BOAS, KEN

Homebase: Seattle
Stats: 1925-2018
Misc Notes: "Kenny Boas, a laid-back piano player, was born and raised in Seattle's Central Area. Boas hung out and performed, often as the only Jewish musician, with jazz heavyweights including Floyd Standifer (1929-2007), Buddy Catlett (1933-2014), Ernestine Anderson (1928-2016), Quincy Jones (b. 1933), Ray Charles (1930-2004), and more. The pianist played in the Savoy Boys Swing Band and Bumps Blackwell Senior Band and rocked out at the YMCA at 23rd and Olive. He joined American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 76 as a teenager, but left in the 1950s, upset over its policy of segregation, and joined AFM Local 493, representing African American and other non-white musicians. Boas was an unsung hero and treasure who humbly understood and enjoyed the heyday of jazz music in Seattle." [READ MORE] [Notes by Linda Holden Givens, quoted here courtesy of HistoryLink.org / photo courtesy theBoas Family]