By Paul Freeman [July 2012 Interview]

“He’s the greatest guitarist in the world.” That quote about Albert Lee might have seemed like hyperbole, had it not come from Eric Clapton. Lee is truly the guitarist’s guitarist. Five times in a row, he captured Guitar Player magazine’s “Best Country Guitarist” award.

The British-born Lee gained recognition while playing in Chris Farlowe’s Thunderbirds, a popular U.K. R&B outfit, from 1964-68. Lee then achieved tremendous artistic heights with the amazing, under-appreciated band Heads, Hands and Feet.

In addition to critically acclaimed solo albums, Lee has recorded with such luminaries as Bo Diddley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash, Rodney Crowell, Dave Edmunds, Nanci Griffith, Jimmy Page, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Bert Jansch.

He has also had extended stints recording and touring with Joe Cocker, The Crickets, The Everly Brothers, Emmylou Harris and Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings.

Throughout his illustrious career, Lee has consistently managed to whip up memorable, fluid licks. But, in keeping with his humble nature, he does it gracefully, unobtrusively, perfectly serving the music, not flashily drawing attention to himself.

He regularly tours in Europe and the U.K. with Albert Lee and Hogan’s Heroes [joining steel guitarist Gerry Hogan]. A new live DVD is available. [www.albertleeandhogansheroes.com]

Recently, he formed The Albert Lee Band, recruiting top-flight musicians - keyboardist John Thomas [Bruce Hornsby], bassist Will MacGregor [The Pretenders] and drummer Jason Smith [Five For Fighting].

We spoke with the gracious guitarist prior to his August 5th show at Club Fox in Redwood City, Ca. (8 p.m., tickets $19-$22, information at www.clubfoxrwc.com or 650-369-7770).

POP CULTURE CLASSICS:
So basically, you tour now with The Albert Lee Band in the States and Hogan’s Heroes overseas?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, that’s pretty much it. I’ve been doing the Hogan’s Heroes things for almost 25 years. And it’s been fairly successful. It’s been a long run. But it’s just taken me forever to finally get it together and put a band together in the U.S. This is a new venture for me and I’m really enjoying it. We’ve done a few shows already. But this is the longest run we’re doing, the whole of August. It’s going to be a lot of fun... for me, anyway. Part of the reason I wanted to do this is because I spend so much time away from home. I’m over in Europe. If I’m lucky, I’m there a month. But sometimes, I’m there for two-and-a-half months and it’s just too long to be away from home. So I’m determined to try and build up a better following here, so that I can work more over here.

PCC:
What’s the mix of material in the current set?

ALBERT LEE:
Pretty much what I do with Hogan’s Heroes. It’s the uptempo country-rock that I like to do, but also ballads. I play piano, as well, in the show. It’s a mixture, really.

PCC:
Growing up, who were the guitarists who first made a big impression on you?

ALBERT LEE:
I started playing like ‘57, so initially, it was Lonnie Donegan who got us all playing the guitar back then. He was the guy playing acoustic guitar and these simple skiffle songs that were pretty easy to learn - three chords. It was a good place to start.

Pretty soon, I was listening to all the great rock ‘n’ roll records - Buddy Holly & The Crickets, Elvis, Gene Vincent, Ricky Nelson. So I was exposed to Scotty Moore, James Burton and Cliff Gallup with Gene Vincent. They were just a tremendous influence on a lot of us in the U.K., really. I know that Jeff Beck and Clapton, we were all listening to the same records, when we started.

PCC:
Were you conscious, early on, of trying to develop your own distinctive style? Or is that part of a natural evolution?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, yeah, it was a natural progression, really. I learned all these hot solos as best I could, and then quickly found out that I could kind of change them around, and add my own little bits and not play the whole solo as it was played on the record. I could play around with it. That way, I was able to learn my way around the guitar.

PCC:
Playing with The Thunderbirds, was that kind of a training ground for you?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, that was fun. Before that, really, working in Germany was a really good training ground, because a lot of the bands went off to Germany in the early ‘60s and the deal was then that you played for like six hours a night, seven days a week. So there was no practicing. You did your practicing on stage. I do believe that’s why a lot of good British bands came up during the ‘60s, because they did that groundwork in Germany.

