After returning to Philadelphia, Lee worked as a second grade teacher at the Mary McLeod Bethune School and as a bartender at local music venues. He performed at open mic events in the area and, through his manager Bill Eib's contacts with promoters, was hired as an opening act for Mose Allison and B.B. King.[11]
In 2003, Lee's manager Bill Eib sent a four-song demo CD to several record labels, and the representative at Blue Note Records was "immediately struck by his [Lee's] voice".[12] Afterwards, Norah Jones heard Lee's music while visiting the record company and invited Lee to be the opening act for her 2004 tour.[9]
The friendship between Lee's manager Bill Eib and Bob Dylan's manager Jeff Kramer resulted in Lee touring with Dylan as his opening act in early 2005.[11][15][16][17] Later, Lee began touring on his own and recorded his self-titled and "widely praised" debut album of "subtle, folky soul" produced by Norah Jones' bassist, Lee Alexander[10][14][18][19] which included vocals and instrumentation by Norah Jones and members of her band.[6][12] After it was released, the album peaked at No. 2 on the BillboardTop Heatseekers chart and Lee was named one of Rolling Stone's "Top 10 Artists to Watch."[13][20] One song from the album, called "Colors", appeared on the TV show Grey's Anatomy and in the film Just Like Heaven.[21] Lee's music received additional media attention when he performed on late-night TV shows such as the Late Show with David Letterman[22] and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.[23]
In 2006, Lee recorded his second album, Supply and Demand, which was produced by a friend of manager Bill Eib, Philadelphia musician and producer Barrie Maguire. An NPR Music reviewer described it as having "more complicated instrumentation and production" than his prior work.[19] The song "Shout Out Loud" was released as a single and peaked at No. 76 on the Billboard 200,[24] and another song, called "Sweet Pea", was used in an AT&T ad campaign.[21]
Lee's longtime touring band consists of Jaron Olevksy (piano, keyboards), Zach Djanikian (guitar, mandolin, saxophone, background vocals), Jay White (bass, background vocals), Ryan Hommel (guitar, background vocals), David Streim (keyboards, trumpet) and James Williams (drums).[33]
Reception
Lee's "folksy, bluesy sound" has been compared to that of John Prine and Norah Jones.[34] His music is said to utilize the "supple funk of his vocals and arid strum of his guitar" while recalling "the low-volume, early-'70s acoustic soul of stars like Bill Withers and Minnie Ripperton".[11] A New York Times music critic described Lee as having a "honeyed singing voice – light amber, mildly sweet, a touch of grain" which he features "squarely, without much fuss or undue strain" in his "1970s folk rock and rustic soul" musical song craft.[35] According to a music writer at ABC News, Lee "has that folksy, bluesy vibe, with a bit of country twang" and a voice that is "ever soulful".[36] Simultaneously Lee has been both lauded and dismissed as the "male Norah Jones" and[7] his lyrics are said to convey "the complexities of everyday emotions" without falling into flowery imagery.[12] Lee's songs have appeared on a number of TV shows including House and Parenthood.[21][37]
Personal life
Amos Lee describes himself as being of mixed heritage; he admits he is not fully aware of his background.[38] He maintains a residence in West Philadelphia.
He took the stage name "Amos Lee" because he got sick of people mispronouncing his real name.[39]
He makes appearances on the Rights to Ricky Sanchez including recording the theme song and occasionally appears as the character of Tony Toni Tatone.
^"Alumni News". Department of English Language and Literature. University of South Carolina. cas.sc.edu. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
^Hahne, Jeff (July 30, 2008). "Who is Amos Lee?". Creative Loafing. Archived from the original(Interview) on April 8, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2011.
^ abLindquist, David (October 21, 2005) No bells or whistles; Amos Lee, on his first tour as a headliner, aims to serve the song above all, The Indianapolis Star page=34
^(June 26, 2005) Watch this Face: Amos Lee, Independent on Sunday (London) page 15
^ abPBS New Hour, Mission Bell Amos Lee enriches his songwriting with star power, April 28, 2011. Saskia De Melker, Retrieved July 2011
^Burger, David (February 2, 2011) Amos Lee's new album debuts at No. 1, The Salt Lake Tribune, Retrieved July 9, 2011
^Richards, Chris (July 4, 2013). "Wale hits No. 1 with 'The Gifted' (Posted 2013-07-04 01:21:36); D.C. rapper debuts in the top spot on the Billboard albums chart". Washington Post.