Curtis Lee

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Chart positions
Explanation of the data
Singles
Pretty little angel eyes
  US 7th 07/03/1961 (11 weeks)
  UK 47 08/31/1961 (2 weeks)
Under the moon of love
  US 46 10/16/1961 (7 weeks)

Curtis Lee (* 28. October 1939 in Yuma , Arizona , † 8. January 2015 ) was an American rock 'n' roll singer of the 1960s, which especially for his hit Pretty Little Angel Eyes is known .

Life

In the late 1950s, Lee had already unsuccessfully recorded singles with smaller labels and was also a singer in nightclubs in Arizona, where the very successful singer Ray Peterson became aware of him. This brought him then to his record company Dunes Records, for which the producer Phil Spector also worked.

The first Dunes recordings, Pledge of Love and Special Love , did not attract any attention, but Curtis Lee's biggest hit followed in 1961. Together with Tommy Boyce he wrote the song Pretty Little Angel Eyes himself and in the production of Phil Spector the song became a top 10 success in the USA; The doo-wop vocal quartet The Halos took on the backing vocals . The song was also successful in Great Britain and landed at number 47 on the charts. This was followed by the single Under the Moon of Love , also a Boyce / Lee composition that made it to number 46 on the US hit parade.

After that, however, Phil Spector left the label and with him the success went. Curtis Lee was one of the typical teenage singers around 1960 who disappeared from the scene again after a brief hit career. After four more unsuccessful singles, his contract with Dunes Records ended in 1963. After four years he returned once more in the style of blue-eyed soul, but after two more highly regarded but unsuccessful singles, his music career was finally over.

After his music career ended, Lee joined his father's carpentry business in the late 1960s, which he later took over and with which he later specialized in bespoke houses and real estate. He was married to his wife Lydia Lee until his death and had four children. He died in January 2015 at the age of 75 from cancer.

Cover versions

His two hits were later to be honored again: In 1976 Showaddywaddy had their biggest hit with Under the Moon of Love , reaching number 1 in Great Britain and number 4 in Germany. Two years later, they should also have their version of Pretty Little Angel Eyes, their last top 10 hit in their homeland.

Discography

  • With All My Heart (1959)
  • I Never Knew What Love Could Do (1960)
  • California GI-903 (1960)
  • Special Love (1960)
  • Pledge of Love (1961)
  • Pretty Little Angel Eyes (1961)
  • Under the Moon of Love (1961)
  • Just Another Fool (1962)
  • Does He Mean That Much to You (1962)
  • Lonely Weekends (1963)
  • Pickin 'Up the Pieces of My Heart (1963)
  • Sweet Baby (1967)
  • Get in My Bag (Curtis Lee & The KCP's, 1967)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Top Pop Singles 1955-2006 by Joel Whitburn , Record Research 2007, ISBN 978-0-89820-172-7
  2. ^ British Hit Singles & Albums , 18th Edition, Guinness World Records Limited 2005, ISBN 9781904994008
  3. ↑ According to hollywood.com ( "Curtis Lee dies" ) he died at the age of 75, which would correspond to the year of birth 1939/1940.
  4. ↑ Julia Edenhofer: The great Oldielexikon . Bastei Lübbe, 1991, p. 362
  5. ^ Julia Edenhofer: The Great Oldie Lexicon . Bastei Lübbe, 1991, p. 271
  6. ↑ Curtis Edwin Lee (1939-2015) - Find a Grave ... Retrieved May 6, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Lee, Curtis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American rock and roll singer
DATE OF BIRTH October 28, 1939
PLACE OF BIRTH Yuma , Arizona, United States
DATE OF DEATH January 8, 2015
Place of death Yuma , Arizona