View source for Jake E. Lee

{{Short description|American guitarist (born 1957)}}
{{about|the guitarist|people with the same name|Jake Lee (disambiguation)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2025}}
{{BLP sources|date=November 2025}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Jake E. Lee
| image             = Jake E. Lee in 2014.jpg
| caption           = Lee performing in 2014
| birth_name        = Jakey Lou Williams
| birth_date        = {{Birth date and age|1957|2|15}}
| birth_place       = [[Norfolk, Virginia]], U.S.
| instrument        = Guitar<!--- If you think an instrument should be listed, a discussion to reach consensus is needed first per: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Infobox_musical_artist#instrument--->
| death_date        =
| death_place       =
| genre             = {{flatlist|
* [[Heavy metal music|Heavy metal]]
* [[glam metal]]
* [[hard rock]]
* [[blues rock]]
}}
| occupation        = Musician
| years_active      = 1980–present
| past_member_of    = {{flatlist|
*[[Ratt]]
*[[Ozzy Osbourne]]
*[[Badlands (American band)|Badlands]]
}}
| associated_acts   = Teaser, Child, [[Ratt|Mickey Ratt]], [[Rough Cutt]], [[Ozzy Osbourne]], [[Badlands (American band)|Badlands]], Wicked Alliance, [[Enuff Z'nuff]], [[Beggars & Thieves]], [[Red Dragon Cartel]], [[Dio (band)|Dio]]
| website           =
}}

'''Jake E. Lee''' (born '''Jakey Lou Williams'''; February 15, 1957) is an American musician best known as lead guitarist for [[Ozzy Osbourne]] between 1982 and 1987 and later as a member of the heavy metal band [[Badlands (American band)|Badlands]] with [[Ray Gillen]]. He formed the band Red Dragon Cartel in 2013, and their debut album released in January 2014 entered the [[Billboard Album Chart]] at number 69.<ref>{{cite web|title=Red Dragon Cartel – Awards – Billboard Albums|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/red-dragon-cartel-mw0002591641/awards|website=AllMusic|access-date=November 29, 2014}}</ref> He has also recorded solo works under his own name—examples being the instrumental album ''[[A Fine Pink Mist]]'' (1996) and cover album ''[[Retraced]]'' (2005).

==Career==
===Early career===
In San Diego, Lee formed a band called Teaser, named after [[Tommy Bolin]]'s debut solo album. Teaser would become the house band at a San Diego all-ages club called Straita Head Sound. In 1980, Lee joined a local heavy metal band called Mickey Ratt, who soon shortened their name to [[Ratt]] and relocated to the [[Sunset Strip]] of Los Angeles. They released the single "Dr. Rock"/"Drivin on E," which was given away for free to fans at their live shows. The song "Tell the World" was included on the original pressing of the first ''[[Metal Massacre]]'' compilation album in 1982, a highly influential album which also featured the first recording from [[Metallica]].

Not long after arriving in Los Angeles, Lee left Ratt to join a glam metal band called Sexist, reuniting with childhood friend and fellow guitarist Doug Pittam. Approximately eight months later, Lee received an offer to join [[Rough Cutt]] after being recommended by drummer and former Ratt bandmate [[Dave Alford]] in late 1982.

Former [[Black Sabbath]] vocalist [[Ronnie James Dio]] was putting together a [[Dio (band)|solo project]] with [[Jimmy Bain]] and [[Vinny Appice]] and was impressed with Lee after seeing a Rough Cutt show in Los Angeles, and invited the guitarist to join. Though Lee had believed Rough Cutt's future was promising, he felt the offer to join Dio was too good to pass up, though his time in the band would ultimately be short-lived. According to Appice, there were rehearsals with Lee, and recordings of those rehearsals still exist, but nothing more came from this first version of the band. Lee claims that Dio wanted him to play "simple [[block chords]] that wouldn't trample on his vocals" and cited creative differences for the split.

===Ozzy Osbourne===
When [[Ozzy Osbourne]] sought a replacement for guitarist [[Brad Gillis]], Los Angeles bassist [[Dana Strum]] recommended Lee for the job. After auditioning, Osbourne was torn between Lee and [[Dokken]] guitarist [[George Lynch (musician)|George Lynch]]. Osbourne initially chose Lynch, but quickly changed his mind. Upon telling Lee he had the job, he then informed the guitarist that he had to tell Lynch he was fired.

