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Songwriter And Musician Jack Lee, Dead At 71

Obituary
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LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — Jack Lee, a songwriter and musician best known for his stint as the vocalist for the power pop trio The Nerves, has died. He was 71.

In a statement provided to the San Francisco Chronicle, Lee’s family said that he died in Santa Monica after a battle with colon cancer.

“He remained devoted to his music until the very end, his guitar always at his side,” the family said. “His songs encapsulated the story of his life, and he lived and breathed through them. Some dreams fade away, but Jack’s will forever endure.”

Lee founded the Nerves with Peter Case and Paul Collins in San Francisco 1971 and quickly made a name for themselves regionally through live performances.

After relocating to Los Angeles and signed a distribution deal with Bomp Records but dissolved the following year.

After The Nerves parted ways, Lee pursued a solo career but his skills as a songwriter drew the attention of bands such as Blondie, who recorded Lee’s “Hanging on the Telephone.”

In a 2007 interview with Mojo, Lee stated that he was financially up against the ropes when Blondie’s Debbie Harry called him personally to request permission to record the song.

“I remember the day vividly,” Lee told Mojo Magazine during an interview in 2007. “It was a Friday. They were going to cut off our electricity at 6 o’clock, the phone too.”

Other artists recording Lee’s music include Paul Young and Suzi Quatro, among others.


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