PCC:
The guitar players on the scene in England, would you all get together and compare notes and turn each other on to records?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, in the early days. I was playing in London around ‘61. I used to see a lot of Jimmy Page. He’s a year younger than me. So I was about 17 or 18 and he was a year younger. And we used to occasionally go to each other’s house and listen to records. And he was a big James Burton fan. And Scotty Moore. As I was. So we kind of developed our style along the same lines, really. But, of course, a little later, you figure out what direction you want to go in. I guess I ended up going in more of a country direction, because I really got into George Jones and Buck Owens. I loved that Bakersfield sound. A lot of my friends picked up on the blues players at that time.

PCC:
Having that appreciation for country, what was it like working with American legends like Bobby Bare and Skeeter Davis? Was that daunting?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, yes, I guess, a little. But our band wasn’t too bad. It was a four-piece and we were able to play any of the songs they threw at us. And I think they were pretty genuine in their praise for what we did.

PCC:
What was it like, having the opportunity to record with some of the founding fathers of rock, like Bo Diddley and Jerry Lee Lewis?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, well, I’ve been very lucky over the years. I’ve worked with most of my rock ‘’n roll heroes, except, Elvis [Chuckles], But I did 25 years with The Everly Brothers, been on stage with Chuck Berry, with Jerry Lee Lewis. I even played on a Ricky Nelson record... after he’d passed away. So, yeah, it was a great thrill to play with those guys. I did an album with Jerry Lee Lewis in London in the early ‘70s. It was just great. A great thrill, really, to work with those guys.

PCC:
The Ricky Nelson track, what was that?

ALBERT LEE:
Do you know, I can’t remember what the songs were. These were songs that he did that were unfinished, when he passed away [the unissued Curb Records album]. I got called in to play a little bit on the tracks. And I don’t know if they were ever released. I think they may have been, but I’ve never really gotten around to tracking them down. I’d like to have copies of them. It was quite eerie, being in the studio, listening. I think The Jordanaires were on it, too. So I was in the studio, playing to headphones, hearing Ricky’s voice, and The Jordanaires, singing in my ears. That was quite bizarre.

PCC:
And Heads, Hands and Feet, so much wonderful music came out of that.

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah, well, we thought so, too. We thought we’d done a good job with what we did. You know, I’d played with Chris Farlowe in the ‘60s and that was kind of R&B, rock ‘n’ roll. And it was great fun. But then, it started to go more to the blues players and Hendrix and everybody was getting big Marshall stacks. And I just wanted to go in a different direction. I had a little country band for a while. That’s when I worked with Skeeter Davis and Bobby Bare, on that tour. And I had a pretty unusual set-up, for an English guitar player at that time. I was playing a Telecaster through a 410 Fender Bassman, which seems quite natural now, but, at that time in England, I think there were probably only three of those amps in the country. And I had two of them. So I was playing quite differently to the way other players were at that time, in the U.K.

But I soon realized that I wasn’t going to make a living playing country music. The response wasn’t that encouraging. We were just playing pubs. But the few country clubs that we played, they weren’t too enamored with what we were doing, because they just wanted Jim Reeves and Johnny Cash. And, by that time, we were really into The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers and Gram Parsons. So that’s when I quit the country band.

And, not long after that, I formed Heads, Hands and Feet, with some buddies of mine. The two main writers were really great guys to work with. They really encouraged me to write. As you can tell from the albums, the music was really quite diverse. Looking back on them, I thought, for a British band, they were really quite ground-breaking. But we broke up before we really did anything of substance. We came to the States a couple of times and I really fell in love with Los Angeles and the music here and got to know and play with a lot of my heroes that were living and working here. So I quit the band in late ‘72. And then it was back and forth to L.A. after that. I toured with The Crickets and recorded with them.

PCC:
Having been influenced by their records, what kind of experience was that?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, I was a huge Buddy Holly fan. So, to be up there playing with The Crickets, singing a couple of his songs... Sonny Curtis was in the band. He was singing most of the tunes, because he was a longtime Cricket. But I still consider it an honor to be an honorary Cricket [Chuckles] after all these years.

