Bill Rutan

American banjo player and singer. Born 1939 in Great Falls, Montana. Died September 15, 2022. Ratan moved to San Francisco after high school, and became lead banjo player at Ruby Red's Warehouse. In the late 1960s he moved to Atlanta, and his band, "Hotlanta," became a fixture at parades, Atlanta Braves baseball games, Coca-Cola events, new airport terminal unveilings, and the 1996 Olympics. In the early 2000's, "Hotlanta" represented Atlanta at jazz festivals in Germany, Japan, Russia, and as recently as 2017, in Mexico. Ratan retired in 2018.