
Sorry for the sad news; Bill Grahn has died. Bill was one of the last of a breed of beloved long-time local jazz musicians that have moved on. He was a great musician and a great person in his own quiet way. If you knew him, you know what a loss this is. If you didn’t, I suggest reading his obituary and the guestbook comments for a strong sense of who he was.
As for myself, I didn’t know Bill deeply, but he still made an impact. I took lessons from him for a bit, and would occasionally hear him play with Rand’s group and we’d talk afterwords. He was a gentle soul, and an impressive musician. Even at 83 he was robust, easily stood for 3 hour gigs with his baritone sax, and sounded better than most other sax players in Madison. He will be remembered by many.