Whatever happened to Jake E. Lee

[tedvanfrehley]

Swine's post on the BARK @ THE MOON remaster got me thinking about ol' Jake. He was a great guitarist, in my opinion. I think BATM is a great ozzy album as was Ultimate Sin. Granted, they weren't as heavy as the Zakk stuff, but still great hard rock/metal albums for the era! Then, Jake broke off and did some FINE stuff with Badlands. GREAT coupla albums, there. Then...it seems like he fell off the face of the earth?!?!? Didn't he put a solo album out a few years back? (Fine Pink Mist) but it was only available in Japan or something? What else has he done since...I know he's been on a couple tribute albums jamming with other guys but I haven't heard of any official releases from him...what gives?!?!?!? WHERE IS HE NOW?!?!?!

 

[Fangface]

http://www.jakeelee.com/html/modules.php?name=Discography

Seems like he ondly did a few things after his departure from Ozzy's band.

 

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

He was awesome when he was with Ozzy. I liked Ultimate Sin better then BATM but both albums were excellent and to me he was a much better guitarist to fill Randy's shoes then Zakk ever was or wishes he was. Zakk has always been overrated beyond belief. Just watch Jake on the Ultimate Ozzy video. He kicked ass. As for his Badlands albums. I have the debut and have never been impressed by it. Jake was a Led Zep/70's wannabe on that album though i liked a song here or there (mainly because i was such a Zep freak then and now that almost anything that sounded like them i would like lol ). He should of stuck to metal cause that is where his talents lay. I hope he comes back sometime soon in a metal band.

 

[Wyvern]

He was in Badlands after departure from Ozzy band. He also appear here and there in some tributes. He played with Rob Rock too.
Looking at the discography Fang linked I see a lot of stuff I never heard about.

 

[sixxswine]

I'll tell you Jake is ... In his condo aging & rotting away.
Poor bastid.

 

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

hey im sure he is still collecting royalties from those 2 ozzy albums living in luxury unlike us lol

 

[sixxswine]

hey im sure he is still collecting royalties from those 2 ozzy albums living in luxury unlike us lol

He couldn't be that loaded could he?!

 

[ashaman7122]

Alright, look...this isn't official poop, but only basic information that I've ferreted out from different comments made (by other musicians, from Jake's webmaster, etc.).

For whatever reason, Jake becamse a self-imposed recluse. It even reached the point where he moved, never notified his webmaster (friend?), stopped returning phone calls, letters, press releases, etc., so the webmaster posted a statement indicating how frustrated he was with Jake's self-exile and lack of continued interest in the music biz and closed the website.

Recently, after quite a few years off the radar, Stephen Pearcy indicated that he was working on some tracks with Jake (original Mickey Ratt member), but I guess none of that has surfaced yet.

One can only guess at why such an obvious talent would purposely fade away. It could be a health-related or emotional problem, but, if I had to guess, I always presumed he was increasingly unhappy with his failing eyesight (he's supposedly legally blind, maybe closer to completely blind by now).

Who knows...but that's some insight...

Rock on!

 

[TRrEiTxIxRiE DTrash]

Ultimate Sin & Bark At The Moon are the 2 best albums Ozzy ever did I think, and The Ultimate Ozzy concert video is the best Ozzy concert video too, Jake is amazing on it.

 

[sixxswine]

Anyone know if Wicked Alliance issued anything? That's the band he put together with Mandy Lion....

 

[ashaman7122]

Anyone know if Wicked Alliance issued anything? That's the band he put together with Mandy Lion....

Crap, I knew I was forgetting something...that was something Jake did after Fine Pink Mist and before total obscurity...

Not sure if an album actually ever came out of that project.

The best place to check on that would be Mandy Lion's website...for that matter...I know that he peruses this board on occasion...it would be interesting to know if he knows anything about Jake...?

Rock On!

 

[The One]

I don't know about you guys, I think J. Lee was the best replacement for RR, their style is totaly different as RR is more classical, but I think J.Lee had good riffs. I didn't like Badlands. I hope that he does something sounds like BATM or Ultimate Sin.

 

[Psychonaut]

It would be nice to see him come back. I would be very interested in hearing the stuff he did with Mandy Lion.

