Simon Lees
Encyclopedia
Simon Lees – Guitarist
, Singer, Songwriter
, Producer
Born 1970 in Wolverhampton
.
Formed Wombourne
rock band Osprey in 1986. Recorded “Scene of the Action” 6 song demo at Far Heath Studios in January 1989. Engineered and produced by Angus Wallace. http://www.urbanstreet.co.uk/engineer_angus_wallace.htm
Simon quit Osprey in August that year.
In 1988 Simon began giving private guitar lessons. His first student was John Woodberry from Wombourne.
Formed Wolverhampton rock band Nitebreed in April 1990 and supported The Mock Turtles
at Wolverhampton’s Wulfrun Hall in May that year. After a bad review the band broke up.
Simon did session work with nephew of ELO
’s Kelly Grocutt; Gary Grocutt’s band The Red House Snakes in August 1990. Recorded a four song demo at RPK
studio in Stourbridge
– produced by Diamond Head
’s Brian Tatler
. In January 1991 Simon played guitar, bass and backing vocals on the Red House Snakes second demo at White Rabbit Studio in Bridgnorth
. – produced by Ten
keyboardist Paul Hodson
.
In September 1991 Simon recorded his first solo demo “Buggy – When Will I Learn” at Eagleton Studio, Bilston
. Produced by Mark “$had” White. On this demo Simon played all the instruments and vocals himself.
In May 1992 Simon re-formed Nitebreed and recorded their first demo at The Attic in Wolverhampton. Produced by Tom Smyth
.
In October 1992 Simon formed Plain Jain with singer Adrian Marx.
In April 1993 the band recorded “Better Late Than Never” demo at Magic Garden Studio in Wolverhampton. Produced by Gavin Monaghan.
In 1993, Simon co-produced demos by Wolverhampton bands; Almost Human and Graveyard Shift
at Manley Studio, Wolverhampton.
In September 1993, Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The winner that year was Guthrie Govan
.
In January 1994 Simon recorded and produced Plain Jain’s second Demo at Manley Studio. After playing 50 gigs in the West Midlands
with Plain Jain, Simon was offered a gig with another band.
In April 1994 Simon joined Shropshire
based rock band, Tantrum
. He was interviewed with the band on The Reaper Rock Show on Chester FM and did several gigs in Wales
and the South East.
In September 1994 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and Simon was accompanied by Charlie Morgan
(drums), Hugh Burns
(guitar) and Felix Krish (bass). The winner that year was Dave Colquhoun. The live performances from each contestant were recorded and released on the album “Guitarist of the Year 1994” on Music Maker Records. Catalogue No. CMMR951. Simon had two tracks on the CD; the self-penned Playing Truant and Playing Truant Underscore.
In October 1994 Simon left Tantrum to begin work producing backing tracks for his one man rock show.
In March 1995 Simon began performing his One Man Rock Show mainly in the West Midlands area with a notable performance at Full Sutton Prison Officer’s Club in Yorkshire
.
In September 1995 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and Simon came in 2nd place. The winner was Paul Rose.
Between 1995 and 1997 Simon produced demos for Wombourne rock band Bliss
which led to them getting signed by German label, Massacre Records
. Simon played keyboards on their first album “Sin to Skin” which was released in 1998. Catalogue Number MAS CD0152.
In November 1998 Simon released his first solo CD – “My World” in which he played all the instruments. The album featured his own material and was a mixture of songs and instrumentals including his competition entries. Label: Bugjam Music. Catalogue No. BUGCD001.
Also in November 1998 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and this time Simon won. An interview on ITV
’s Central News followed along with several newspaper articles and a feature in Guitarist magazine which included a track on the cover CD.
In January 1999 Simon performed an acoustic version of his song "Hunted" on the Jenny Wilkes afternoon show on BBC Radio WM. Jenny interviewed him about winning Guitarist of the Year, his new album My World and his One Man Rock Show.
In April 2000 Simon formed rock band Lost Souls with singer Lee Small.
