LEE FIELDS—Brooklyn, NY
I recently received an email from an old friend asking me to check out one of his artists. Now, this artist isn’t any ordinary artist that I would normally write about. In fact, he’s a soul singer, and I know nothing about soul singers! Anyway, his name is Lee Fields, and I logged onto leefieldsmusic.com to give him a listen. I got to hear songs like “I Want To Get With You,” “Living For The Gusto” and, my favorite track, “I’ve Been Hurt” off of Lee’s most recent CD, Treacherous. James Brown is alive! That’s right! The Godfather of Soul is alive and he lives in the body and vocal chords of Lee Fields.
Lee Fields, a native of North Carolina, spent his adolescence singing in church and listening to R&B artists like James Brown, The Temptations and Otis Redding. By the late 1960s, Lee began his singing career with some funk bands where he captivated audiences with his powerful, distinctive, raw, gritty and soulful voice. Lee became very popular among diehard funk fans with the help of a few singles recorded for some small labels during the ‘70s. He stayed quiet for most of the ‘80s, but made a comeback in the early ‘90s. Lee debuted as a solo artist in 1992 with Enough Is Enough, which would lead to a very busy 2000s and eventually his latest CD release.
Lee Fields is currently on the road in support of Treacherous. If you’re a huge James Brown fan, you’ll become a huge Lee Fields fan! Check him out at leefieldsmusic.com.
NORTH JERSEY NOTES UPDATES:
Though they’ve been spending most of 2011 working on their new CD, my bros from Black Water Rising took a break from recording recently to travel to Philadelphia to headline the annual Ride For Dime event, a charitable concert and motorcycle ride in honor of the late, great Pantera/Damage Plan guitarist, “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott. Funds raised from this event went to benefit the Ride For Dime Scholarship Fund. The event was started in Arlington, TX, back in 2005 by Dime’s closest friends and family, but now boasts six chapters with one of them in Philly. Who better to headline this event than one of the hottest acts in the area? Look for some new Black Water Rising material to hit the airwaves sometime this fall! For more info on my boys, log onto blackwaterrising.com.
Speaking of my boys, how about the new Borgo Pass CD, Deadwater? I’ve been waiting on this one for a while, and I was able to hear a track called “Rotted Chain” off of the CD. It is well worth the wait! The song kicked ass! It was Borgo Pass heavy, and singer Jimmy Tammarazzo’s Anselmo-like vocals were so powerful and easy to listen to! I really like these guys a lot! Check them out at myspace.com/borgopass and let them know that they need to play Jersey more often!
And finally, a big celebration for the Gotham Rocks crew! The NYC promotional giant is celebrating its three-year anniversary with a huge party at Irving Plaza in NYC on Thursday, July 21. You know that with a celebration like this, promoter Mike Sankari and his crew could only put together an all-star type concert. Performing the three-year anniversary event will be Woods Of Arden, Sweet Fix, Bound By Substance, Charetta (who will also be celebrating the release of their latest CD, A Nation Distracted), The August Infinity, Killcode and Crush Of Empires. For tickets and info to this very special event, log onto gothamrocks.net.
That’s all for now! If your band is from North Jersey, and you want some exposure, send your press kits to Arts Weekly, c/o Tim Louie P.O. Box 1140, Little Falls, NJ 07424, or you can email me at tim@theaquarian.com, where you can also let me know where you’re performing next!
Just remember: We’re all in the same boat, so every little bit of exposure counts!
Tim Louie is the author of S**t Happens.
NJN Concert Calendar:
7/21—Killcode/Charetta (Gotham Rocks 3-Year Anniversary)—Irving Plaza, NYC
7/21—Tied in 2—Manahawkin Flea Market, Manahawkin, NJ
7/22—The Dirty Pearls/Wildstreet—Brooklyn Bowl, Brooklyn, NY
7/22—Borgo Pass—The Pool House, Bellmore, NY
7/22—BoundAlive—The Saint, Asbury Park, NJ
7/27—Audio Insight—Maxwell’s, Hoboken, NJ
7/27—Dead Fish Handshake—The Grape Room, Philadelphia, PA
7/28—Sky Picnic—Union Hall, Brooklyn, NY
7/29—Will Killmore—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
7/30—Tied in 2—The Bitter End, NYC
8/3—Borgo Pass—The Crazy Donkey, Farmingdale, NY
8/5—Cycle of Pain/Sekond Skyn—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
8/6—Rockin’ The Lake Festival—Elks Lodge, Pompton Lakes, NJ
8/6—King Kelly—Dingbatz, Clifton, NJ