PCC:
Being so accomplished as a sideman and session artist, did you find that to be fully satisfying in its own way?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, I’ve never really been that busy doing sessions, not like a Dean Parks or someone like that. Because I don’t read. And it seems like the interest in my playing is cyclical. I get involved with a few projects and then may not get any calls for a few months. Probably because I’m out on the road or whatever. But I have never really been a regular, nine-to-five session guy. But, over the years, I’ve done some really nice albums. I continue to get called for certain things.

I used to fly to Nashville quite often. But there are so many young guys there who play like me now that they cease to call me down there [Laughs].

PCC:
But there’s only one Albert Lee. Is it a challenge to put your own mark on a song and still be blending in with the artist’s style?

ALBERT LEE:
Sometimes it’s a little bit of a struggle. Usually, they’ll have a tune in mind and they’ll say, ‘Oh, yeah, Albert’ll sound great on this’ and it’ll be right up my alley. It’ll be an uptempo country thing that’ll be my meat-and-potatoes, really. But sometimes, I’ll be facing the track that I won’t quite know what direction to go with. And I’ll be surprised at the end of the day, what I’ve come up with. And it’s not what I would have thought of originally. And the producer or artist will kind of steer me in a certain direction. ‘Oh, we like that. Can you do more of that?’ And whatever. Some sessions are easier than others, but usually, I’ll walk out of there with the artist and producer being happy with what I’ve done.

PCC:
And is it gratifying to have so many young guitarists emulating your style, copping hot licks from you?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. It’s a good thing. I’m happy that I have a following out there, certainly amongst guitar players.

PCC:
You had so many great solo projects, was it frustrating that they weren’t massively successful commercially, even though they were artistically?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, yeah, I have been frustrated over the years. But I’m partially to blame, because my first two solo records that I did in the States, I never had a band. I never toured with the records. And then I did a further four albums. I did two instrumental records that were kind of boutique-y, kind of Windham Hill type records, which I wouldn’t have wanted to do, but my friend Tony Brown said, ‘Oh, why don’t you do this? It’ll be really easy. It’ll be a lot of fun.’ So I did a couple of albums like that. But then, more recently, I did a couple of albums for Sugar Hill. And I never toured with them either. I was working the U.K. with Hogan’s Heroes. And with Bill Wyman. I’ve been doing Bill Wyman for about 13 years or so, in Europe. But it’s only recently that I’ve started to go out and play the clubs here in the States. So it’s long overdue.

PCC:
The Rhythm Kings must be a real labor of love for Wyman.

ALBERT LEE:
He’s a really nice guy. I never knew him until relatively recently. We never really met in the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s. I met Mick and Keith once or twice. But I’d never really run into Bill, until I did a Christmas party for Gary Brooker of Procol Harum. Every year, he has a local gig, near to where he lives, in Surrey. And he invites along all his friends and it’s just a fun jam, really. I’m not able to do it each year, because I’ve usually flown home by the time he’s organizing.

But a few years ago, I did it and Bill was there with sidekick, Terry Taylor. And we did a little sound check and they heard me playing and said, ‘Would you play with us? Play with us!’ I said, ‘Okay, sure.’ So we did a couple of rock ‘n’ roll songs and it was a lot of fun. And then, a few months later, Bill called me and said, ‘I’ve done a bunch of tracks. I’m going to do an album. And would you come in and overdub on them?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I’d love to.’ So I did two days work for him. And then, a while later, he called me again. He said, ‘Hey, we’re going to do some gigs. Would you be interested?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I’d love to.’ And so it went on from there. That was about 13 years ago and we tour the U.K. maybe once every two years, do some gigs in Europe a couple of times a year. So between that and Hogan’s Heroes, it keeps me in Europe a little more than I’d want to be there, to be honest. But I’m happy to be doing whatever he throws at me.

