A definitive cool jazz guitarist and a fluid bop soloist with a quiet sound but a great deal of inner fire, Raney was influenced by Charlie Christian. His style grew to encompass not just Charlie Parker but also the Lennie Tristano school of “cool bop.” Indeed, Raney was sometimes called the Lee Konitz of the guitar, after the famous alto player associated with Lennie Tristano.

As a soloist, Raney emphasized lines inspired by those of Lester Young. He compensated for the emotional coolness of his improvisations by employing long melodic lines, cleanly articulated. One of the true innovators on his instrument, Raney exercised a profound influence upon guitarists of the 1950s.

Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Raney was influenced by his mother, who played guitar. Raney studied with the guitarist Hayden Causey, whom he replaced in a band led by Jerry Wald. In 1944 he moved to Chicago, where he worked with pianist Lou Levy. In 1948, Raney joined Woody Herman's orchestra and recorded with Stan Getz.

After leaving Herman, Raney played with Al Haig, Buddy DeFranco, Artie Shaw (1949–1950), and Terry Gibbs, then joined Getz's quintet. It was this group that brought him to prominence as he became known for his playing on several of Getz's important albums between 1951 and 1953. He replaced Tal Farlow in the Red Norvo Trio (1953–1954) and worked at the Blue Angel, New York (1955–1960), in a trio led by the pianist Jimmy Lyon. He rejoined Getz in 1962, but remained with him only until the following year.

In the mid-1960s, Raney was active in New York as a studio musician in radio and television before returning to Louisville in 1968. He later played at clubs in New York (1972), gave a recital at Carnegie Hall with Al Haig (1974), and toured internationally with Haig and his son Doug Raney, with whom he also recorded guitar duos. In the 1980s he performed and recorded as the leader of his own groups, which included his son, although encroaching deafness hampered his ability to play in his last few years. He died in 1995.