Rick Lee

Rick Lee is a Massachusetts based old-time banjo and piano player, singer and songwriter. He has been a part of the New England music scene for forty years.

Rick was born in New York City, and moved to rural Texas as a two-year-old. He was greatly influenced by his Tennesee-born grandfather who sang mountain ballads and hymns, and by hearing his mother and grandmother playing piano together. They began with classical pieces and progressed to increasingly hilarious four-hand improvisations of boogie-woogie. As a family, they would listen to broadcasts and recordings of early country music from Texas and Tennessee.

Rick learned the basics of piano as a child, and with the encouragement of his family, began playing banjo in his teens. He set traditional narratives to banjo and keyboard accompaniment, and later composed his own tunes and songs. Through the years, Rick has become known for his dedication to finding wonderful songs from diverse sources and bringing them together seamlessly to form a rich tapestry of varying moods, colors and textures in his live shows and his recordings.

His material ranges from songs that are of another time to songs that speak of the idiosyncrasies and beauty of modern life, from the profound to the comical, and includes a sprinkling of his signature banjo instrumentals. He's well known for enticing numerous fellow musicians to his Massachusetts home by offering exotic soups and dynamite jam sessions.

In "Rick's Room," everyone is encouraged to play their favorite tunes and songs enough times through so that each player can learn the changes and find a harmonious part to contribute. Rick appears in several performance situations: Solo; in a trio with Bill Walach and Dave Howard, sometimes known as "Too Much Facial Hair," mixing traditional and original tunes and songs; in "Scuttlebutt," with Bob Zentz and Rick Epping, emphasizing instrumental music of the tall ships and songs of the sea; in "The Dreaded Banjo Orchestra" at Sandy Sheehan's old time music nights in Somerville, MA; and in New England contradance bands.