PCC:
And The Rhythm Kings, that takes you back to the bluesier, more R&B portion of your roots?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, it does, because he likes the old stuff, the old R&B. We do a bit of a mixture, really. We do rock ‘n’ roll, R&B. And he usually has some good guests. We had Eddie Floyd on a couple of tours. We had Gary ‘U.S.’ Bonds. The band changes slightly, depending on who’s available, Graham Broad, the drummer, works with Roger Waters, which is obviously a really good-paying gig, so when Roger wants to go out, we have to get another drummer in. But, yeah, we had Peter Frampton on the first tour. And Martin Taylor, a really great jazz guitar player, he’s done a few tours with us. And Andy Fairweather Low has done some, as well.

PCC:
And working with Eric Clapton’s band, is that the kind of situation that raises you to higher heights?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah, well, that was great, just to go and play to 15,000 people in an arena. I mean, I’d done that before, with Heads, Hands and Feet, but we were the opening band. Actually, I did it, briefly, with Joe Cocker, ‘74, ‘75. So we were playing big arenas then. But yeah, I’ve known Eric since like ‘65 in London, when he was playing with John Mayall. And we’ve been good buddies ever since.

I’d run into him every now and then. I was back in London in late ‘78. I was doing an album with Mark Benno, a guy from Texas, and Eric was on the session, too, and some of his band. And he’d recently done a tour without a second guitar player. And he asked me if I’d be interested in going out and playing with him. I said, ‘Sounds great.’ That was just when my first solo album came out. I thought, ‘What am I going to do here? Do I put a band together? Or do I go out with Eric Clapton?’ So I chose Eric. And it was good fun for about five years. He fired the band, the whole band, twice, and I managed to survive both times. And so I knew that I didn’t have a real secure gig there. Nobody does [Laughs]. But it was great fun while it lasted.

We’re still good friends. I’ve done things with him, like The Crossroads, did the Concert for George [Harrison]. That’s one of the most amazing gigs I’ve ever been involved with. It was so touching, and the music was fantastic. And working with all those great artists and most of them are friends of mine.

PCC:
What about the times you spent with Emmylou’s band?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, I have to say, that was a turning point for me, with regards to the U.S. I was working with Joe and with The Crickets. But I’d go back and forth to England, still. I didn’t have a regular home here. I’d been living in Joe’s guest house on the beach in Malibu, with my girlfriend. And we’d been out to see Emmylou play a couple of times, because I knew some of the guys in the band. I’d played with them locally here.

And also, you know, I was a huge James Burton fan. So I happened to go along to a gig at Laguna and went backstage afterwards and it was like, ‘Oh, Albert, wow, great to see you. What are you doing the next few weeks?’ I said, ‘Well, nothing in particular. I was thinking of going back to England.’ They said, ‘We need someone to fill in for a week or so, for James, while he goes off to play with Elvis.’ So, of course, I jumped at it.

I was supposed to maybe go along to a few gigs, do a rehearsal, maybe sit in. But a few days later, I got a call from the piano player, Glen D. Hardin, telling me, ‘James has the flu. You’re playing tonight.’ So it was straight in at the deep end. And I was there from there on, really. They had James on the phone for a few days, saying, ‘James, we’ve got these gigs. Can you do them or can’t you?’ And so he decided to stick it out with Elvis, which, in the short term was a good decision, but not in the long term, of course. So, thanks to James, I got the gig with Emmylou. I realized at that point that I was living here.

My girlfriend and I, Joe had just sold his house in Malibu, and they were just about to move out. So we couldn’t stay there. So I happened to find a really nice, inexpensive apartment in Malibu - something that doesn’t exist there anymore [Laughs]. And off I went on the road with Emmy. And Karen, who later became my wife, moved in, while I was out on the road. And I’ve been living here ever since.

PCC:
And you’d been a Gram Parsons fan...

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, well, I liked what he was doing. I heard the International Submarine Band record with ‘Luxury Liner’ on it. There was a lot of interesting stuff that came out around that time. A little later on, it was The Burritos. There was a lot of crossover stuff, obscure bluegrass guys playing with an R&B rhythm section. It was all experimental stuff. I thought it was really cool. I thought, ‘This is the way country music should be going.’ It should have a bit more balls than what was available before that. It should have more of a rock ‘n’ roll feel to it. It took off all at once. And then Gram did his solo records.

