Lee Underwood
Encyclopedia
Lee Underwood is an American
musician
and writer
notable for performing on lead guitar
with Tim Buckley
for most of Buckley's career. Underwood appeared on seven of the nine albums Buckley recorded during his brief life, and on several posthumous releases, including Live in London. He appears on the DVD Tim Buckley: My Fleeting House
discussing Tim Buckley's impressive artistic evolutionary development through five different musical phases — from folk, to folk-rock, to jazz, to avant-garde innovations, to dance-oriented popular music in which he merged all of his previous influences and concepts into an organic whole.
Throughout the '70s and 80s, Underwood became an internationally well-known music journalist. He contributed interviews, essays, and record reviews to various notable periodicals such as Down Beat
, Rolling Stone
, Los Angeles Times
. He served as the west coast
editor of Down Beat
from 1975 to 1981.
He wrote and published Blue Melody:Tim Buckley Remembered
in 2002, cited by Uncut music magazine as one of the year's ten best biographies. Earlier, in 1990, he co-authored jazz
flautist
Paul Horn
's autobiography
, for which he received the Crystal Award for Music Journalism from the New Age Music network.
Underwood's most recent book is Timewinds, a book of poetry published by Poetic Matrix Press in 2010. His site at leeunderwood.net includes several essays on music and musicians (including Tim Buckley), essays on philosophical issues, audio readings of many of his poems, and a full-length book of wisdom-word e-mails written to a host of recipients, entitled Diamonds in the Sky.
As a musician himself, Underwood has recorded three CDs — California Sigh (1988), a solo guitar work produced by synthesist Steve Roach; Phantom Light (2003), a solo acoustic piano recording; and Gathering Light, also a solo acoustic piano work, recorded in 2009.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
notable for performing on lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
with Tim Buckley
Tim Buckley
Timothy Charles Buckley III was an American vocalist, and musician. His music and style changed considerably through the years; his first album was mostly folk oriented, but over time his music incorporated jazz, psychedelia, funk, soul, avant-garde and an evolving "voice as instrument," sound...
for most of Buckley's career. Underwood appeared on seven of the nine albums Buckley recorded during his brief life, and on several posthumous releases, including Live in London. He appears on the DVD Tim Buckley: My Fleeting House
Tim Buckley: My Fleeting House
Tim Buckley: My Fleeting House is a DVD-Video collection of live appearances and performances by Tim Buckley. It features footage from throughout his career, starting from a 1967 performance of "Song to the Siren" on The Monkees TV show and ending with a performance from May 21, 1974 of "Dolphins" ...
discussing Tim Buckley's impressive artistic evolutionary development through five different musical phases — from folk, to folk-rock, to jazz, to avant-garde innovations, to dance-oriented popular music in which he merged all of his previous influences and concepts into an organic whole.
Throughout the '70s and 80s, Underwood became an internationally well-known music journalist. He contributed interviews, essays, and record reviews to various notable periodicals such as Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
. He served as the west coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
editor of Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
from 1975 to 1981.
He wrote and published Blue Melody:Tim Buckley Remembered
Blue Melody:Tim Buckley Remembered
Blue Melody:Tim Buckley Remembered is a biography of late 1960s and 70s American musician and songwriter, Tim Buckley, written by his former lead guitarist and friend Lee Underwood. The book is an overview of the life and times of Tim Buckley and his group, documenting live performances and studio...
in 2002, cited by Uncut music magazine as one of the year's ten best biographies. Earlier, in 1990, he co-authored jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
flautist
Flautist
A flautist or flutist is a musician who plays an instrument in the flute family. See List of flautists.The choice of "flautist" versus "flutist" is the source of dispute among players of the instrument...
Paul Horn
Paul Horn (jazz musician)
Paul Horn is an American jazz flautist, and is considered by some to be a pioneer of New Age music.-Biography:Paul Horn was born in New York City, and began playing the piano at the age of 4 and the saxophone at the age of 12...
's autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
, for which he received the Crystal Award for Music Journalism from the New Age Music network.
Underwood's most recent book is Timewinds, a book of poetry published by Poetic Matrix Press in 2010. His site at leeunderwood.net includes several essays on music and musicians (including Tim Buckley), essays on philosophical issues, audio readings of many of his poems, and a full-length book of wisdom-word e-mails written to a host of recipients, entitled Diamonds in the Sky.
As a musician himself, Underwood has recorded three CDs — California Sigh (1988), a solo guitar work produced by synthesist Steve Roach; Phantom Light (2003), a solo acoustic piano recording; and Gathering Light, also a solo acoustic piano work, recorded in 2009.
Discography
- with Tim Buckley
- Tim BuckleyTim Buckley (album)Tim Buckley is the self-titled debut album by Los Angeles based singer-songwriter Tim Buckley, released in 1966. Most of the songs on it were co-written by Buckley and Larry Beckett while they were in high school...
(1966) - Goodbye and HelloGoodbye and HelloGoodbye and Hello is the second album by Tim Buckley, released in 1967. It was recorded in Los Angeles, California in June 1967.The album was later re-released on January 22, 2001 in a compilation with debut album Tim Buckley by WEA/Elektra....
(1967) - Happy SadHappy SadHappy Sad is the third album by singer-songwriter Tim Buckley, released in 1969. It was recorded at Elektra Sound Recorders in Los Angeles, California. It marked the beginning of Buckley's experimental period, as it incorporated elements of jazz that he had never used before. Many of the songs...
(1969) - Blue AfternoonBlue AfternoonBlue Afternoon, released in 1969, was Tim Buckley's first self-produced record and his debut for Herb Cohen and Frank Zappa's Straight record label. This was Buckley's fourth album after Tim Buckley, Goodbye and Hello, and Happy Sad...
(1969) - LorcaLorca (album)Lorca is the fifth album by singer-songwriter Tim Buckley, released in 1970. Named after Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, it was recorded simultaneously with Blue Afternoon, though notably different in style. It was one of Buckley's two avant-garde albums, and explored some sounds and ideas he...
(1970) - StarsailorStarsailor (album)Starsailor is a 1970 album by Tim Buckley , released on Herb Cohen's Straight Records label. It marks the moment Buckley's folk rock origins became invisible as he fully incorporated jazz rock and avant-garde styles in to his music. Although it is often regarded as not being accessible to many...
(1970) - Greetings from L.A.Greetings from L.A.Greetings from L.A. is the seventh album by singer-songwriter Tim Buckley, released in 1972. It was recorded at Far Out Studios in Hollywood, California. Like most of his other albums, it did not sell well, but it got substantial airplay in the Twin Cities on the Minneapolis FM station KQRS and...
(1972) - SefroniaSefroniaSefronia is the eighth album by singer-songwriter Tim Buckley, released in 1973. The album was recorded at Paramount Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California...
(1973) - Look at the FoolLook at the FoolLook at the Fool is the ninth and last album by singer-songwriter Tim Buckley before his death in 1975 and was recorded at Wally-Heider Sound Studios & Record Plant in Los Angeles, California.-Track listing:...
(1974)
- Tim Buckley