 

[Bryant]

I have always liked Jake. In fact I considered him equal to Randy. While not the innovator Rhoads was, Lee was very fluid and had excellent tone and phrasing where Randy often sounded choppy and sounded like he was playing many of his songs t the edge of his technical ability.
Last I heard, Jake has some serious problems with his eyesight so that may factor in with his disappearance. I have also always wondered what happened to Vito Bratta. He was a freaking machine.... for a hair fuitarist.


Bryant

 

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

I don't know about you guys, I think J. Lee was the best replacement for RR, their style is totaly different as RR is more classical, but I think J.Lee had good riffs. I didn't like Badlands. I hope that he does something sounds like BATM or Ultimate Sin.

I wouldnt use the word replacement... but Jake used alot of classical elements.. listen to the beginning of Killer of Giants.. also watch the video Ultimate Ozzy with Jake playing live... I think i also read somewhere that Jake was classically trained when he was younger before the metal bands he was in...

 

[sixxswine]

Jake was great fit for Ozzy. I actually like him better than Rhoads who, I think is very overrated. I tend to think that had he not died at a young age & not been in Ozzy's band & in some L.A. area(signed) band... He would haven't gotten to be the near legend that he is. Jake? Zakk? I would have to take Jake, he'd smoke Zakk, maybe even today. I had no idea that Jake had vision problems, that too bad & I hope he's doing well. Some one here mentioned they didn't like the Badlands record, I can understand that, though he meant well, that stripped down "blues tinged" kinda stuff, doesn't suit him as well. I liked some of it, but ir wan't the Jake I was expecting. Highwire & Hard Driver were my favorites off that record.

 

[ashaman7122]

It's obviously a knee-jerk reaction for me to call someone a pussy for not liking any of the Badlands material...but it's sadly true...

Hey...I know it's not for every one...it's very blues and groove tinged...but you cannot deny the sheer genius and passion from every song...

There's nothing like the self-titled, Voodoo Highway, and even Dusk to compare to anything in the world of hard rock and metal.

Confident, competent, sophisticated, yet loose...and written and performed by talented band members well before their prime...with not much commercial success.

Love it or hate it, you poseurs...it at least deserves your goddamn respect! If you haven't checked it out...do it! If you have...then fucking do it again!

Rock on!

 

[Greeno]

It's obviously a knee-jerk reaction for me to call someone a pussy for not liking any of the Badlands material...but it's sadly true...

Hey...I know it's not for every one...it's very blues and groove tinged...but you cannot deny the sheer genius and passion from every song...

There's nothing like the self-titled, Voodoo Highway, and even Dusk to compare to anything in the world of hard rock and metal.

Confident, competent, sophisticated, yet loose...and written and performed by talented band members well before their prime...with not much commercial success.

Love it or hate it, you poseurs...it at least deserves your goddamn respect! If you haven't checked it out...do it! If you have...then fucking do it again!

Rock on!

This ain't going to be pretty!

 

[Igor_Cavalera]

I was thinking the same thing Greeno.

 

[Unfaithfully Metalhead]

Jake was great fit for Ozzy. I actually like him better than Rhoads who, I think is very overrated. I tend to think that had he not died at a young age & not been in Ozzy's band & in some L.A. area(signed) band... He would haven't gotten to be the near legend that he is. Jake? Zakk? I would have to take Jake, he'd smoke Zakk, maybe even today. I had no idea that Jake had vision problems, that too bad & I hope he's doing well. Some one here mentioned they didn't like the Badlands record, I can understand that, though he meant well, that stripped down "blues tinged" kinda stuff, doesn't suit him as well. I liked some of it, but ir wan't the Jake I was expecting. Highwire & Hard Driver were my favorites off that record.

Overrated? Thats blasphemy... ::: takes out the shotgun lol jk ::: .... I like to think that if he hadnt been in Ozzy's Band.. Ozzy wouldnt be where he is now... Dead or not you could tell Randy was a special guitar player. He's my god in terms of metal guitar and if he hadn't come around alot of guitarists that were influenced by him wouldnt be around or at the very least not sound too good.. I always thought that Randy did a better job of incorporating classical music into metal then Yngwie ever did.. if anyone is overrated its Yngwie... and by god Randy gave Black Sabbath classics some life.. something that Tony Iommi never did live (god Tony ruined the live version of the song Heaven & Hell with that god awful solo on the Live Evil album)... as for Zakk.. anyone is better then him lol he never did anything special on the guitar... he's just a average player.. Jake definetly blows him away..