Representative Albums: "Livin' High off Nickels and Dimes," "Secrets from the Sun," "Ballads for Trane"
Biography
One of the '70s most striking jazz vocalists, Joe Lee Wilson blended a strong, stirring baritone voice and good delivery with a swinging style and savvy selection of material. The results made him quite popular for a few years, especially on college campuses in the Northeast. Wilson studied classical singing, and attended Los Angeles City College in the '50s, where he studied jazz. He toured the West Coast and Mexico as a jazz vocalist in the late '50s and moved to New York in 1962. Wilson worked with Sonny Rollins, Lee Morgan, Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders and Jackie McLean in the '60s, then in 1971 and 1972 sang with Archie Shepp. His dynamic lead vocals on such Shepp albums as Things Have Got To Change, and Attica Blues won Wilson recognition, as did his recordings as a leader and performances with Sunny Murray, Mtume, and Billy Gault. Wilson operated a loft in New York, the Ladies Fort, from 1973 to 1978, and appeared at the 1973 Newport in New York and 1975 Live Loft festivals. He recorded with Clifford Jordan in 1977, then moved to London in 1978. Wilson toured Europe, performed in London clubs and did some periodic New York dates, but never regained his earlier momentum. Currently none of Wilson's albums are available on CD, though Shepp's Attica Blues was reissued in 1993. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide
As his band’s name (Joy of Jazz) suggests, Joe Lee’s rich baritone voice personifies the life-affirming nature of jazz and blues. Seeing Billie Holiday perform in 1951 began his jazz odyssey; he studied in LA before touring the West Coast, where he sat in with Sarah Vaughan, and down to Mexico. In New York in the 60s, he worked with Sonny Rollins, Lee Morgan, Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders and Jackie McLean; during the 1970s, he operated a jazz performance loft in New York City's NoHo District known as the Ladies' Fortat 2 Bond Street. The location was one block from a space run by Sam Rivers, Studio Rivbea. The proximity of the two performance, practice spaces made Bond St. a center of creative music in NYC. He performed Sunday afternoons at the Ladies Fort. His show were exuberant. His regular band (Joe Lee Wilson Plus 5, featured the outstanding alto saxophonist Monty Waters (from Modesto, CA} and for several years Japanese guitarist, Ryo Kawasaki (before he led his own group). Archie Shepp, and Eddie Jefferson were frequent collaborators at these sessions.
He also sang with Eddie Jefferson, Freddie Hubbard, Kenny Dorham and others. He recorded a live radio program at WKCR-FM, Columbia University, on July 16, 1972, which was released as an LP, "Livin' High Off Nickels & Dimes," on the short lived Oblivion Records in New York. Joe's rendition of "Jazz Ain't Nothing But Soul" was a radio hit on New York jazz radio in 1975. The entire LP is available for free download at the Oblivion Records blog (see below).
Now based in Paris, Tokyo and the UK, he has recorded regularly with US pianist Kirk Lightsey, including the Candid recording Feelin’ Good. There is also a recent CD Italian recording with Riccardo Arrighini and Gianni Basso, ‘Ballads for Trane’ (Philology W707.2).