In fact, I was just about to do my first album with The Crickets in ‘73, I was over at Jerry Allison’s house, here in L.A., and Gram Parsons came by with his buddy, Phil Kaufman, and we listened to tapes of his tracks for his solo album. And we thought, ‘Wow! This is great stuff.’ And we were about to leave the next day for Nashville. We actually drove in a Winnebago. Rick Grech was in the band, too. And we had no idea how long it was going to take. And it was a lot further than we imagined. We’d never really driven that far in America before. So it was a big surprise [Laughs].

So, anyway, we almost had Gram persuaded to join us on the trip. And he declined. And, while we were in Nashville - we were there for about 10 days or so - he died. So I just met him the one time. But he knew who I was and, of course, I knew who he was. And we were saying, ‘Yeah, we should play together.’ But, unfortunately, that never happened.

PCC:
Your guitar work was such a perfect fit with Emmylou. She still sings your praises to this day.

ALBERT LEE:
I know, yeah.

PCC:
It must have been a comfortable situation for you.

ALBERT LEE:
It was so easy going into that band, because she was playing a lot of the tunes I knew. She was doing old Buck Owens stuff and Louvin Brothers and Waylon Jennings. And I knew all that stuff, because I’d been playing it. I’d been buying the records and played it for a short while with the country band I had in the late ‘60s in England. So it was an easy transition.

It was a little tough for a few weeks, because I was expected to copy all of James Burton’s signature licks on a lot of things. But, in the end, I kind of twisted it my way. They were happy with what I was doing, at the end there. Anyway, it was a great experience. And the only reason, I left because I wanted to work on my solo record for A&M, my first solo record. And perhaps I could have gone back to the band. Actually, I could have done the album and not left the band, really. But, anyway, once the record was done, that was when I ran into Eric and was working with him. But I’ve done projects with Emmy since then. In fact, I’m going to be playing on a show with her in Nashville in August.

PCC:
Don’t you have some dates with James Burton, as well?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, I just did those, actually. We’ve done some dates together over the years. We’ve been in the studio together, but this was an actual tour. And I thought, ‘Well, I’ve got to do that.’ So we had a great time. It was early rock ‘n’ roll. We did Elvis stuff. Anyway, it was good fun. I hope we’ll do some more.

PCC:
When you first worked with him, did you want to hear stories about the early Ricky Nelson records?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. I still have a lot to ask him. On the first session I did with him, with a girl named Mary Kay Place, from ‘Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,’ and done lots of movies since, a lovely lady, we did a couple of albums with her, and James and I both worked on those records. If I was playing lead, he would play dobro, and if he played lead, I would play mandolin. So it was great, we were trading off.

But yeah, those first sessions, he was using his original Telecaster, the one he used with Ricky Nelson, so that’s the Holy Grail, because all those great solos were played on that guitar.

PCC:
Did you get to play it?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. I couldn’t believe how light his strings were. I mean, it was like an 8 on the top string, which is extremely light, like fuse wire.

PCC:
How did you become friends with Don Everly?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, that happened, when I was with The Crickets. I met The Everly Brothers in ‘62, ‘63 in London. I was playing in a little club, a couple of guys walked in and they came up to us afterwards, American guys, and said, ‘Hey, great music. You guys play great.’ And we figured out that they were musicians, too. I said, ‘Who do you play with?’ And they said, ‘We play with The Everly Brothers.’ And, of course, my jaw dropped. I was a huge Everly Brothers fan. So Don Peake, the guitar player, we hung out for a bit. I’d go to his hotel and we’d sit around and play a little bit. And I learned a lot from him, mostly about Los Angeles and players I’d never heard of, like B.B. King and Howard Roberts and Glen Campbell, people that were doing a lot of work here in L.A. He encouraged me back then. I was playing quite well by that time. But he had a different take on stuff. He could play jazz and he knew about B.B. King and the whole blues thing. So we really had fun hanging out together.

