Frankie Lee (Americana musician)

Frankie Lee (born Frankie Lee Peterson, June 28, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer, originally from Stillwater, Minnesota.[1]

Frankie Lee
Background information
Birth nameFrankie Lee Peterson
Born (1982-06-28) June 28, 1982
GenresFolk
Acoustic
Folk rock
Americana
Occupation(s)Singer-Songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Piano, Harmonica
Years active2003–present
LabelsLoose
WebsiteFrankie Lee Official Website

In spring of 2013 he released an EP, Middle West. Having been voted the Best Songwriter by City Pages in 2014, Lee received radio play by KCMP. In the spring of 2015, Lee released a four-song video EP.[2] In the summer of 2015, Lee signed a worldwide record deal with London-based record label, Loose.[3] On October 2, 2015, Lee's first full-length album, American Dreamer, was released in Europe.[4]

Early life

At the age of twelve, Lee inherited his father's record collection and an acoustic guitar. He spent days and nights teaching himself to play along to folk, country, and western records. Lee cites the music of Bob Dylan and Hank Williams as motivators to start writing his own material.

Raised in bars by his father's friends and uncle (Johnny Vincent), Lee started performing on stage in his early teens. Slim Dunlap and Curtiss A were mentors and would take the time to show him songs and invite him on stage to play and sing with their bands.

Influenced by Nirvana, The Dead Milkmen, Tom Petty and Lucinda Williams. Lee began his own musical career in local bars, playing four-hour cover sets under the name Clyde. The band was composed of high school friends Brendan Kane and Sam Rockwell.

Lee graduated high school in 2000 and left for college in Wisconsin on a full soccer scholarship. Lee talked his coach into letting him take out his scholarship money to "go west".

Lee lived in Austin, Texas, Los Angeles, Tulsa, Nashville, Milwaukee, Montana and Minneapolis.

Career

In early 2001, Lee moved to Austin to study the craft of his favorite writers and storytellers at the time. Eventually he settled into east Austin working for Townes Van Zandt's son (JT) while recording his first demos on Joe Ely's 4 track recorder. He passed around tapes to what would land him local bookings and a following of like minded musicians in the up-and-coming folk/americana scene.

After returning home in the fall of 2010, Lee started recording songs for what would become his Middle West EP. The EP sold out all of its copies at the Minneapolis record store Electric Fetus.

In early 2015, Lee signed a record deal with London-based label, Loose, and released his first full-length record, American Dreamer. The album was released in the United States in the summer of 2016 through Loose and distributed by Thirty Tigers.

Lee's second full-length record, Stillwater, was recorded at a makeshift studio in Stillwater, Minnesota and released in June 2019.[5] Lee's song "Speakeasy" was featured in the third episode of the NBC series This Is Us on October 8, 2019.

Discography
Studio Albums
Studio EPs
  • Middle West (2013)
7" Singles
  • Where Do We Belong / Buffalo 7"

References
  1. "Album Premiere: Frankie Lee Returns Home on 'Stillwater'". May 17, 2019.
  2. "Frankie Five: Frankie Lee debuts his 'American Dreamer' video pentology".
  3. "Frankie Lee signs with Loose".
  4. "Loose | Frankie Lee's Debut Album 'American Dreamer' Is Out Today". www.loosemusic.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2019.
  5. Minnesota's nomadic songwriter Frankie Lee comes home for new album 'Stillwater'.
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