Albert Lee

Last updated

Albert Lee
Albert Lee 2019 by Glenn Francis.jpg
Lee in Los Angeles on 3 July 2019
Background information
Birth nameAlbert Lee
Also known asMr. Telecaster
Born (1943-12-21) 21 December 1943 (age 80)
Lingen, Herefordshire, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Musician
  • songwriter
  • musical director
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar, piano, mandolin
Years active1959–present
Labels A&M, Diamond Records, MCA, Heroic Records, Castle, Magnum, Polydor, Sugar Hill
Website

Albert William Lee (born 21 December 1943) is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked, both in the studio and on tour, with many famous musicians from a wide range of genres. He has also maintained a solo career and is a noted composer and musical director.

Contents

Early life

Lee was born in Lingen, Herefordshire, but grew up in Blackheath, London, a member of a Romani family. [1] His father was a musician, and Lee studied piano, taking up the instrument at age seven. [2]

During this time, Lee became a fan of Buddy Holly and Jerry Lee Lewis. He took up guitar in 1958 when his parents bought him a second-hand Höfner President which he later traded in for a Czechoslovak Jolana Grazioso, the forerunner of the Futurama. Lee left school at the age of 16 to play full-time.

Career

Early career

Lee was with a variety of bands from 1959 onwards, playing mostly R&B, country music and rock and roll. He was accompanying Richard Kneller, (Dickie Pride), in the Castle Pub, Tooting, the night Russ Conway saw him perform there, two weeks before taking Larry Parnes to see Pride. In addition to Buddy Holly, his early guitar influences included Cliff Gallup, Grady Martin, the Everly Brothers, Scotty Moore, James Burton and Jerry Reed. [3] Lee first experienced commercial success as the lead guitarist with Chris Farlowe and the Thunderbirds. Lee says that he enjoyed playing the Stax-type material, but he really wanted to play country music. Consequently, he left Farlowe and the Thunderbirds in 1968.

During his time playing with Heads Hands & Feet, Lee became a "guitar hero", playing his Fender Telecaster at breakneck speed. [4] Heads Hands & Feet became a popular live band in the UK, making appearances on The Old Grey Whistle Test and also in Europe, where they appeared on the German music programme Beat-Club . In October 1969 Country Fever, an RCA package toured six countries in eleven days, starting at the Nashville Room with the London band the Kingpins. [5]

International success

In 1971, Lee performed with Deep Purple's keyboard player Jon Lord on the studio recording of Lord's Gemini Suite . That opus was a follow-up to Deep Purple's Concerto for Group and Orchestra . Ritchie Blackmore had played guitar at the first live performance of the Gemini Suite in September 1970, but declined the invitation to appear on the studio version, which led to the involvement of Lee. Other performers were Yvonne Elliman, Ian Paice, Roger Glover, Tony Ashton and the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Malcolm Arnold.

Lee left for Los Angeles in 1974 and, through his friend bassist Ric Grech (of Blind Faith), did some session work on three albums with the Crickets who also at the time included Sonny Curtis and Jerry Allison. One of these releases is titled A Long Way From Lubbock. Lee also received many other offers of session work. In 1976, he was asked to join Emmylou Harris's Hot Band, replacing one of his heroes, James Burton, who was returning to perform with Elvis Presley. The Hot Band featured other musicians including Ricky Skaggs and Rodney Crowell. Starting in 1978, Lee worked for five years with Eric Clapton, which included playing and singing for a live concert recording at the Budokan in Japan.

Lee was responsible for the Everly Brothers' 1983 reunion concert and was its musical director. [6] He played regularly with the Everlys for over twenty years.

