Hazlewood, (Barton) Lee

▪ 2008

      American singer-songwriter and music producer

born July 9, 1929, Mannford, Okla.

died Aug. 4, 2007, Henderson, Nev.

was a pioneer in the musical genre of country rock and achieved fame as the writer and producer of “These Boots Are Made for Walkin',” which became a number one hit in 1966 for singer Nancy Sinatra. After starting his career as a radio disc jockey in the 1950s, Hazlewood established his own recording label and had early success as the producer for rock guitarist Duane Eddy and the Gram Parsons-led International Submarine Band. Hazlewood released a solo album, Trouble Is a Lonesome Town (1963), before teaming up with Sinatra, with whom he collaborated on nine albums (three of them duets) and four top 10 singles. He later moved to Sweden, where he continued to release his own recordings before retiring in 1977. He emerged from retirement in the 1990s, by which time a number of younger artists had begun to champion his music; some of these artists later appeared on a tribute album, Total Lee!: The Songs of Lee Hazlewood (2002). Hazlewood's final solo album, Cake or Death, was released in 2006.

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