Tommy Lee | |
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Tommy Lee, Hollywood, CA, on March 20, 2012
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Background information | |
Birth name | Thomas Lee Bass |
Born |
Athens, Greece |
October 3, 1962
Origin | Los Angeles, California, US |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, drummer, DJ |
Instruments | |
Years active | 1979–present |
Labels | |
Associated acts | |
Website | tommylee |
Notable instruments | |
Pearl Drums Zildjian Cymbals Ahead Sticks Remo Drum Heads Schecter Guitar Research Randall Amplifiers |
Thomas Lee Bass (born October 3, 1962), best known as Tommy Lee, is a Greek-American musician and founding member of heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. As well as being the band's long-term drummer, Lee founded rap-metal band Methods of Mayhem, and has pursued solo musical projects. He has been married to model Elaine Starchuk and actresses Heather Locklear and Pamela Anderson.
Lee was born Thomas Lee Bass in 1962 Athens, Greece, to father David Lee Thomas Bass, an American Army serviceman, and mother Vassiliki Papadimitriou (Greek: Βασιλική Παπαδημητρίου), a 1957 Miss Greece contestant. His family moved to California a year after his birth. He received his first drum when he was four and his first drum kit when he was a teenager. Lee has one younger sister, Athena Lee (Athena Michelle Bass, b. 1964), who was married to James Kottak, the drummer for the band Scorpions and she was also the drummer of his solo band KrunK.
As a teen, Lee listened to Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Cheap Trick, Kiss, AC/DC and Sweet. His main drum influences were John Bonham, Tommy Aldridge, Alex Van Halen and Terry Bozzio. After transferring from South Hills High School; he joined the marching band at Royal Oak High School (now Royal Oak Middle School) in Covina, California.