Lee (left) and Vince Gill (right) with tour promoters Ann and Andrew Pattison in Australia, February 1988 Albert Lee, Vince Gill + hosts in Australia, February 1988.jpg
Lee (left) and Vince Gill (right) with tour promoters Ann and Andrew Pattison in Australia, February 1988

In 1987, Lee was invited by Gerry Hogan to headline at a steel guitar festival in Newbury, Berkshire. Lee was at first intimidated by the prospect of having to front a band; however, the gig was successful and he toured as Albert Lee & Hogan’s Heroes on a regular basis until 2015. The lineup of the band included British musicians Peter Baron on drums, Gerry Hogan on guitar and Brian Hodgson on bass. Pete Wingfield was the original keyboard player, before leaving to be replaced by Elio Pace and later Gavin Povey.

They were renowned for attracting celebrities to their gigs. Stars such as Eric Clapton, Tommy Emmanuel, Lonnie Donegan, Dave Edmunds, Nick Lowe, Marty Wilde, Willie Nelson, Nanci Griffith, Don Everly, Emmylou Harris, Sonny Curtis and Rodney Crowell have all jammed with the band at one time or another. In 1988 Lee toured Australia along with Vince Gill, then a comparative unknown, and has returned to tour the country on several subsequent occasions.

In the early 2000s Albert Lee toured with Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings. In 2002, Lee appeared at the Concert for George [Harrison]. Also in 2002, Lee received a Grammy Award for Best Country Instrumental Performance for "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" from the CD Earl Scruggs and Friends. In September 2006 Lee took part in Primal Twang: The Legacy of the Guitar, a documentary about the history of the guitar. Lee appeared at the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival on 28 July and performed with Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings at the Ahmet Ertegun tribute show at The O2 in London on 10 December. A new album entitled Like This was released in spring 2008 to coincide with their European tour. He lives in Malibu, California.

Awards and legacy

Albert Lee performing in 2006 with one of his signature Music Man guitars. AlbertLee.jpg
Albert Lee performing in 2006 with one of his signature Music Man guitars.

Lee has received many awards as a guitarist, winning five consecutive times Guitar Player magazine's "Best Country Guitarist". [7] Lee is known within the music industry for his speed of playing and his technical virtuosity [8] and yet by the same token, one of the most melodic, playing slower passages approximating the sound of the pedal steel guitar with his Music Man and Telecaster guitars which are equipped with B-Benders.

He is known as "the guitar player's guitar player". [8] Lee is also referred to as "Mr. Telecaster". [9] A long-time Telecaster player, Lee wrote a foreword to A.R. Duchossoir's book detailing the history of the instrument.

Lee's song "Country Boy" helped to redefine country guitar for a whole generation of players, and was later to become a hit for multi-instrumentalist Ricky Skaggs.

Despite positive press from Melody Maker and New Musical Express , Lee has never achieved any great commercial success in terms of record sales during his career, but more as a live performer, session player and sideman, perhaps due to his self-effacing stage presence. Lee has been described by his peers, who include Jimmy Page and Ritchie Blackmore, as a complete gentleman who does not know the meaning of the word ego. [4]

After Gram Parsons' death, Emmylou Harris was told that she could gain the backing of a major record label only if she could assemble a really "hot band". Harris did just that, enlisting guitarist James Burton and pianist Glen Hardin, both of whom had played with Elvis Presley and Parsons; she named the band "The Hot Band". When Burton left to return to Elvis Presley, Lee was his replacement. Harris said of him that Lee is "a brilliant guitar player. His sound is unmistakable—often emulated, never equaled. When Saint Peter asks me to chronicle my time down here on earth, I'll be able to say (with pride if that's allowed) that for a while I played rhythm guitar in a band with Albert Lee." [10]

In 2017, Lee was honoured with the Trailblazer Lifetime Achievement Award at the UK Americana Awards.