A four song demo was recorded at Mad Hat Studio in Walsall
, produced by Mark Stuart
. Having played their debut gig at JBs Dudley, Simon left the band in August 2000.
In September 2000 Simon joined Ozzy Osbourne
tribute band
Ozzmosis
.
In November 2000 Simon appeared on ITV’s Stars in Their Eyes
. He sang Aerosmith
’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”. He was beaten by Nicola Kirsch who went on to win the series.
In December 2000 Simon won a sponsorship deal with Black Dog Distribution, Whittlesey
, Cambridgeshire
, and worked as a demonstrator for Palm Bay Guitars and Snarling Dogs effects pedals.
In 2001 Simon produced a three track demo for Ozzmosis and the band gigged in the West Midlands area.
In 2002 Simon was asked to test and review a revolutionary new guitar amplifier
designed by Kidderminster
based company Blue Tone.
In August 2002 Simon left Ozzmosis for financial reasons.
In 2003 Simon was asked to record two new songs for former Judas Priest
singer Al Atkins
’ remastered solo album “Heavy Thoughts”. These were Cradle to the Grave and Sentenced. The remastered version of the album was released in 2006 on the Market Square
record label, catalogue number MSMCD120.
In February 2003 Simon was asked to join Welsh classic rock band Budgie
. In September that year he recorded seven songs with the band which would later appear as bonus tracks on four of Budgie’s Remastered albums; Budgie, Sqwawk, Never Turn Your Back on a Friend and In For the Kill. These albums were released on the Noteworthy Productions label, catalogue numbers; NP2, NP3, NP4, NP5, NP6 respectively.
In August 2003 Simon released his second solo album “Freethinka”. Label: Bugjam Music. Catalogue No. BUGCD002. As with My World, the album features a mixture of songs and instrumentals in which Simon plays all the instruments himself. A tracks from the album entitled 2 B Frank was featured on Guitarist Magazine’s cover CD.
In 2004 Simon recorded guitar solos for an album by Neil Murray
from The Hamptons. The album was called Krankschaft – Der Varterlands, described by Neil as a “piss take heavy metal album”. Released on The Longmede Label, Catalogue No. LLCD012. http://www.hamptons.org.uk/krankschaft_history.htm
In 2004 and 2005 Simon recorded guitar parts for Al Atkins’ solo album “Demon Deceiver” which also featured Diamond Head’s Brian Tatler
and South African guitarist Mike de Jager. Simon also wrote the title track. The album was recorded at Mad Hat Studio near Wolverhampton and produced by Mark Stuart the album was released in 2007 on the Diesel and Glory label, catalogue number; DG003. Simon featured in the promo video for one of the album tracks “Victim of Changes” filmed by Mike de Jager at JB’s Dudley in 2005.
In 2005 Simon produced a guitar tuition DVD to demonstrate and teach his unique method of learning the guitar’s fretboard. The double disc DVD was called “Signpost to the Fretboard” and was filmed and edited by Mike de Jager.
In 2006 Simon wrote a series of tuition articles for internet magazine "All Out Guitar". The articles covered the subject of improvisation with pentatonic scale
s using the CAGED system.
In 2006 Simon was interviewed by John Ogden for Wolverhampton newspaper the Express and Star. The interview was largely biographical and was given a full page in the newspaper. As a result of this Simon was interviewed live on Jimmy Franks’ show on BBC Radio WM.
During 2005 and 2006 Simon co-wrote and recorded the Budgie album You're All Living in Cuckooland
with bassist and singer Burke Shelley
at his studio in Cardiff
.
The album was produced by Burke Shelley and released in November 2006 on the Noteworthy Productions label, catalogue number NP15. Also in 2006 Simon played classical guitar on a track from the Remastered Budgie album "If I Were Britannia, I'd Break the Rules". The track was Black Velvet Stallion (2006 Version). Label: Noteworthy Productions, catalogue number NP7. Simon was not credited on the album.
