Buck Hill was born on February 13, 1927 in Washington, District of Columbia, USA. He was married to Helen. He died on March 20, 2017 in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA.
He was a prominent tenor saxophonist in the Washington jazz scene for several decades, while working a day job with the U.S. Postal Service.
His father was a bookbinder at the Government Printing Office.
He began playing soprano sax at age 13, then took up the clarinet and tenor sax. Within a few years, he was playing at nightclubs. He graduated from the District's old Armstrong High School - the alma mater of pianist and jazz bandleader Duke Ellington.
Survived by his wife two daughters, one step-son, two granddaughters, and two great grandsons.