Guitar collection

Albert Lee owns around 40 guitars, including Don Everly's Gibson J-200. The Gibson Guitar Corporation made one for Don Everly and the other for Phil. The guitars have an all black, high-gloss lacquered finish and are equipped with twin Everly Brothers white pickguards. The Everly Brothers' manager Wesley Rose had wanted the guitar to be presented to the Country Music Hall of Fame, but Everly informed him that guitars like that should be played, not kept sitting in a glass case. Don Everly presented it to Lee, along with his Gibson Everly Brothers model. [3]

Eric Clapton gave Lee the Gibson Les Paul Custom that he played while with Delaney and Bonnie. Lee also plays his signature Music Man (the guitar shown in the photographs) and a 1950s Telecaster (and has versions of both with custom B-Benders), a 1958 Stratocaster and a Martin 000-28 acoustic. [3]

Despite his being heavily associated with the Fender Telecaster, guitar manufacturer Ernie Ball Music Man makes a signature Albert Lee guitar, which unlike the Telecaster has three single-coil pickups.

Band list

Discography

Albums

YearTitleLabelNumberNotes
1979Hiding A&M SP 4750
1982Albert Lee Polydor 2383 640
1986Speechless MCA MCA-5693
1987Gagged but Not BoundMCA Master SeriesMCA-42063
1991Black Claw/Country FeverLineLICD 9.01057 O
1994In Full Flight! Live at MontreauxRound TowerRTMCD 60with Hogan's Heroes
2002Tear It UpHeroicHEROIC0001with Hogan's Heroes
2003Heartbreak Hill Sugar Hill SUG-CD-3977
2003That's All Right Mama: The Country Fever & Black Claw Sessions Castle 800
2006Road RunnerSugar HillSUG-CD-4011
2006In Between the CracksHeroicHEROIC0004with Hogan's Heroes
2007Live at the New MorningHeroicHEROIC0005with Hogan's Heroes
2008Like ThisHeroicHEROIC0006with Hogan's Heroes
2012Tear It UpAIX RecordsAIX 85054
2014HighwaymanPalm Bridge0013964743173
2019Gypsy Man - A Tribute To Buddy HollyMann Brothers

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Burton</span> American guitarist

James Edward Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001, Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. He was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2024. Critic Mark Deming writes that "Burton has a well-deserved reputation as one of the finest guitar pickers in either country or rock ... Burton is one of the best guitar players to ever touch a fretboard." He is ranked number 24 in Rolling Stone list of 250 greatest guitarists of all time.

<i>Right or Wrong</i> (Rosanne Cash album) 1979 studio album by Rosanne Cash

Right or Wrong is the second studio album by American country music singer Rosanne Cash. It was released in September 1979 by Columbia Records.

<i>Blue Kentucky Girl</i> (Emmylou Harris album) 1979 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Blue Kentucky Girl is the sixth studio album by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released in 1979. The album features Harris delving into more traditional country than the country-rock sound of her previous releases. Songs include work by Willie Nelson and Gram Parsons. Rodney Crowell's "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" featured harmonies by Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt, and came out of the women's ill-fated 1978 recording sessions, where they first attempted to record a "trio" album.

<i>Evangeline</i> (Emmylou Harris album) 1981 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Evangeline is the eighth studio album by Emmylou Harris that was composed mostly of leftover material from past recording sessions and which did not fit into any of her other albums. Songs included a remake of "Mister Sandman", "Evangeline", which she had previously performed with The Band, Rodney Crowell's "Ashes By Now", and a cover of John Fogerty's "Bad Moon Rising". Though it received mixed reviews upon its release, the album was yet another commercial success for Harris. It was certified Gold in less than a year after its release. A single release of "Mister Sandman" did well on the charts, though neither Ronstadt's nor Parton's record companies would allow their artists' vocals to be used on the single, so Harris rerecorded the song, singing all three parts for the single release. Rodney Crowell's "I Don't Have to Crawl" was released as the album's second single.

<i>Cimarron</i> (album) 1981 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Cimarron is the ninth studio album by Emmylou Harris that, like its predecessor, Evangeline, was composed mostly of outtakes from other recording sessions that had not fit into any of Harris' other albums. As a result, critics at the time complained that the album was "choppy" and lacked a unifying sound. Nonetheless, the album did well on the U.S. country charts, and featured three top-ten country singles: "Born to Run", "If I Needed You", and "Tennessee Rose." It was nominated for a Grammy in 1982 for Best Country Vocal Performance, Female. In 2000, Eminent Records issued Cimarron for the first time on CD, with new liner notes and a bonus track, "Colors of Your Heart."