Having played 115 gigs consisting of four UK tours and nineteen shows spread across five countries outside the UK, Simon left Budgie on 4 July 2007, three months before the band were due to play a three date Australia
n tour. Simon was later replaced by Dio
guitarist Craig Goldy
and in February 2008 Budgie completed a five date Australian tour.
In April 2007 Simon performed as the character Pop in the musical We Will Rock You
at the Grand Theatre in Wolverhampton. Shout Productions produced the show and it managed three sold out performances during Easter weekend. This was the first time the show had ever been performed outside London
’s West End
.
Also in April 2007, Simon performed “Rockin' All Over the World
” at Wolverhampton’s Molineux Stadium
just before kick off between Wolves and Birmingham City.
In 2007 Simon formed rock band Anubis with bassist Pete Williamson, singer Sarah Co'Burn and former Budgie guitarist Andy Hart. Their self-produced debut album Sibuna was released in January 2008. Sibuna was mastered by Paul Cobbold.
Simon co-wrote, co-produced and mastered Anubis’ follow up EP Avatar which was released in November 2008.
In June 2009 Simon performed his first One Man Rock Show outside the UK at the Kulttuurikeskus Kaisain, Helsinki
, Finland
.
During the latter half of 2009 Simon produced Anubis’ second album Waking the Dead which was released in March 2010.
In February 2010 Simon recorded a three hour radio programme called The Pharaoh Rock Show which was broadcast at Easter on EKR internet radio
. http://www.ekr.net/?p=&s=The%20EKR%20Team
In September 2010 Simon produced Anubis’ third album, Anubis Live which had been recorded at their gig at the Sonic Rock Solstice festival in June 2010.
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, Singer, Songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, Producer
Born 1970 in Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
.
Formed Wombourne
Wombourne
Wombourne is a very large village and civil parish located in the district of South Staffordshire, in the county of Staffordshire, 4 miles south-west of Wolverhampton. Local affairs are run by a parish council. At the 2001 census it had a population of 13,691...
rock band Osprey in 1986. Recorded “Scene of the Action” 6 song demo at Far Heath Studios in January 1989. Engineered and produced by Angus Wallace. http://www.urbanstreet.co.uk/engineer_angus_wallace.htm
Simon quit Osprey in August that year.
In 1988 Simon began giving private guitar lessons. His first student was John Woodberry from Wombourne.
Formed Wolverhampton rock band Nitebreed in April 1990 and supported The Mock Turtles
The Mock Turtles
The Mock Turtles are a Manchester based indie rock band, formed in Middleton, Greater Manchester in 1985, who enjoyed some success in the early 1990s...
at Wolverhampton’s Wulfrun Hall in May that year. After a bad review the band broke up.
Simon did session work with nephew of ELO
ELO
- Music :* Electric Light Orchestra, a British rock music group** The Electric Light Orchestra , the group's debut album** ELO 2, the group's second album* ELO Part II, an offshoot band of Electric Light Orchestra- Sports and games :...
’s Kelly Grocutt; Gary Grocutt’s band The Red House Snakes in August 1990. Recorded a four song demo at RPK
RPK
The RPK is a 7.62x39mm light machine gun of Soviet design, developed by Mikhail Kalashnikov in the late 1950s, parallel with the AKM assault/battle rifle...
studio in Stourbridge
Stourbridge
Stourbridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. Historically part of Worcestershire, Stourbridge was a centre of glass making, and today includes the suburbs of Amblecote, Lye, Norton, Oldswinford, Pedmore, Wollaston, Wollescote and Wordsley The...
– produced by Diamond Head
Diamond Head (band)
Diamond Head are an English heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Stourbridge, England. The band is recognised as one of the leading members of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and is acknowledged by later bands like Metallica and Megadeth as an important early influence.-Early history:Formed by...
’s Brian Tatler
Brian Tatler
Brian Tatler is an English musician, best known as the guitarist and co-founder of the Stourbridge based heavy metal band, Diamond Head.-Formation:...
