Staff Reviews

Lee Hazlewood - The LHI Years Singles

Review by Neil Ashman

In covering just three to four years of Lee Hazlewood's less readily available material The LHI Years mines a rich seam of individualistic pop genius, even the rump of which betters that found within the entire back catalogue of many artists.»

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debut release in light in the attic's lee hazlewood reissue series. cuts from essential albums like 'cowboy in sweden'. features duets with suzi jane hokom, ann-margret and nina lizell. audio re-mastered from original tapes. unreleased song 'i just learned to run'. in-depth liner notes and unseen photographs. with his handlebar moustache and booming baritone, lee hazlewood was one of the defining stars of the late '60s. though he's perhaps best known for his work with nancy sinatra (including writing mega-hit 'these boots are made for walking'), hazlewood did stunning work away from that particular glamour queen and found latter day champions in beck, sonic youth, and jarvis cocker. lights in the attic are kicking off their excavation of the lee hazlewood archives with this anthology, singles, nudes and backsides, collecting the best of lee's solo songs and duets from his lhi (lee hazlewood industries) imprint. as a true legend of the great american songbook and a rebellious pioneer who left behind a lengthy trail of echo laden pop masterpieces, lee's influence continues to reverberate today. between 1968-71, hazlewood not only released his finest solo work, but produced numerous artists on lhi. from acid-folk and country-rock to pop-psych and soul, lhi issued dozens of long forgotten 45s and lps. this series will include material from lhi (re-mastered for the first time from the original analog tapes), along with lee's output for other labels, rarities, unreleased gems, and the films of torbjrn axelman. see the sleeve: surrounded by nude girls, each wearing a fake moustache, hazlewood wears a suit, ever-so-slightly awkwardly playing the role of the '60s playboy. just like the picture, the songs present a man conflicted; he's the tender-hearted romantic, the broken-hearted loser and the rugged cowboy, all in one. it's there in the western swing of 'califia (stone rider)' the loneliness of 'the bed' and the bleak beauty of 'if it's monday morning.' hazlewood's tremulous voice was made for duets (indeed, he wrote 'some velvet morning', one of the greatest of all time); here, suzi jane hokom, ann-margret and nina lizell play counterpart to his manly tones.
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