[1] His father came from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and was President of Alabama A&M University from 1909 to 1920, before switching career to become a real estate broker.
[2][3] In April 1944, he was playing in a band led by Jesse Miller at Joe's Deluxe Club, in Chicago, with Albert Atkinson (sax), Ike Day, Argonne Thornton (piano), and Kermit Scott.
[5] In February 1949 he recorded again for Savoy, as a member of the Hal Singer Sextet, comprising Tate Houston, Buchanan, Butch Ballard, George Rhodes, Chippy Outcalt and Willie Moore, and on the same session, the same line-up recorded another track backing Chicago Davis.
An August 1949 issue of Down Beat features a photograph by William P. Gottlieb showing Buchanan onstage with Cobb at the Apollo Theater, New York.
Due to the imminent breakup of their marriage, however, some sources suggest that Buchanan would probably not have attended the recording session.