Over the Rainbow
Until my friend Julian brought him to my attention I hadn’t realised that Dave Lee, a legendary pianist, composer, and musical director was still with us. But he is. At 98 he is still playing jazz piano and improvising on songs he has known for a lifetime.
Dave Lee has done just about everything a musician can do in show business. He was resident musical director on That Was the Week That Was, famously worked with Louis Armstrong, Sarah Vaughan, Duke Ellington, Norman Wisdom, Benny Hill, Cleo Laine and many other great singers, wrote songs for Sophia Loren and Peter Sellers and Millicent Martin. He has composed film scores, led a big band, and was the longtime collaborator and arranger for John Dankworth.
For 16 years, whenever she was in Europe, Dave Lee was the accompanist, arranger and musical director for Judy Garland with whom he formed a lifelong bond. He still plays the piano remarkably well and tells many good stories about his days with Garland.
At 98, there is nothing wrong with his memory or, indeed, his fingers. Here he is reminiscing about Judy and playing her signature song.
The post Ruth Leon recommends… Dave Lee – Over The Rainbow appeared first on Slippedisc.