. In January 1991 Simon played guitar, bass and backing vocals on the Red House Snakes second demo at White Rabbit Studio in Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England, along the Severn Valley. It is split into Low Town and High Town, named on account of their elevations relative to the River Severn, which separates the upper town on the right bank from the lower on the left...
. – produced by Ten
Ten (band)
Ten is a British hard rock/melodic rock band which was formed in 1995 by vocalist/songwriter Gary Hughes and guitarist Vinny Burns.-Formation :...
keyboardist Paul Hodson
Paul Hodson
Paul Hodson is an English hard rock singer, songwriter and musician.-Biography:Paul Hodson has been the keyboard player of the band Ten from 2001 until September 2011....
.
In September 1991 Simon recorded his first solo demo “Buggy – When Will I Learn” at Eagleton Studio, Bilston
Bilston
Bilston is a town in the English county of West Midlands, situated in the southeastern corner of the City of Wolverhampton. Three wards of Wolverhampton City Council cover the town: Bilston East and Bilston North, which almost entirely comprise parts of the historic Borough of Bilston, and...
. Produced by Mark “$had” White. On this demo Simon played all the instruments and vocals himself.
In May 1992 Simon re-formed Nitebreed and recorded their first demo at The Attic in Wolverhampton. Produced by Tom Smyth
Tom Smyth
Thomas Joseph Smyth is an English footballer currently playing for Northwich Victoria.-Club career:Smyth started his career with Preston North End where he was a former captain of Preston’s youth side and was a regular at reserve team level in 2009, the same year as he was handed his first...
.
In October 1992 Simon formed Plain Jain with singer Adrian Marx.
In April 1993 the band recorded “Better Late Than Never” demo at Magic Garden Studio in Wolverhampton. Produced by Gavin Monaghan.
In 1993, Simon co-produced demos by Wolverhampton bands; Almost Human and Graveyard Shift
Graveyard Shift
"Graveyard Shift" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the October 1970 issue of Cavalier magazine, and later collected in King's 1978 collection Night Shift...
at Manley Studio, Wolverhampton.
In September 1993, Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The winner that year was Guthrie Govan
Guthrie Govan
Guthrie Govan is a guitarist known for his work with the bands Asia , GPS, The Young Punx and The Fellowship as well as Erotic Cakes...
.
In January 1994 Simon recorded and produced Plain Jain’s second Demo at Manley Studio. After playing 50 gigs in the West Midlands
West Midlands (region)
The West Midlands is an official region of England, covering the western half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It contains the second most populous British city, Birmingham, and the larger West Midlands conurbation, which includes the city of Wolverhampton and large towns of Dudley,...
with Plain Jain, Simon was offered a gig with another band.
In April 1994 Simon joined Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
based rock band, Tantrum
Tantrum (band)
- History :Tantrum was a seven-member rock group that released two albums on Chicago's Ovation Records label. The group was composed of three female singers, Pam Bradley, Sandy Caulfield, and Barb Erber, as well as guitarist Ray Sapko, keyboardist Phil Balsano, bass guitarist Bill Syniar, and...
. He was interviewed with the band on The Reaper Rock Show on Chester FM and did several gigs in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and the South East.
In September 1994 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and Simon was accompanied by Charlie Morgan
Charlie Morgan
Charlie Morgan is an English drummer and percussionist.In 1985 his drumming work with Nik Kershaw attracted the attention of Elton John, who booked him to play on his Ice on Fire album. Later that year John invited him to play with his band at Live Aid...
(drums), Hugh Burns
Hugh Burns
Hugh Burns is a Scottish former professional football player who is best known for his time with Rangers and Ayr United....
(guitar) and Felix Krish (bass). The winner that year was Dave Colquhoun. The live performances from each contestant were recorded and released on the album “Guitarist of the Year 1994” on Music Maker Records. Catalogue No. CMMR951. Simon had two tracks on the CD; the self-penned Playing Truant and Playing Truant Underscore.
In October 1994 Simon left Tantrum to begin work producing backing tracks for his one man rock show.
