Jack Lee (musician)

Jack Lee (born March 25, 1952 ) is an American songwriter and musician , who mainly composed the song Hanging on the Telephone , which was covered by the new wave band Blondie , and the hit Come Back and Stay , covered by Paul Young .

Life

Together with Paul Collins (later with Paul Collins' Beat ) and Peter Case (later with The Plimsouls ), Lee formed the groundbreaking but short-lived power pop trio The Nerves in San Francisco . Lee played guitar and composed and sang most of the band's songs.

Originally based in San Francisco, the band moved to Los Angeles in 1976 and, in keeping with their DIY attitude , hosted a series of self-funded concerts that became a hub for many members of LA's burgeoning punk scene . Many early punk bands from Los Angeles came to their first shows (including The Weirdos, The Screamers and The Dils). In 1976 the group released their first EP with four songs, two of them Lee compositions. After a tour in the summer of 1977, when the band almost twenty-five thousand back put miles in a Ford and with musicians such as the Ramones played, the Diodes and Mink DeVille, they broke up in 1978, less than a year before Blondie with Hanging on the Telephone one Song by Jack Lee and The Nerves made it a new wave classic and chart hit. Hanging on the Telephone was originally the lead track on The Nerves' only EP from 1976. The song was written in 1973. The musicians from Blondie heard it in the studio and recorded it - the song reached number 5 on the UK charts. The song is about Lee's difficult relationship with his future mother-in-law and his previous relationships with the mothers of his first two children. The song was originally recorded in 1975 at Different-Fur studio in San Francisco with local musicians. The piece was often covered even after Blondie. Lee wrote with Will Anything Happen? also another song that Blondie covered, like Hanging on the Telephone, also on the album Parallel Lines .

In addition, You Are My Lover by Lee in 1979 by Suzi Quatro on their album Suzi ... and Other Four Letter Words gecovert. The album was produced by Mike Chapman , who also produced Blondie's Parallel Lines that same year . Finally, in 1983, British singer Paul Young performed Come Back and Stay , which was about Lee's previous relationship.

Following the success of Blondie's Parallel Lines , Lee put together a solo album in 1981 entitled Jack Lee's Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 . It contained the revised recordings of The Nerves songs as well as new material. Another self-titled album was released in 1985. In 2001 the Spanish label Penniman Records reissued The Nerves EP as a deluxe ten-inch record for the 25th anniversary with an additional demo and new live material from the 1977 tour. In 2008, Alive Records released The Nerves' One Way Ticket compilation , which also includes a Jack Lee solo track, It's Hot Outside .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Jack Lee | Biography & History | AllMusic. In: allmusic.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019 . 
2. ↑ hanging on the telephone | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company. In: officialcharts.com. Retrieved March 12, 2019 .