Billy Byers: Byers' Guide

Of the many great post-war jazz arrangers, the one we probably know least about is Billy Byers. Despite his superlative credits as an orchestrator and player, very little has been written about him. Part of the problem is that from the late 1950s onward, Byers operated behind the scenes as a ghost for hire. In this capacity, Byers was paid by big-name a…