Joe Lee Wilson (December 22, 1935 – July 17, 2011) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

singer from

Bristow, Oklahoma Bristow is a city in Creek County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 4,222 at the 2010 census, down 2.4 percent from the figure of 4,325 recorded in 2000. History Bristow began in 1898, when the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway ("SL& ...

, who lived in Europe since 1977.

Biography

Part African-American and part Creek Native American,

John Fordham John Fordham (died 1425) was Bishop of Durham and Bishop of Ely. Fordham was keeper of the privy seal of Prince Richard from 1376 to 1377 and Dean of Wells before being named Lord Privy Seal in June 1377. He held that office until December 1381. ...

"Joe Lee Wilson obituary: Eloquent jazz vocalist who drew on the raw passion of the blues"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', July 18, 2011. Wilson was born in Bristow, Oklahoma, to farming parents Stella and Ellis Wilson. As his band's name, Joy of Jazz, suggests, Wilson's

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

personified the life-affirming nature of

and

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

. Seeing

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop si ...

perform in 1951 began his interest in a music-industry career. Moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

at the age of 15, he went to Los Angeles High School, where he majored in music and sang in an a cappella choir. Graduating with honors in 1954, he won a scholarship to the

Los Angeles Conservatory of Music LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to: Science and technology * Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation * Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers * Level of significance, a measure of statistical significance ...

, where he studied opera, leaving after a year and then attending Los Angeles Junior College. He began singing with local bands in 1958 and toured the West Coast, where he sat in with

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "Jazz royalty, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, and was nominated for a total of nine ...

, and down to Mexico. Relocating to New York in 1962, he worked with

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a ...

Lee Morgan Edward Lee Morgan (July 10, 1938 – February 19, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter and composer. One of the key hard bop musicians of the 1960s, Morgan came to prominence in his late teens, recording on John Coltrane's '' Blue Train'' (1 ...

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

, and

Jackie McLean John Lenwood "Jackie" McLean (May 17, 1931 – March 31, 2006) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and educator, and is one of the few musicians to be elected to the ''DownBeat'' Hall of Fame in the year of their deat ...

. During the 1970s, Wilson operated a jazz performance loft in New York's

NoHo NoHo, short for North of Houston Street (as contrasted with SoHo), is a primarily residential neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is bounded by Mercer Street to the west and the Bowery to the east, ...

district known as the

Ladies' Fort Joe Lee Wilson (December 22, 1935 – July 17, 2011) was an American jazz singer from Bristow, Oklahoma, who lived in Europe since 1977. Biography Part African-American and part Creek people, Creek Native American,John Fordham (jazz critic), ...

at 2 Bond Street. His regular band, Joe Lee Wilson Plus 5, featured the

alto saxophonist The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

Monty Waters Monty Waters (April 14, 1938 in Modesto, California – December 23, 2008 in Munich, Germany) was an American jazz saxophonist, flautist and singer. Waters received his first musical training from his aunt and first played in the church. After h ...

(from

Modesto, California Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...

) and for several years the Japanese guitarist

Ryo Kawasaki was a Japanese jazz fusion guitarist, composer and band leader, best known as one of the first musicians to develop and popularise the fusion genre and for helping to develop the guitar synthesizer in collaboration with Roland Corporation and K ...

, before the latter left to lead his own group. Archie Shepp and Eddie Jefferson were frequent collaborators at these sessions. He also sang with

Eddie Jefferson Eddie Jefferson (August 3, 1918 – May 9, 1979) was an American jazz vocalist and lyricist. He is credited as an innovator of vocalese, a musical style in which lyrics are set to an instrumental composition or solo. Jefferson himself claims t ...

, and

Kenny Dorham McKinley Howard "Kenny" Dorham (August 30, 1924 – December 5, 1972) was an American jazz trumpeter, singer, and composer. Dorham's talent is frequently lauded by critics and other musicians, but he never received the kind of attention or public ...

. Wilson had a minor radio hit from a live radio recording he did on a radio program hosted by Sharif Abdus-Salaam (né Ed Michael) at

WKCR-FM WKCR-FM (89.9 FM) is a radio station licensed to New York, New York, United States. The station is owned by Columbia University and serves the New York metropolitan area. Founded in 1941, the station traces its history back to 1908 with the fir ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, on July 16, 1972. The live shot was released as an album, ''Livin' High Off Nickels & Dimes,'' on the short-lived

Oblivion Records Oblivion Records is an independent American record label that focuses on under recorded blues and jazz musicians. The company was originally based in Huntington, New York and the WKCR-FM studios at Columbia University in New York City, with a p ...

in New York. Wilson's rendition of

Norman Mapp John Norman Mapp (1928–1988) was a jazz vocalist and composer. Biography Mapp was born and raised in Queens, New York, Queens, New York. He was married to Marilyn Patricia Folk Lewis Mapp, and was the father of four sons, one daughter and one ...