In March 1995 Simon began performing his One Man Rock Show mainly in the West Midlands area with a notable performance at Full Sutton Prison Officer’s Club in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
In September 1995 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and Simon came in 2nd place. The winner was Paul Rose.
Between 1995 and 1997 Simon produced demos for Wombourne rock band Bliss
Bliss (band)
Bliss are a pop group from Coventry, England.-Biography:Bliss was founded in 1986 by vocalist Rachel Morrison and bassist Paul Ralphes, who were the primary songwriters. Apart from the two founder members, the group also consisted of Paul Sirett , Chris Baker and Roger Askew...
which led to them getting signed by German label, Massacre Records
Massacre Records
Massacre Records is an independent record label based in Abstatt, Germany.The label was founded in 1991 by Torsten Hartmann. The label is specialized on bands of the harder varieties of metal...
. Simon played keyboards on their first album “Sin to Skin” which was released in 1998. Catalogue Number MAS CD0152.
In November 1998 Simon released his first solo CD – “My World” in which he played all the instruments. The album featured his own material and was a mixture of songs and instrumentals including his competition entries. Label: Bugjam Music. Catalogue No. BUGCD001.
Also in November 1998 Simon won a place in the finals of Guitarist Magazine’s Guitarist of the Year competition. The final took place at Wembley Exhibition Centre and this time Simon won. An interview on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
’s Central News followed along with several newspaper articles and a feature in Guitarist magazine which included a track on the cover CD.
In January 1999 Simon performed an acoustic version of his song "Hunted" on the Jenny Wilkes afternoon show on BBC Radio WM. Jenny interviewed him about winning Guitarist of the Year, his new album My World and his One Man Rock Show.
In April 2000 Simon formed rock band Lost Souls with singer Lee Small.
A four song demo was recorded at Mad Hat Studio in Walsall
Walsall
Walsall is a large industrial town in the West Midlands of England. It is located northwest of Birmingham and east of Wolverhampton. Historically a part of Staffordshire, Walsall is a component area of the West Midlands conurbation and part of the Black Country.Walsall is the administrative...
, produced by Mark Stuart
Mark Stuart
Mark Stuart is the name of:*Mark Stuart , ice hockey player in the National Hockey League*Mark Stuart , lead singer of Christian rock band Audio Adrenaline...
. Having played their debut gig at JBs Dudley, Simon left the band in August 2000.
In September 2000 Simon joined Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne
John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne is an English vocalist, whose musical career has spanned over 40 years. Osbourne rose to prominence as lead singer of the pioneering English heavy metal band Black Sabbath, whose radically different, intentionally dark, harder sound helped spawn the heavy metal...
tribute band
Tribute band
A tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act - sometimes one which has disbanded, ceased touring or is deceased. Probably the largest class of tributes acts are Elvis impersonators, individual performers who mimic the songs and style...
Ozzmosis
Ozzmosis
-Personnel:Musicians*Ozzy Osbourne – vocals*Zakk Wylde – guitar*Geezer Butler – bass*Deen Castronovo – drums*Rick Wakeman – keyboardsAdditional personnel*Michael Beinhorn – production, keyboards...
.
In November 2000 Simon appeared on ITV’s Stars in Their Eyes
Stars In Their Eyes
Stars in Their Eyes is a British television talent show that ran on Saturdays nights from 21 July 1990 until 23 December 2006 in which contestants impersonate showbiz stars...
. He sang Aerosmith
Aerosmith
Aerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”. He was beaten by Nicola Kirsch who went on to win the series.
In December 2000 Simon won a sponsorship deal with Black Dog Distribution, Whittlesey
Whittlesey
Whittlesey, historically known as Whittlesea as the name of the railway station is still spelt, or Witesie, is an ancient Fenland market town around six miles east of Peterborough in the county of Cambridgeshire in England...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, and worked as a demonstrator for Palm Bay Guitars and Snarling Dogs effects pedals.
In 2001 Simon produced a three track demo for Ozzmosis and the band gigged in the West Midlands area.