Anyway, that was the tour Don Everly kind of got sick and had to fly back to the States. So Phil finished out the tour on his own. So I happened to go along to a rehearsal. They were having a little rehearsal, just guitar, bass and drums, plus Phil. And Phil is really gracious, very nice guy. And every time they would come over to England, every gig I could get to, I would. And so Phil remembered me. And I met Don a little later on, when he came over. But I didn’t really get to know him so well until, Heads, Hands and Feet, when we came to L.A. Phil Everly’s best friend, worked with the music publishers at Capital Records, the label that Heads, Hands and Feet were signed to.

So I got to see Phil again. I think Phil came down to see us play at the Troubadour. And he actually took me on my first trip to Disneyland. He said, ‘We’re going down to Disneyland tomorrow. Do you want to come?’ I thought, ‘Oh, great!’ So my first trip to Disneyland was with Phil Everly and I felt really guilty, because I had two young children in England and there I was, living the Disneyland experience.

Anyway, it was at that time that Phil asked me, he said, ‘Hey, we need a guitar player. Are you available?’ I said, ‘Oh, God. If you’d asked me at any other time, I would have jumped at it, but I’m heavily involved in this band, Heads, Heads and Feet, at the moment.’ And it wasn’t possible.

I think it was a year later that they finally broke up. It was like ‘63 or ‘64. They stopped talking to each other. And then they hardly spoke in 10 years. But, by ‘73, when I was with The Crickets, I was over at Jerry Allison’s house again. I was kind of sleeping on the couch there, when I first came over. And I remember this particular day, when he got a call from Don Everly and he said, ‘Hey, J.I., I play this regular gig over in Calabasas every Tuesday night. It’s great fun. You should come out. Great musicians out there.’ And J.I. said, ‘That sounds great. I’ve got Albert Lee here. You know Albert Lee?’ And there was a brief pause and Don said, ‘That’s Phil’s friend, isn’t it?’ [Laughs] It was just after they broke up.

So anyway, I went out there and sat in. And it was like Al Perkins on steel and John Hartford on fiddle and Don was singing, playing acoustic, and Don immediately fell in love with my playing. And his wife was there with them, too. And she was really enthusiastic. She said, ‘That was great!’ So every opportunity, I was out there every week. And we became really tight. And I hardly saw Phil much after that. I spent a lot of time with Don. In fact, I got to do one of his solo records, with the help of some of the guys from Heads, Hands and Feet. And then I ended up in England with Emmylou, not long after that. And Don was there on this big country show.

He said, ‘Oh, are you going to get up there and play with me?’I said, ‘Oh, sure, I’d love to, yeah.’ So we had a little rehearsal with this English band. And ran through a few tunes. He said, ‘You’re going to sing with me, aren’t you?’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘I want you to sing harmony with me.’ I said, ‘You’re kidding!’ [Laughs] And this was being taped for TV. And an audience of like 6,000 people. So I immediately became an Everly Brother on live TV. And not long after that, we did a tour of the U.K. I think we were opening up for Marty Robbins. So Don was a great friend. And I think he appreciated having a sidekick there, being thrust into the limelight on his own, even though that’s what he’d always wanted, throughout the years. But he did feel nervous about it. And to show his gratitude for having me around, he gave me one of the guitars that I’d long coveted, that he’d had like in 1960. It’s a big, black J-200 with matching white pick guards. I still have that guitar. It’s one of my treasures.

PCC:
And what a thrill to be able to harmonize with him on stage.

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, it was, yeah. It was a little embarrassing... I did okay [Laughs].

PCC:
Did you play a part in bringing them back together?

ALBERT LEE:
Well, somehow that rumor's gotten around, but it’s certainly not true. I got a call from Phil’s sidekick, Terry Slater, he said, ‘Hey, the guys, they got together in Nashville. They sat around and played a few songs and they’ve decided they wanted to do a couple of things.’ I believe the deal was like, ‘All right, you pick a musician and I’ll pick a musician’ and it went on from there. And, fortunately, I was the guitar player they both agreed upon. So we did this reunion concert at the Royal Albert Hall. And a video with it. That was 1983. And then, a few months later, I got a call again, and they’d decided to do an album and go on the road.’ I said, ‘Whoa, I don’t believe this. This is amazing!’ I thought that would be it, just the one-off concert. And to my utmost surprise, it lasted for well over 20 years.

