Lee Blake: Checkin’ In With a Portland Blues Veteran
Friday, 26 June 2009 18:19
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| Lee Blake |
“Lee...one of my favorite guys. He is the gravelly-voiced
history of Portland music and cuts a groove a mile wide.”
– Boyd Martin
“He's one of those guys who's been around forever...
he's a salty old dog. He doesn't pull any punches. He'll
tell you the truth. I have always liked him as a person
and appreciated his talent as a player.”
– Turtle
No feature article on Lee Blake would be complete without revisiting his life and times. Lee Blake is a popular, pivotal, pioneer vocalist and guitar player of the Portland Blues scene. I first met Blake in 1986-87 when Andy's Pub was a popular Blues jam club in town. Blake started fronting the host Blues band after Chris Miller of the Rockin' Razorbacks left, and he continued until the place closed. The band back then included other Razorback members Jeff Lingle and J. Michael Kearsey.
Lee is the father of three kids, a granddad of two and (sorry girls, he's taken) married for 27 years to wife, Susie. Born in Honolulu, HI, he moved to California at the tender age of one. His dad was in the Army and Lee himself served four years in the Navy during Vietnam, stationed on an aircraft carrier in the South China Sea.
Lee Blake has been on the Portland music scene close to 30 years now. He recently released his debut recording, Time Wounds All Heels, which was described as "rough and tumble party blues" in a review appearing in the November 200 BluesNotes. It was recorded live on January 1, 2000, at the Candlelight Café & Bar in Portland, and at The Back Alley in Vancouver, WA. According to Blake, it's the "first live recording of the millennium." Vern Smith was the engineer for the digital recording, with Blake as co-producer. It includes 11 songs, all Blues covers. J. Michael Kearsey – "that's pronounced K'ear'sey" – played bass on the recording. Kearsey, a journeyman bass player and native of Massachusetts, started out playing with longtime Portland favorite Upepo from 1972-1983, and then with The Rockin' Razorbacks from 1983-1990. He began playing with The Lee Blake Band in 1990, and has been playing with him ever since...going on 13 years now. Kearsey had this to say about Blake: "Lee Blake is a survivor. He plays a variety of styles. People should look to Lee as a stalwart and a survivor. Always fun to play with Lee; always on, always enjoys it." Kearsey best describes Blake's vocals as "gut-bucket and whiskey-soaked," and, as a Portland Blues veteran who has been on the local scene over 30 years, referenced by countless local singers and guitarists, "he's a great guy and a great singer." Kearsey says that Blake was influenced by Dick Dale, the "King of Surf Guitar."
This was confirmed in the interview I did with Blake. He mentioned Dale as an early influence on him as a teenager growing up in Balboa near Newport, CA. Other guitar and vocal influences include Hendrix, BB King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Big Otis, James Brown, and Otis Redding. Steve Bradley, who honors Dale's work too, says about Blake, "Lee taught me how to play "Apache" real well and I will be forever grateful."
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| "...Eddie Van who?" |
Recently, I had an opportunity to experience The Lee Blake Band in action during a weekend gig at the Stein Haus, located at 2336 SE 82nd & Division. The trio included Lee Blake on guitars and vocals, J. Michael Kearsey on bass and vocals and Johnny Moore on drums. Between the three of them, they represent over 100 years of experience in the Blues genre! Jim Ginotti bought the Stein Haus less than a year ago and has music scheduled seven nights a week. Lloyd Jones plays on Mondays, Alexander Green on Tuesdays, Eric Riley on Wednesdays, and starting in February, Thursday nights will feature Kinzel & Hyde. For bookings, give Ginotti a call at 503-771-2962. (Also, look for an article on the club in an upcoming BluesNotes.) On Sunday nights, Terry Robb performs at the Stein Haus. Terry had this to say about Lee Blake: "Lee has always been a consistent and professional player. I have always enjoyed his playing ever since I first met him over 20 years ago at the White Eagle." They also share the same birthday, August 14th.
As 9 p.m. rolls around, the guys break into a sit-down, all-acoustic set (very refreshing). Blake plays on a Regal dobro and bottlenecks a few tunes. The second song, "Jelly Roll," kicks in while gray-haired men play the golf machine and still others play at the free pool tables, with basketball games viewing on TV. Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic," Irish Blues style, ends the first set.
After a brief break, the ceiling elliptical lights beam on the band for the start of their stand-up second set. According to Moore, Blake always starts his electric set with a Freddy King instrumental. "The signature of a true aficionado. If not, you're not legit!" Moore had a bit more to say about Blake: "From my seat in the band, he's not a one-trick pony. He takes you from the Mississippi Delta, back porch Blues, to Chicago, detouring into Texas, then straight into Hendrix material. You get the whole evolution of the Blues." Moore and I discussed at length how Blake's homage to all the Blues greats (Muddy Waters and Jimmy Reed, just to name a couple) is in keeping with the mainstreaming of all those masters who brought Blues to the general public. "Lee is the most unpretentious guy I have ever worked with. He is not a poser. He is dedicated to getting it right...being authentic."
To complete the set, Blake wails on his Fender Strat, sporting a new neck, Jimmie Vaughan style. He also brandishes a white Fernandez Strat copy, showcasing his slide stylings. They launch into a wah-wah pedal, SRV-style shuffle, ending with Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary."
By 10:20, the dance floor fills with the start of a distinctive Jimmy Reed song in G. Retired senior citizens start bobbing heads and exotic dancers move to Elmore James, along with Kearsey's walking bass line. Girls continue drinking beer and talking on the telephone. Meanwhile, the owner's son David, sporting a black Norman Sylvester T-shirt and Jason, who does his best Wolfman Jack impersonation, tend the bar. The rest of the set includes songs like James Brown's "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag" and "Route 66," with Bo Diddley's signature all over it. The set includes a few slow Blues numbers comprising a Ray Charles tune and, of course, Blake's signature song in my book, the incomparable Joe Cocker hit, "Unchain My Heart."
Blake has opened for a Norton Buffalo benefit at the Roseland Theater in Portland, and for Commander Cody. He has played numerous clubs and events such as the Waterfront Blues Festival, the Rose Festival, Pioneer Courthouse Square downtown, and the Cascade Blues Association's monthly membership meeting. Recently, a Lee Blake Band performance was documented in a Portland Music Project production, with a live, five-camera video. Drummer Boyd Martin (of Kid Lopez fame), who played with Blake on this shoot, had this to say about him: "His enthusiasm and reverence for American Roots music is really inspirational and I have learned a lot from him...playing with him over the years. I really appreciate playing with him and on top of that, he's a really damn nice guy!" The cable access show will appear on Channel 23, and will air on Saturday, February 1st, at 7:30 p.m. You can also see it again on Thursday, February 6th at 8 p.m. You can find out more about this event at Portland Music Project's Web site.
Lee Blake's future plans include a new CD project. This acoustic recording will combine some of his older studio material that is already in the can with four or five new tunes. Look for the Lee Blake Band posting in the Bandstand section, and check the CBA Blues Calendar for upcoming appearances.
With the passing of so many Blues pioneers like John Lee Hooker, Henry Vestine (Canned Heat) and Luther Tucker, many of whom I worked with or knew personally, and so many more, it is imperative that we as Blues fans appreciate the rare and extensive Blues history we have in Oregon and especially here in our own backyard, Portland. The Lee Blake Band provides a good opportunity to do just that. So in Blake's own words, "Come out and support the band!" Get out there and enjoy and support the Blues!