John Lee (musician)

John Lee (born June 28, 1952 in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American bassist, producer and recording engineer.

As a bassist, Lee's career, starting in 1970, includes work with Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner, James Moody, Jimmy Heath, Joe Henderson, Larry Coryell, Paquito D'Rivera, Gregory Hines, Claudio Roditi, Arturo Sandoval, Joachim Kühn and Philip Catherine.

As a producer Lee has produced over 50 albums and CDs, and as a recording engineer he has recorded and mixed over 85 albums and CDs.

John Gregory Lee is the son of an African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) minister, Rev. John W. Lee, and Harriet Holland Lee, who was a career social worker. He grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut, Amityville, New York, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. John began String Bass lessons in 1962 with Carolyn Lush. At Philadelphia's Overbrook High School, John met drummer Gerry Brown, with whom he also studied with at the Philadelphia Musical Academy (which is now the University of the Arts) from 1970 to 1972. In 1971 Lee also began performing with Carlos Garnett and Joe Henderson, and toured with Max Roach thru the spring of 1972 while still a student in Philadelphia. In August 1972 he and Brown relocated to Europe, with Den Haag, Holland as their base. Together they toured Europe and recorded in bands led by Chris Hinze, Charlie Mariano, Philip Catherine, Joachim Kühn, and Jasper Van't Hof. Lee moved to New York City in October 1974 and worked with Joe Henderson, Lonnie Liston Smith, and Norman Connors until joining Larry Coryell's 11th House in December 1974. In 1975 John Lee and Gerry Brown signed a recording contract with Blue Note Records and formed a working band of their own. In 1977 they moved over to Columbia Records. Lee also began producing records in 1977. From 1982 to 1984 Lee worked with the McCoy Tyner Quintet. In July 1984 Lee became Dizzy Gillespie's bassist, touring and recording with Dizzy's Quintet, his Big Band, his grammy winning United Nation Orchestra, and the Back to the Future Band that Dizzy co-lead with Miriam Makeba until January 1993 when he died.

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