PCC:
And were they able to put all the tensions behind them?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah. They kept themselves to themselves and when they wanted to go out to lunch together, they would. But they traveled in separate buses. And they had separate limos to the gig and whatever. But they’d chat and say, ‘How was your day?’ ‘Oh, it was fine.’ They’d get on okay. But sometimes it would get a little tense. They’re both a little fiery, when it comes to each other [Laughs]. But they learned to live with each other. And, fortunately, we had 20-odd great years.

PCC:
It was amazing how good they sounded as soon as they reunited... and then made a terrific new album.

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. I mean, their voices were still there... although, towards the end, they’d had a couple years off, actually, and they’d done a brief tour with Simon & Garfunkel, but they were only singing two or three songs. But when we got together again to tour the U.K., Phil, at that stage, was struggling a bit on the high notes. And, if he couldn’t make the high note, he’d sing in unison with Don. And Don hated that. It had to be exactly as it had to be, you know. And a couple of times, Phil had suggested maybe lowering the song a key or two. Well, Don wouldn’t hear any of that. So, at the end of that tour, Phil said, ‘No, I think that’s it. I don’t want to do it anymore.’ But I saw him last year at the unveiling of Buddy Holly’s star on Hollywood Boulevard. And he said, ‘Ah, boy, I really miss those old days. God, we had a great time, didn’t we? It was great.’

He said, ‘I don’t miss being on stage, but I miss being on the bus, hanging with everybody.’ [Laughs] Don would pretty much keep himself to himself with his girlfriend, later his wife. But Phil, he was just like one of the band. We’d all hang together. And we’d all go out to dinner together. And each night, we’d have to fight him to stop him paying the bill [Chuckles].

PCC:
After all you’ve accomplished, throughout your career, any unfulfilled goals?

ALBERT LEE:
I don’t know. There are people out there whose music I really like. But whether I’d enjoy being on the road with them, I have no idea. I love Bruce Hornsby. I love that kind of music, because I love to play the piano. I adore his piano style. He’s fantastic. I love Don Henley’s music, but he’s not making much on his own lately. He writes good songs. Jimmy Webb is one of my heroes. It’d be fun to go out on the road with him. But I don’t think he has done anything like that in a long time. He goes out and does solo gigs and that sort of thing.

But I don’t know. I’m at an age now, where there are a lot of young country artists out there, making a lot of money, or selling a lot of records, put it that way, and playing the big arenas. But maybe I would be considered too old to have in the band. I’m 68 now. I’ll be 69 this year. I like to think I don’t look it. But I’m sure I do. [Laughs] There are a lot of really good young players out there who will work with these up-and-coming artists.

PCC:
I’m sure any young artist would be honored to be able to work with you.

ALBERT LEE:
Well, I get the occasional call from people. I’ve gotten to be really good friends with Brad Paisley and Vince Gill. Vince was one of my protégés and always very kindly mentions me as an influence.

PCC:
How did you find him to help him along?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, well, we played together in L.A., when he was living here. Really, he was a bluegrass player. But I think when he heard my style of Telecaster playing, he decided that he wanted to play like that. And he’s done a really good job of it.

PCC:
After all the years of playing, do you still sometimes hear a new record and dig a lick and go, ‘Damn, how’d he do that?’ And grab your guitar? Are there still licks to be learned?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. Yes. And I surprise myself sometimes, too. You’ll hit upon something new. You think you know the guitar neck inside-out and, all of a sudden, something comes up [Chuckles] and you think, ‘God, I’ve got to remember how I did that!’ Because I’m untrained, really. I taught myself. There were no guitar teachers. There were just classical guitar teachers in England in the mid-to-late ‘50s. So we all taught ourselves, just by listening to records.

PCC:
Any new records on the way for you? Any solo projects?

