Jess Lee
Encyclopedia
Jess Lee is a Canadian
Métis
country music
singer-songwriter
.
in 1980 as the lead singer of the Midnite Rodeo Band his work with Rocky Swanson earned him several awards including BCCMA
Male Vocalist and Album Of The Year honours.
He recorded his first solo album Honky Tonk Love Affair in 1990. This album included 5 Canadian chart hits including the #1 hit “Crowhill Road”. The title track was featured in the movie Harmony Cats
, was voted song of the year by the BCCMA, and garnered Jess Lee the Country Male Vocalist Of The Year Award. He then spent several years songwriting in Nashville
.
In the mid-90’s Jess Lee returned to his aboriginal musical roots, and together with songwriter Bonnie James wrote the album Sacred Ground. This recording reflects experiences of the aboriginal and métis peoples of North America
and was subsequently nominated for a Juno Award
.
In 2004, Jess Lee joined forces with Canadian indie
label Mighty Peace Records and released a CD of new original roots music, Born In The North. The album has been credited by Larry Delaney of Country Music News
as one of his top ten album picks for 2004. Jess Lee has appeared on numerous award shows and television shows including "Native Voices", and "The Tommy Hunter
Show."
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Métis
Métis people (Canada)
The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...
country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
.
Career
Signed by RCARCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
in 1980 as the lead singer of the Midnite Rodeo Band his work with Rocky Swanson earned him several awards including BCCMA
British Columbia Country Music Association
The British Columbia Country Music Association is a Canadian artist organization designed "to promote, foster and encourage the development, public appreciation of, and interest in, the British Columbia Country Music Community - provincially, nationally and internationally."One of BCCMA's most...
Male Vocalist and Album Of The Year honours.
He recorded his first solo album Honky Tonk Love Affair in 1990. This album included 5 Canadian chart hits including the #1 hit “Crowhill Road”. The title track was featured in the movie Harmony Cats
Harmony Cats
- Plot :Harmony Cats is about a violinist named Graham Braithwaite who plays with a British Columbia symphony. One day, the symphony stops playing permantently and Graham is left to find work elsewhere...
, was voted song of the year by the BCCMA, and garnered Jess Lee the Country Male Vocalist Of The Year Award. He then spent several years songwriting in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
.
In the mid-90’s Jess Lee returned to his aboriginal musical roots, and together with songwriter Bonnie James wrote the album Sacred Ground. This recording reflects experiences of the aboriginal and métis peoples of North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and was subsequently nominated for a Juno Award
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
.
In 2004, Jess Lee joined forces with Canadian indie
Indie (music)
In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
label Mighty Peace Records and released a CD of new original roots music, Born In The North. The album has been credited by Larry Delaney of Country Music News
Country Music News
Country Music News is a Canadian monthly periodical published in Ottawa by Larry Delaney and Joanne Delaney. It calls itself the "The Voice Of Country Music in Canada".- Publishers :...
as one of his top ten album picks for 2004. Jess Lee has appeared on numerous award shows and television shows including "Native Voices", and "The Tommy Hunter
Tommy Hunter
Thomas James "Tommy" Hunter, CM, O.Ont is a Canadian country music performer, known as "Canada's Country Gentleman".-Career:...
Show."
Review Highlights
- “The best pure country voice in Canada” - Dennis Charney, Country Music News
- “His voice lingers long in your heart long after the music has stopped”- Native Network News
- “A gifted pure country vocalist often compared vocally, and accurately so, to Merle Haggard.” -Larry Delaney, Country Music News
Albums
| Year | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Honky Tonk Love Affair | Musicline |
| 1995 | Sacred Ground | 12th St. |
| 2004 | Born in the North | Mighty Peace |
Singles
| Year | Single | CAN Country | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Crow Hill Road" | 67 | Honky Tonk Love Affair |
| "Couple of Good Ol' Boys" (with Rocky Swanson) | 77 |
Awards
- BCCMA - Album Of The Year 1988
- BCCMA - Duo Of The Year 1988, 1991
- BCCMA - Male Vocalist Of The Year 1981, 1988, 1991
- BCCMA - Songwriter Of The Year 1991
- BCCMA - Group Of The Year 1981
- CARAS West Coast Music Awards - Country Male Vocalist 1991
- SOCAN - #1 Canadian Single (Crowhill Road) 1991
- CARAS Juno Awards- nomination country group of the year 1983, 1985
- CARAS Juno Awards- nomination Best Aboriginal Album 1995