's "Jazz Ain't Nothing But Soul" was a radio hit on New York jazz radio in 1975.Fred Seibert

''Oblivion Records Tumblr'', 2006-2015. In 1977 he and his English wife Jill Christopher moved to Europe. While based in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, and the United Kingdom (for a time living in the

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

flat of

Val Wilmer Valerie Sybil Wilmer (born 7 December 1941) is a British photographer and writer specialising in jazz, gospel, blues, and British African-Caribbean music and culture. Her notable books include ''Jazz People'' (1970) and ''As Serious As Your Lif ...

, before settling in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

), he recorded regularly with the American pianist

Kirk Lightsey Kirkland "Kirk" Lightsey (born February 15, 1937, Detroit, Michigan) is an American jazz pianist. Biography Lightsey had piano instruction from the age of five and studied piano and clarinet through high school. After service in the Army, Lights ...

, including the Candid recording ''Feelin' Good.'' One of Wilson's last albums was an Italian recording with Riccardo Arrighini and

Gianni Basso Gianni Basso, (24 May 1931 – 17 August 2009), was an Italian jazz tenor saxophonist, who was influenced by Stan Getz. He was born in Asti, Italy. He started his career shortly after World War II, at first as a clarinetist, then switching to t ...

, ''Ballads for Trane'' (Philology W707.2). Wilson was inducted into the

Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame The Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, located in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a non-profit organization that honors jazz, blues and gospel music, gospel musicians in the state of Oklahoma. Housed in the former Union Depot (Tulsa, Oklahoma), Tulsa Union Depot, wh ...

in November 2010, where he gave his last public performance. Having had heart surgery in 2009, he died of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

at his Brighton home in 2011, aged 75. Wilson is the subject of a documentary film, ''Around Joe Lee'', by Yves Breux and Brad Scott."Around Joe Lee - documentary on Joe Lee Wilson"
YouTube.

Discography

As leader

* ''The Great City'' (Powertree, 1964) * ''Livin' High Off Nickels and Dimes'' (Oblivion, 1974) * ''What Would It Be Without You'' (

Survival Survival, or the act of surviving, is the propensity of something to continue existing, particularly when this is done despite conditions that might kill or destroy it. The concept can be applied to humans and other living things (or, hypotheti ...

, 1975) * ''Shout for Trane'' (Trio/Whynot, 1976) * ''Secrets from the Sun'' (Inner City, 1977) * ''Without a Song'' (Inner City, 1978) * ''The Shadow'' (Cheetah, 1990) * ''Feelin' Good!'' (Big City, 2001) * ''Come and See'' with Jimmy Ponder (Explore, 2007)

As sideman

With

Clifford Jordan Clifford Laconia Jordan (September 2, 1931 – March 27, 1993) was an American jazz tenor saxophone player. While in Chicago, he performed with Max Roach, Sonny Stitt, and some rhythm and blues groups. He moved to New York City in 1957, after ...

* ''

Inward Fire ''Inward Fire'' is an album by saxophonist Clifford Jordan which was recorded in New York City in 1977 and released on the Muse label.Fitzgerald, M.Clifford Jordan leader entry accessed April 11, 2014 Reception The Allmusic site rated the album ...

'' (Muse, 1978) With

Mtume Mtume (pronounced ''em-tu-may'') was an American funk and soul group that rose to prominence during the early 1980s and had several R&B hits during its career. Its founder, former percussionist James Mtume, previously played and toured with M ...

* '' Alkebu-Lan - The Land of the Blacks'' (1972) With

Archie Shepp Archie Shepp (born May 24, 1937) is an American jazz saxophonist, educator and playwright who since the 1960s has played a central part in the development of avant-garde jazz. Biography Early life Shepp was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but ...

* ''

Things Have Got to Change ''Things Have Got to Change'' is an album by avant-garde jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp released in 1971 on the Impulse! label. The album features a performance by Shepp with a large ensemble and vocal choir. The album "solidified the saxophonist ...

'' (1971) * '' Attica Blues'' (1972) * ''

The Cry of My People ''The Cry of My People'' is an album by avant-garde jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp released in 1972 on the Impulse! label. The album features performances by Shepp with gospel singers, big bands, quintets, sextets, and chamber orchestras. The AllM ...

'' (1972) * ''A Touch of the Blues'' (

Fluid In physics, a fluid is a liquid, gas, or other material that continuously deforms (''flows'') under an applied shear stress, or external force. They have zero shear modulus, or, in simpler terms, are substances which cannot resist any shear ...

, 1977)

References

External links

* Elizabeth Mistry
"Joe Lee Wilson: Celebrated jazz singer who had his roots in the blues"
''The Independent'', September 3, 2011
Obituary
in ''The Guardian'', July 18, 2011
Joe Lee Wilson
at Discogs
Joe Lee Wilson's last public performance
at the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame in November 2010. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Joe Lee 1935 births 2011 deaths People from Bristow, Oklahoma American blues singers American male singers American jazz singers Jazz musicians from Oklahoma American male jazz musicians Survival Records artists