ALBERT LEE:
I’m halfway through a Hogan’s Heroes record. And I’m going to have some kind of celebration for my 70th birthday next year. It keeps changing shape. My idea was to do an album, but it looks like I’m not going to have time to do an album in time for the concert. But we’re going to have a concert late next year. And I know that I can get a number of people that I’ve worked with to participate. I can’t name any names yet. It’ll be in London, with guests. I know that there’s very little chance of getting The Everly Brothers over there. But maybe I can do something similar in maybe Nashville or L.A. and have them appear. I know Emmylou or Vince Gill would make themselves available. But, as far as the Claptons go and people like that, I’d have to wait until closer to the time to let them know exactly what I wanted to do, before they’d commit. But we’ll see.

But I think what we’re aiming for now is maybe a single, just to get some airplay in the U.K. Initially, all this started with a documentary, guys in England who’ve worked with TV quite a bit and done various documentaries. The idea was to document my career in video and interview lots of people that I’ve worked with over the years and to video the recording of the album, which, unfortunately, isn’t going to take place right away. But maybe we can video doing the single. But it’s still in the planning stage. It’s over a year away. But we have to start thinking about it now.

PCC:
And the concerts might end up on DVD?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah, they’d definitely be on DVD. That’s the plan.

PCC:
And your kids, are they involved in music at all?

ALBERT LEE:
Oh, yeah. I have five kids. I have one son who plays drums and keyboards and sings. He had a music shop for a while with his wife, but they decided to give that up and he now works in the U.K. as a rep for Ludwig drums. And I have twin daughters, both live in Wales at the moment, one of whom is a roadie for Chris Barber. He’s been one of the leading traditional jazz exponents in the U.K. since the mid-’50s. And he’s in his 80s now, but he’s working almost as much as I am. And driving himself around, all over Europe, in his really hot Mercedes, getting speeding tickets. So one of my daughters is working for him. Her ex-boyfriend is a guitar player/banjo player in the band. That’s how she got involved. She always wanted to be on the road, doing something. And she sings and plays a little guitar. And she was on the road with me, when she was in her teens. The twins are going to turn 40 this week. I have to call them today, because, once I get on the road tomorrow, it’ll be more difficult to call them.

PCC:
What are the rewards that keep you at this? What’s the most gratifying aspect of the career?

ALBERT LEE:
I love to play. I love to make music. And I’m enjoying it even more now, doing more solo gigs. It’s fun to play with other people. Like playing with Bill is fun. But there are times when I wish that I could express myself a little more, you know? But just by the nature of the music and the people in the band, I can’t do that. But when I get out and do something like I’m doing this month, it’s all down to me, really.

I wouldn’t want to do anything else. And I can’t really do anything else. There are no real pensions in this business for guys like me. I haven’t had that many hits to keep me alive [Chuckles]. So I’m glad I enjoy what I do and I’m in good health to keep doing it.

PCC:
Do you think much about your musical legacy?

ALBERT LEE:
Yeah, well, I suppose, looking back on what I’ve done, I’m quite proud of it. We all have regrets. I’ve made decisions along the way. And it could have gone in a totally different direction. I often wonder if I hadn’t fallen into that gig with Emmylou, if I would have ended up back in England, what I would have done, who I would have been with. I wonder. But I feel so fortunate living here in California. I just love it. I’d never want to move back to England.

PCC:
Well, wherever you are, you make great music. It’s an amazing body of work.

ALBERT LEE:
Thank you. I appreciate it.

Redwood City, CA
Club Fox	Sun. Aug 05

New York, NY
Iridium Jazz Club	Fri. Aug 10-12	

Sellersville, PA
(Philadelphia metro area)
Sellersville Theater 1894	  Mon. Aug 13	

Vienna, VA
(Washington DC metro area)
Jammin' Java	Tues.  Aug 14	

Norfolk, CT
(with Kate Taylor)
Infinity Hall	 Thurs. Aug 16	

San Diego, CA
Anthology	Thurs.  Aug 23	

Minneapolis, MN
Dakota Jazz Club & Restaurant	Aug. 29-30  

September 2012, U.K. concerts with Hogan’s Heroes