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| Date |
City |
Venue |
| Sat 6/14/08 |
Salt Lake City, UT |
Gallivan Center |
| Sat 6/21/08 |
Visalia, CA |
The Cellar Door |
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"Hard-rocking
tunes, twang-rich guitars and doghouse bass....top-notch performances,
terrific vocals and songwriting."
--Billboard
Since the release of his Alligator debut, Racin' The Devil,
bassist/vocalist/songwriter (and Stray Cats co-founder) Lee
Rocker's solo career has been skyrocketing. Publications from
USA Today to Billboard and The New York Times raved about the
undeniable power and foot-stomping fun of Rocker's Americana-based
roots rock. OffBeat declared, "What's most satisfying about
Lee Rocker is his ability to graft classic Sun licks and shuffles
onto Americana. He bridges the gap between Bruce Springsteen
and Hank Williams, Sr." Bass Player magazine simply said,
"He absolutely kills." Lee's live shows, fueled by
his barnstorming, rocking band, grow wilder each night out.
And now, on the heels of the national Stray Cats 2007 summer
reunion tour, Lee Rocker is back with his second Alligator album,
Black Cat Bone.
The Chicago Tribune describes Rocker's playing as "muscular
and passionate." The Washington Post says his music consists
of "impressive, catchy, driving original songs, frantic
romps, finger-snapping swing and brooding slow blues."
Rolling Stone declares, "Lee Rocker's singing naturally
captures the spirit of rock 'n' roll. His catchy, well-written
songs are very difficult to get out of your head."
In the early 1980s, Rocker, with The Stray Cats, helped reintroduce
rockabilly to a mass audience. His solo recordings continue
igniting the roots music fire. Rocker's powerful, original songs,
amazing musicianship, and passionate and vibrant vocals, bring
depth and substance to a style of music noted for its ability
to get people up and dancing. And when Lee and his band perform
live, they leave audiences begging for more.
With musical muscle from his road-tested band (guitarists Brophy
Dale and Buzz Campbell, and drummer Jimmy Sage) Black Cat Bone
is an amazing collection of ten Rocker originals (with one co-written
with guitarist Brophy Dale), one song by guitarist Buzz Campbell,
and reinvented covers from Bob Dylan (One More Night) and Leon
Payne (Lost Highway, made famous by Hank Williams). The CD's
scorching rockabilly, roadhouse romps and straight-ahead, old-school
rock 'n' roll, create by far the strongest set of songs of Rocker's
solo career.
Born Leon Drucker in Massapequa, Long Island in 1961, to world-renowned
classical musician parents, Rocker grew up with music all around
him. His father, Stanley, is a Grammy-nominated clarinetist
with the New York Philharmonic. His mother, Naomi, teaches music
at Hofstra University. So coming to a career in music was an
easy choice for Rocker, whose family listened to jazz, blues,
and rock while he was growing up.
Rocker began taking classical cello lessons at age eight and
initially hated them. As his ears widened into rock 'n' roll,
he picked up the electric bass, and quickly mastered the instrument.
During grade school, his close friends included Jimmy McDonnell
(later to become Slim Jim Phantom) and Brian Setzer. The three
jammed together often, playing a wide variety of rock 'n' roll,
before discovering classic blues musicians like Muddy Waters
and rockabilly giants like Carl Perkins. Rocker picked up the
acoustic bass to emulate the sounds he heard on those records,
and the band began playing more and more roots music. By 1979,
this trio, now known as The Stray Cats, began to single-handedly
revive rockabilly music in the U.S. and, eventually, around
the world.
Adding a contemporary punk attitude to traditional slap-bass,
twangy guitar and drums, The Stray Cats headlined famous New
York haunts like CBGB's and Max's Kansas City, drawing overflow
crowds every time they played. They moved to London in 1980
and became an even bigger success, even attracting The Rolling
Stones to their shows. The fever-pitch excitement caused a major
bidding war between record labels. The group's first American
album, 1982's Built For Speed, became a huge hit, and held the
#2 spot on the Billboard chart for 26 weeks, right behind Michael
Jackson's Thriller.
Non-stop touring took its toll on the band. By 1984 the group
was exhausted and decided to call it quits, at least for a while.
But the furious touring of the early 1980s turned Rocker into
one of the best showmen working in any genre. According to the
Orange County Weekly, "there has never been a rock 'n'
roll bass player more fun to watch in concert than Lee Rocker."
In 1985 Rocker and Phantom hooked up with ex-David Bowie guitarist
Earl Slick to form Phantom, Rocker & Slick. They had a minor
hit with Men Without Shame. The Stray Cats reformed in 1986,
but didn't stay together very long. Rocker, though, kept on
rocking, as he befriended and collaborated with his hero Carl
Perkins as well as with Dave Edmunds, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton,
George Harrison, Jeff Beck and Willie Nelson.
Rocker's solo career took off in 1994 with the release of Big
Blue and in 1995 with Atomic Boogie Hour, both on Black Top
Records. Four more releases followed on a variety of labels,
and Rocker toured relentlessly, becoming one of the premiere
Americana/rockabilly/roots artists in the U.S. and Europe. In
2002, he toured the U.S. with ex-Elvis Presley guitarist Scotty
Moore. His 2003 CD Bulletproof found a large and appreciative
audience, as he continued to perform all around the country.
That same year, The Stray Cats reunited for an 18-city tour
of Europe, culminating in a filmed show at London's Brixton
Academy. The show was released on DVD as Rumble In Brixton in
2004.
With Racin' The Devil, Rocker reclaimed his spot in the rockabilly
world and forged a new base with fans of Americana. From garage
rockers and deeply textured roots anthems to the rockabilly
sounds he helped reinvent, Racin' The Devil is a rich piece
of American music, as timeless and unique as the songs Rocker
fell in love with as a youngster.
Now, with Black Cat Bone, Rocker returns with the most rock
solid album of his career. With his band rocking, rolling, and
burning behind him, Rocker's bass, vocals and songs take everything
to wild new heights. Song after heart-pounding song, Lee Rocker
is raising the stakes, and will hit the road hard to prove it.
Blues Revue declared, "Lee Rocker makes music as vital,
as exciting, and as propulsive as a shiny new sports coupe."
With his new CD, his non-stop tour dates – not to mention
the national visibility he will get this summer during the 2007
Stray Cats tour – this legendary musician and his blistering
band will continue to rip it up and rock it out all around the
world. |
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Black
Cat Bone
Alligator Records
2007 |
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