With bassist [[Bob Daisley]], Lee subsequently began composing music and recording the 1983 album ''[[Bark at the Moon]]''. The songs "[[Bark at the Moon|So Tired]]" and "[[Bark at the Moon (song)|Bark at the Moon]]" were released as singles, with accompanying [[Music video|videos]], and they received regular [[airplay (song)|airplay]] on [[MTV]] and radio. To date, the album has sold three million copies in the U.S.<ref>{{cite web|title=''Billboard'' album chart history-Ozzy Osbourne|url={{BillboardURLbyName|artist=ozzy osbourne|chart=all}}|access-date=February 15, 2009}}</ref> Though Lee had composed a significant amount of the album's music, he was allegedly cheated out of his writing and publishing claims by Osbourne's wife and manager, [[Sharon Osbourne|Sharon]]. Lee claims that after he had composed the songs and completed recording his parts in the studio, he was presented with a contract which stated that he would have no claim to any writing or publishing relating to the album. The contract also stated that Lee could not speak publicly about the matter. He claims he signed the contract because he had no legal representation and because Sharon threatened to fire him and have another guitarist re-record his parts if he refused.<ref name=credit>{{cite web|title=Jake E. Lee: Why I Gave Up Songwriting Credit for Ozzy Osbourne's 'Bark at the Moon'|url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/jake-e-lee-why-i-gave-up-songwriting-credit-for-ozzy-osbournes-bark-at-the-moon/|publisher=[[Blabbermouth.net]]|access-date=December 14, 2014|date=December 10, 2014}}</ref>

Osbourne left the [[Betty Ford Center]] in 1985 where he had received treatment for substance abuse, and upon his return, Lee presented him with the music he had written. Osbourne was purportedly very satisfied with the quantity and quality of Lee's new music, much of which would be used for the 1986 album ''[[The Ultimate Sin]]''. This time, however, Lee refused to contribute anything until he had a contract guaranteeing his writing credit and publishing rights.<ref name=credit /> The album was awarded platinum status in May 1986 and was awarded double platinum status in October 1994.<ref name=RIAA>{{cite web|title=RIAA Gold & Platinum database| website=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] |url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=ultimate%20sin&artist=ozzy%20osbourne&format=&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2009&sort=Artist&perPage=25|access-date=February 15, 2009}}</ref> Lee and Osbourne once again toured extensively, this time with [[Phil Soussan]] on bass, [[John Sinclair (musician)|John Sinclair]] on keyboards and [[Randy Castillo]] on drums. In [[Kansas City, Missouri]] on April 1, 1986, a concert was filmed which would be released later that year as the home video ''The Ultimate Ozzy''.

In 1987, after touring with Ozzy Osbourne in support of the album ''The Ultimate Sin'', Lee was fired suddenly via telephone by [[Sharon Osbourne]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/jake-e-lee-says-he-found-out-he-was-fired-from-ozzy-osbournes-band-from-his-guitar-tech|title = JAKE e. LEE Says He Found Out He Was Fired from OZZY OSBOURNE's Band from His Guitar Tech|date = October 26, 2018}}</ref> Lee was caught off guard by the firing, having been under the impression that he had a solid working relationship with Ozzy. Regarding Lee's firing, Osbourne has said that he had no personal issues with the guitarist whatsoever, but claimed that the dismissal happened after drummer Randy Castillo "began to turn against" Lee. Lee himself has said that bassist Phil Soussan was trying to convince Osbourne to let him be the band's primary songwriter while also discouraging him from using Lee's material, and that Soussan was "partly instrumental in getting me fired".<ref>{{cite web |title=Ozzy on Why He Turned on Jake E. Lee + Dana Strum, Randy Rhoads, Black Sabbath at Live Aid -2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2jsc-KprKI |website=youtube | date=September 23, 2022 |publisher=Full In Bloom |access-date=December 16, 2022}}</ref>

While appearing on ''That Metal Show'' on [[MTV Classic (U.S. TV network)|VH1 Classic]], Jake E. Lee claimed he wrote "Bark at the Moon" for which Ozzy Osbourne claimed credit, along with the rest of that album.  Lee and Daisley were properly credited for their writing on ''[[The Ultimate Sin]]'' album.

===Badlands===
After being fired from Ozzy's band, Lee formed the blues-based hard rock band [[Badlands (American band)|Badlands]] with vocalist [[Ray Gillen]] in 1988. Badlands consisted of Lee, Gillen, drummer [[Eric Singer]], and bassist [[Greg Chaisson]]. The band released their self-titled debut album in 1989. In 1991, Singer left Badlands to join [[Kiss (band)|KISS]] following the death of longtime drummer [[Eric Carr]]. Badlands then released the follow-up album ''[[Voodoo Highway]]''. During a tour between that album and the upcoming third album they were ready to begin recording, Gillen left the band and was briefly replaced by [[John West (musician)|John West]]. Gillen later died of AIDS-related complications in 1993. In 1998, ''[[Dusk (Badlands album)|Dusk]]'', the final Badlands album consisting of unreleased live in-studio 24-track demos was released in Japan; a European release followed in 2000.

