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Corinne Bailey Rae's sax player husband Jason is dead at 31


On 23 March 2008
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The husband of Grammy-nominated soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae has died of a suspected overdose. Jason Rae, who was 31, was found at his home in Leeds. It's not known whether his wife of seven years was with him when he died.

Jason, who was a saxophonist in funk band The Haggis Horns, met Leeds-born Corinne before her rise to fame. At the time she was working as a cloakroom attendant in a Leeds jazz club, while studying in the city. They married in 2001 when she was 22.

In interviews Corinne has often spoken about the support her husband gave her, and how much he meant to her. "When I'm away, I realise how rare what we have is and can't wait to get back to it," she once said. "It really helps having Jason around. It's hard being away from him."

While Corrine's self self-titled debut album topped the UK charts in 2006 and sold more than a million copies in the US, Jason was also successful in his own right. His band had performed and recorded with Back To Black singer Amy Winehouse and Grammy-winning artist Mark Ronson.

"(Jason) was a colourful character, always fun and joking," said a fan of his band. "(He) was an amazing sax player."

Photo: © Alphapress.com
Jason Rae, who married the Put Your Records On singer before her rise to fame, has died of a suspected overdose. It's not known whether Corinne was with him at the timePhoto: © Rex

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