In 2002 Simon was asked to test and review a revolutionary new guitar amplifier
Guitar amplifier
A guitar amplifier is an electronic amplifier designed to make the signal of an electric or acoustic guitar louder so that it will produce sound through a loudspeaker...
designed by Kidderminster
Kidderminster
Kidderminster is a town, in the Wyre Forest district of Worcestershire, England. It is located approximately seventeen miles south-west of Birmingham city centre and approximately fifteen miles north of Worcester city centre. The 2001 census recorded a population of 55,182 in the town...
based company Blue Tone.
In August 2002 Simon left Ozzmosis for financial reasons.
In 2003 Simon was asked to record two new songs for former Judas Priest
Judas Priest
Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
singer Al Atkins
Al Atkins
Alan John "Al" Atkins is an English heavy metal vocalist, perhaps best known for his association with Judas Priest...
’ remastered solo album “Heavy Thoughts”. These were Cradle to the Grave and Sentenced. The remastered version of the album was released in 2006 on the Market Square
Market Square Records
Market Square Records is a music publishing, promotion and record label company started in 1999. It releases the back catalogues of British folk artists and has also expanded into other genres such as rock, blues and jazz....
record label, catalogue number MSMCD120.
In February 2003 Simon was asked to join Welsh classic rock band Budgie
Budgie (band)
Budgie is a Welsh Hard Rock/Heavy Metal band from Cardiff. They are widely considered as one of the first heavy metal bands and a seminal influence to many acts of that scene, with fast, heavy rock being played as early as 1971. The band has been noted as "among the heaviest metal of its day"...
. In September that year he recorded seven songs with the band which would later appear as bonus tracks on four of Budgie’s Remastered albums; Budgie, Sqwawk, Never Turn Your Back on a Friend and In For the Kill. These albums were released on the Noteworthy Productions label, catalogue numbers; NP2, NP3, NP4, NP5, NP6 respectively.
In August 2003 Simon released his second solo album “Freethinka”. Label: Bugjam Music. Catalogue No. BUGCD002. As with My World, the album features a mixture of songs and instrumentals in which Simon plays all the instruments himself. A tracks from the album entitled 2 B Frank was featured on Guitarist Magazine’s cover CD.
In 2004 Simon recorded guitar solos for an album by Neil Murray
Neil Murray
Neil Murray may refer to:*Neil Murray , British musician who has played bass for a number of notable rock bands*Neil Murray , Australian singer/songwriter who has worked solo and as a member of the Warumpi Band...
from The Hamptons. The album was called Krankschaft – Der Varterlands, described by Neil as a “piss take heavy metal album”. Released on The Longmede Label, Catalogue No. LLCD012. http://www.hamptons.org.uk/krankschaft_history.htm
In 2004 and 2005 Simon recorded guitar parts for Al Atkins’ solo album “Demon Deceiver” which also featured Diamond Head’s Brian Tatler
Brian Tatler
Brian Tatler is an English musician, best known as the guitarist and co-founder of the Stourbridge based heavy metal band, Diamond Head.-Formation:...
and South African guitarist Mike de Jager. Simon also wrote the title track. The album was recorded at Mad Hat Studio near Wolverhampton and produced by Mark Stuart the album was released in 2007 on the Diesel and Glory label, catalogue number; DG003. Simon featured in the promo video for one of the album tracks “Victim of Changes” filmed by Mike de Jager at JB’s Dudley in 2005.
In 2005 Simon produced a guitar tuition DVD to demonstrate and teach his unique method of learning the guitar’s fretboard. The double disc DVD was called “Signpost to the Fretboard” and was filmed and edited by Mike de Jager.
In 2006 Simon wrote a series of tuition articles for internet magazine "All Out Guitar". The articles covered the subject of improvisation with pentatonic scale
Pentatonic scale
A pentatonic scale is a musical scale with five notes per octave in contrast to a heptatonic scale such as the major scale and minor scale...
s using the CAGED system.