<i>Tell Me Why</i> (Jann Browne album) 1990 studio album by Jann Browne

Tell Me Why is the début studio album by American country music artist Jann Browne. Three singles from the album rose to positions on the Billboard Country Singles charts: "You Ain't Down Home" at #19, "Tell Me Why" at #18, and "Louisville" at #75. Also featured on the album is a cover of The Davis Sisters' "I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know," a duet with veteran rockabilly artist Wanda Jackson. Emmylou Harris provides backing vocals on "Mexican Wind." The album rose to #46 on the Billboard Country Albums chart.

<i>Elite Hotel</i> 1975 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Elite Hotel is the third studio album by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released in 1975. Elite Hotel was Harris' second album to be released in 1975, preceded by the widely acclaimed Pieces of the Sky. Elite Hotel surpassed it on the Billboard charts, becoming Harris' first number one country album. The album yielded two number one country singles: "Together Again" and Harris' version of the Patsy Cline hit "Sweet Dreams". The song "One of These Days" made it to the number three spot. A performance of the Beatles' "Here, There and Everywhere" entered the pop charts at number 65. Harris' eclectic musical tastes were reflected in her choice of material by Hank Williams, The Beatles, Gram Parsons and Buck Owens. Harris' vocals on the album earned her the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance, Female.

<i>Luxury Liner</i> (album) 1976 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Luxury Liner is the fourth studio album by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released in 1976. The album was Harris' second successive number one country album on the Billboard charts, although, unlike the preceding Elite Hotel, there were no number one hits from this album. The highest-charting singles were the number six Chuck Berry cover "(You Never Can Tell) C'est la Vie" and the number eight "Making Believe". However, the album may be better known for including the first cover version of Townes Van Zandt's 1972 song "Pancho and Lefty", which subsequently became Van Zandt's best-known composition.

<i>Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town</i> 1978 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released in 1978. The album reached number 3 on the Billboard charts, with three charting singles: "To Daddy" at #3, "Two More Bottles of Wine" at #1, and "Easy From Now On" at #12. Also featured are "One Paper Kid", a duet with Willie Nelson, "Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight", which the Oak Ridge Boys would reach #1 with in 1980 and "I Ain't Living Long Like This", which Waylon Jennings would reach #1 with in 1980 as well. The painting used for the album cover is by Susanna Clark.

<i>Light of the Stable</i> 1979 studio album by Emmylou Harris

Light of the Stable is the first Christmas album by Emmylou Harris. It was originally released in 1979 by Warner Bros. Records but has since gone through several intervening releases. The 1992 Warner release was a remastered version of the original with a different album cover. The latest edition was released in 2004 by Rhino Records. It contains three newly recorded tracks in addition to remastered versions of the ten original tracks. Its cover came from the record sleeve of the original 45-rpm single version of "Light of the Stable" that was released in 1975. The title song featured harmony vocals from Neil Young, Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Jorgenson</span> American musician (born 1956)

John Richard Jorgenson is an American musician. Although best known for his guitar work with bands such as the Desert Rose Band and The Hellecasters, he is also proficient on the mandolin, mandocello, Dobro, pedal steel guitar, piano, upright bass, clarinet, bassoon, and saxophone. While a member of the Desert Rose Band, he won the Academy of Country Music's "Guitarist of the Year" award three consecutive years.

Paul Kennerley is an English singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer working in the American contemporary country music industry.

<i>The Legend of Jesse James</i> 1980 concept album written by Paul Kennerley

The Legend of Jesse James is a 1980 country music concept album written by English songwriter Paul Kennerley, based on the story of American Old West outlaw Jesse James.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emory Gordy Jr.</span> Musical artist

Emory Lee Gordy Jr. is an American musician, songwriter and music producer. A former member of Emmylou Harris' backing band The Hot Band, he is best known for his association with country singer Patty Loveless, to whom he has been married since 1989. Gordy has produced and played bass guitar on nearly all of her albums, in addition to producing albums by Steve Earle, George Jones, and Alabama.

