George E. Lee
George Ewing Lee (April 28, 1896–October 2, 1958) was an American jazz bandleader. Born in Boonville, Missouri, Lee was the older brother of pianist/singer Julia Lee. He played in a band while serving in the Army in 1917; following this, he sang in a vocal quartet, and in 1920, he formed an ensemble of his own. With his sister as one of the group's members, he was a regular player at Lyric Hall in Kansas City through much of the 1920s. In 1927, they recorded as an octet, with Jesse Stone on piano, for Meritt Records; among the tunes was "Down Home Syncopated Blues," the earliest recording of Julia Lee's voice. They recorded six tunes for Brunswick in 1929. In 1933, Lee's group was absorbed into the Bennie Moten Orchestra. In 1935, he struck out on his own again; he moved to Jackson, Michigan, in 1940, retired from music in 1941, and began managing a nightclub in Detroit in 1942. Later in the 1940s, he moved to San Diego, where he died on October 2, 1958. |
Birth and Death Data: Born April 28, 1896 (Missouri (state of the United States of America) ), Died October 2, 1958
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1929
Roles Represented in DAHR: leader, vocalist
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunswick | KC583 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | If I could be with you | George E. Lee Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with female vocal solo | leader | |
| Brunswick | KC584 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | Paseo strut | George E. Lee Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | leader | |
| Brunswick | KC585 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | Ruff scufflin’ | George E. Lee Orchestra | Jazz/dance band | leader | |
| Brunswick | KC586 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | St. James’ Infirmary | George E. Lee Orchestra | Jazz/dance band, with male vocal solo | leader, vocalist | |
| Brunswick | KC602 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | He’s tall [and] dark and handsome | Julia Lee | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | leader | |
| Brunswick | KC603 | 10-in. | Nov. 1929 | Won’t you come over to my house | Julia Lee | Female vocal solo, with jazz/dance band | leader |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Lee, George E.," accessed January 8, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/355095.
Lee, George E.. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 8, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/355095.
"Lee, George E.." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 8 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Lee, George E. - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n93054309
Wikidata: George E. Lee - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1507263
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/50898109
MusicBrainz: George E. Lee - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/91cd5f3d-b281-4d57-80c7-36b0b54a201a
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1512242 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/1512242
Wikipedia content provided under the terms of the Creative Commons BY-SA license
Feedback
Send the Editors a message about this record.