In 2006 Simon was interviewed by John Ogden for Wolverhampton newspaper the Express and Star. The interview was largely biographical and was given a full page in the newspaper. As a result of this Simon was interviewed live on Jimmy Franks’ show on BBC Radio WM.
During 2005 and 2006 Simon co-wrote and recorded the Budgie album You're All Living in Cuckooland
You're All Living in Cuckooland
You're All Living In Cuckooland is Budgie's eleventh album. Released in November 2006, it is their first official studio album in 24 years...
with bassist and singer Burke Shelley
Burke Shelley
Burke Shelley is the bass guitarist and vocalist of the Welsh rock group Budgie.In 1982 Shelley was reported to be a born again Christian....
at his studio in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
.
The album was produced by Burke Shelley and released in November 2006 on the Noteworthy Productions label, catalogue number NP15. Also in 2006 Simon played classical guitar on a track from the Remastered Budgie album "If I Were Britannia, I'd Break the Rules". The track was Black Velvet Stallion (2006 Version). Label: Noteworthy Productions, catalogue number NP7. Simon was not credited on the album.
Having played 115 gigs consisting of four UK tours and nineteen shows spread across five countries outside the UK, Simon left Budgie on 4 July 2007, three months before the band were due to play a three date Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n tour. Simon was later replaced by Dio
Dio (band)
Dio was an American heavy metal band from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Formed in 1982 and led by vocalist Ronnie James Dio, after he left Black Sabbath with intentions to form a new band with fellow former Black Sabbath member, drummer Vinny Appice. Naming the band Dio made sense from a commercial...
guitarist Craig Goldy
Craig Goldy
Craig Goldy is an American guitarist, mostly notably of the band Dio.Before Dio, he played in the bands Vengeance, Rough Cutt, and Giuffria. He replaced Jake E. Lee in Rough Cutt and was himself replaced by Amir Derakh in this group. Prior to joining Rough Cutt, he had played in the band Vengeance...
and in February 2008 Budgie completed a five date Australian tour.
In April 2007 Simon performed as the character Pop in the musical We Will Rock You
We Will Rock You
"We Will Rock You" is a song written by Brian May and recorded and performed by Queen for their 1977 album News of the World. Rolling Stone ranked it #330 of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and the RIAA placed it at #146 on its list of Songs of the Century...
at the Grand Theatre in Wolverhampton. Shout Productions produced the show and it managed three sold out performances during Easter weekend. This was the first time the show had ever been performed outside London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
’s West End
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...
.
Also in April 2007, Simon performed “Rockin' All Over the World
Rockin' All Over The World
Rockin' All Over the World is the tenth studio album by the British band Status Quo, released 1977. It is the first of their records to be produced by Pip Williams. It was released in November 1977, and reached #5....
” at Wolverhampton’s Molineux Stadium
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
just before kick off between Wolves and Birmingham City.
In 2007 Simon formed rock band Anubis with bassist Pete Williamson, singer Sarah Co'Burn and former Budgie guitarist Andy Hart. Their self-produced debut album Sibuna was released in January 2008. Sibuna was mastered by Paul Cobbold.
Simon co-wrote, co-produced and mastered Anubis’ follow up EP Avatar which was released in November 2008.
In June 2009 Simon performed his first One Man Rock Show outside the UK at the Kulttuurikeskus Kaisain, Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
.
During the latter half of 2009 Simon produced Anubis’ second album Waking the Dead which was released in March 2010.
In February 2010 Simon recorded a three hour radio programme called The Pharaoh Rock Show which was broadcast at Easter on EKR internet radio
Internet radio
Internet radio is an audio service transmitted via the Internet...
. http://www.ekr.net/?p=&s=The%20EKR%20Team
In September 2010 Simon produced Anubis’ third album, Anubis Live which had been recorded at their gig at the Sonic Rock Solstice festival in June 2010.
External links
- His personal website
- http://www.onemanrockshow.com/
- http://www.guitartuition.co.uk/
- http://www.simonlees.co.uk/