Mark Ronson has paid tribute to Corinne Bailey Rae’s late husband, calling Jason Rae “an incredible dude”.

Rae was a member of the Haggis Horns which has backed up stars including Corinne Bailey Rae, Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson.

Ronson has expressed his sadness at Rae’s tragic death in a post on his Myspace page. It reads, “Last Saturday, Jase Rae of The Haggis Horns passed away. It’s such a sad, sad thing, I’m sorry that I can’t really put anything into words. However, I will say that he was an incredible dude, a lovely gentle man, one of the funniest people ever, an obsessed early Nineties hip-hop super-enthusiast (he loved music more passionately and genuinely than anyone), and one of the most amazing sax players I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing with. If you’ve ever been to one of our gigs, you’ve witnessed it. He was an incredible dude, he always will be.”

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A coroner has opened the official inquest into the death of Corinne Bailey Rae’s husband, saxophonist Jason Rae, today.

Jason was found dead Saturday afternoon at an apartment in Leeds, he was only 31-years-old.

The examining pathologist came to the preliminary conclusion the Rae had died from a suspected drugs overdose, he told the coroner during Thursday’s hearing, a British wire service reports.

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The husband of British soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae was found dead in an apartment in Leeds, England, the BBC reports.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said officers were called to the home where they found saxophonist Jason Rae, 31, Saturday afternoon.

In connection with the case, a 32-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs, and was since released on bail, according to police.

Reports say that Rae was the victim of a suspected overdose, however, results of a post mortem exam were inconclusive. Police are awaiting the results of a toxicology report, according to the BBC.

Rae had been scheduled to play a gig with his band The Haggis Horns at the HiFi Club in Leeds Sunday. The show has been canceled.

Bailey Rae, 29, and her husband met when the singer worked in as a coat room attendant at a jazz club in Leeds. They married in 2001.

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