<i>Aint Living Long Like This</i> 1978 studio album by Rodney Crowell

Ain't Living Long Like This is the debut studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Rodney Crowell, released in 1978 by Warner Bros. Records. It failed to enter the Top Country Albums chart. The songs, "Elvira", "Song for the Life" and "(Now and Then, There's) A Fool Such as I" were released as singles but they all failed to chart within the top 40. Despite this, Ain't Living Long Like This is considered one of Crowell's best and most influential albums. Brett Hartenbach of Allmusic says it "not only showcases his songwriting prowess, but also his ability to deliver a song, whether it's one of his own or the work of another writer". Most of the songs on this album were later covered by other artists including The Oak Ridge Boys and Alan Jackson. When the album was re-released in 2002 the font on the cover was enlarged to make it more legible.

<i>Rodney Crowell</i> (album) 1981 studio album by Rodney Crowell

Rodney Crowell is the third studio album by American country music artist Rodney Crowell. It was released in 1981 by Warner Bros. Records and was his last album on that label before switching to Columbia. It was the first album Crowell produced by himself. It reached #47 on the Top Country Albums chart and #105 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The songs, "Stars on the Water" and "Victim or a Fool" were released as singles. "Stars on the Water" reached #30 on the Hot Country Songs chart, his highest-charting song up to that point. It peaked at #21 on the Canadian country charts. "Victim or a Fool" reached #34 in the U.S. The album was rereleased on compact disc in 2005 paired with his previous album But What Will the Neighbors Think.

<i>Old Yellow Moon</i> 2013 studio album by Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell

Old Yellow Moon is a collaborative album by American country music singer-songerwriters Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, released on February 26, 2013 in the United States by Nonesuch Records. It is the twenty-seventh and fourteenth studio album for Harris and Crowell, respectively, as well as Harris's fifth album for Nonesuch Records. The duo followed up this collaboration with The Traveling Kind two years later.

Henry M. "Hank" DeVito is an American musician and photographer known primarily for his pedal steel guitar work and songwriting.

John A. Ware is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session and live performance work.

<i>Ramble in Music City: The Lost Concert</i> 2021 live album by Emmylou Harris and The Nash Ramblers

Ramble in Music City: The Lost Concert is a 2021 live album from American country musician Emmylou Harris, backed by The Nash Ramblers. The recording was unearthed by James Austin of Rhino Records and represents a different sound for Harris that included a new backing band.

References

  1. Derek Watts, Country Boy: A Biography of Albert Lee, Jefferson, NC; McFarland & Co., pp.6–9.
  2. George-Warren, Holly; Romanowski, Patricia; Bashe, Patricia Romanowski; Pareles, Jon (2001). Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll . ISBN   0-7432-0120-5.
  3. 1 2 3 Fishell, Steve; Tom Wheeler (May 1981). "Albert Lee: State of the Art Country-Rock Guitar". Guitar Player . Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2009.
  4. 1 2 Larkin, Colin. The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music: Albert Lee entry, Guinness Publishing, 1993. ISBN   0-85112-726-6
  5. Derek Watts Country Boy: A Biography of Albert Lee page 90
  6. "Albert Lee – Biography". Homepage.eircom.net. 21 December 1943. Archived from the original on 26 January 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  7. "Albert Lee Bio". Riff Interactive. 17 October 1999. Retrieved 10 March 2009.
  8. 1 2 Gumbel, Andrew (13 June 2006). "Unsung heroes: session musicians are given their own Hall of Fame". The Independent. Archived from the original on 10 April 2007. Retrieved 24 October 2008.
  9. "AllExperts Questions & Answers". 12 July 2012. Archived from the original on 12 July 2012.
  10. Elder, Bruce (20 August 2007). "Albert Lee – Gig Reviews". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 8 December 2008. Retrieved 24 October 2008.

Bibliography

Albert Lee website