing professionally before becoming a teenager. When she was nearly 14, she joined
Jack Carson's radio show in Los Angeles in 1954 and later worked on television as the singer in
Ray Anthony's band. In 1960, Raney recorded, "Biology" – Bill Holman directing – which became
Capitol Records's first single elevated to national promotion after introducing it in regional pre-testing that same year. Raney was featured with the
Stan Kenton orchestra in 1962 on the hour-long television special
Music of 1960s.
Raney sang the theme song to the 1967 psychological thriller film Wait Until Dark, starring Audrey Hepburn. The song, bearing the title of the film, was composed by Henry Mancini, lyrics by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans. Raney voiced Patti Bear in The Great Bear Scare (1983), an animated Halloween sequel to The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas. Her single "Early Morning Blues and Greens" was played on easy-listening stations, peaking at No. 16 on the Billboard magazine MOR chart. She sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Dodger Stadium before the sixth game of the 1978 World Series. At the time, she was married to Ed Yelin of Capitol Records. She also performed on three albums titled Supersax and LA Voices, Vol. 1 (1983), Vol. 2 (1984), and Vol. 3 (1986). The LA Voices of Volume 1 received a Grammy nomination for the 26th Annual Grammy Awards in the category "Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group".
Family
Raney, on September 2, 1966, married Edward Yelin
(né Edward Marsey Levey; 1928–2015), who, at one time, had been an A&R Vice President for
Capitol Records. Yelin had been one of her managers. Yelin was a former jazz trumpeter. After divorcing Yelin in the 1980s, she remarried, to
Carmen Fanzone, a trumpeter and former major league baseball player for the Boston Red Sox and
Chicago Cubs. From her first marriage, she has two stepsons, Mark Raymond Yelin (born 1953) and Lee Philip Yelin (born 1956).
Discography
With Nelson Riddle and His Orchestra
With Billy May and His Orchestra
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Songs for a Raney Day (Capitol, 1960)
With Ralph Carmichael and His Orchestra
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All by Myself (Capitol, 1963)
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Happiness Is a Warm Sue Raney (Philips, 1964)
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Sue Raney's People Tree (Light, 1972)
With orchestra, Billy Byers conducting
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New and Now! (Imperial, 1967)
With the Bob Florence Trio
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Sings the Music of Johnny Mandel (Discovery, 1983)
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Quietly There (Discovery, 1987)
With studio orchestra conducted by Alan Broadbent
With Alan Broadbent
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Listen Here (Rhombus, 2010)
With Kenny Rankin
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Professional Dreamer (Private Music, 1995)
With Dick Shreve (piano) and Bob Magnusson (bass)
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Autumn in the Air (Fresh Sound, 1997)
With various artists
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Alive and in Love (Imperial, 1965)
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With a Little Help from My Friends (Imperial, 1968)
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In Good Company (Discovery, 1992)
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Heart's Desire: A Tribute to Doris Day (Fresh Sound, 2006)
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Late in Life (Fresh Sound, 2014)
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Christmas Lady (Fresh Sound, 2016)
Bibliography
Notes
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(University of Arizona School of Music's 34th Annual AzJazz Week)
External links