Following the demise of Badlands, Lee opted for a radical musical departure and teamed with World War III vocalist Mandy Lion in a new band called Wicked Alliance. The initial line-up also featured future [[Korn]] drummer [[Ray Luzier]] and bassist Jimmy Bain who was replaced with [[Brian Perry (musician)|Brian Perry]], formerly of [[Dirty Looks (Pennsylvania band)|Dirty Looks]] and [[Lizzy Borden (band)|Lizzy Borden]], in time for the band's one and only U.S. tour in early 1994.  The band also cut a three-song demo with Joe Floyd of [[Warrior (band)|Warrior]] at Silver Cloud Studios in [[Burbank, CA]]. The songs recorded were "The Rust", "Kiss This", and "World Gone Wild", the latter of which Lion had previously performed with a late 1980s line-up of World War III.  Another song the band worked on was "Blood Provider", based on Badlands' "Sun Red Sun", which later surfaced on the posthumous ''Dusk'' album in 1998.  In 1996, Lee released an instrumental solo album titled ''[[A Fine Pink Mist]]'' on the [[Pony Canyon]] label in Japan with the intention of also releasing the Wicked Alliance album through the same company. However, Lee and Lion never finished the album and no tracks from it have surfaced to date.

Throughout most of the 1990s and into the new millennium, Lee kept a relatively low profile. He has most notably appeared on musical tributes to [[Queen (band)|Queen]], [[AC/DC]], [[Rush (band)|Rush]], [[Van Halen]], [[Randy Rhoads]], and [[Metallic Assault: A Tribute to Metallica|Metallica]]. Lee also briefly joined Bourgeois Pigs with [[Shark Island (band)|Shark Island]] vocalist Richard Black, guitarist Michael Guy, and bassist [[Tony Franklin (musician)|Tony Franklin]]. One demo from the Bourgeois Pigs sessions emerged on the Union 4 compilation in 2001 called "Calamities of Vanity". In 2000, Lee played lead guitar on two tracks from [[Rob Rock]]'s ''[[Rage of Creation]]'' album. In 2005, Lee released his first album in eight years entitled [[Retraced]], which consisted of blues covers from the 1960s and 1970s. Lee was briefly in a three-piece band called 3 Day Crush.

In 2011, Jake appeared in the video, along with [[Ron Keel]], [[Blas Elias]], [[Sunset Thomas]] and [[Paul Shortino]], for the song "We Come Undone" by the band [[Beggars & Thieves]]. The song is from their new CD ''We Are the Brokenhearted'' and Jake is featured performing the guitar solo. The following captions appear on the screen during Jake's appearance: "Jake E. Lee is alive and well, living in Las Vegas" and "He would just rather play with Beggars & Thieves than deal with shady promoters and play Bark at the Moon 750 more times".

In 2012, Lee had a cameo in ''[[That Metal Show]]''{{'}}s "That Metal Special" in [[Las Vegas Valley|Las Vegas]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vh1.com/shows/that_metal_show/episode.jhtml?episodeID=201830#moreinfo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703053201/http://www.vh1.com/shows/that_metal_show/episode.jhtml?episodeID=201830#moreinfo|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 3, 2014|title=Ep. 1109 – That Metal Special – That Metal Show – Episode Summary, Highlights, and Recaps – VH1.com|access-date=September 18, 2014}}</ref> and was a guest on the [[That Metal Show#Episodes|fourth episode of the 12th season]] of the show<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vh1.com/video/that-metal-show/full-episodes/jake-e-lee-rick-allen/1709444/playlist.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628020110/http://www.vh1.com/video/that-metal-show/full-episodes/jake-e-lee-rick-allen/1709444/playlist.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 28, 2013|title="Jake E. Lee & Rick Allen" ( Ep. 1204 ) from That Metal Show – Full Episode – VH1.com|work=vh1.com|access-date=September 18, 2014}}</ref> as well as guest guitarist on the eighth and ninth episodes of the same season.

===Red Dragon Cartel===
In 2013, Lee formed a new band called Red Dragon Cartel. Their self-titled debut album was released in 2014. A second album, ''Patina'', followed in 2018.

==Personal life==
In 2024, ex-Badlands bassist Greg Chaisson said that Lee was suffering from [[carpal tunnel syndrome]] in his right wrist and was awaiting to have surgery, which explains why Lee had not played live since 2019.<ref>{{cite web|title=This Is Why Jake E. Lee Has Been Inactive for a While, His Ex-Bandmate Reveals: 'It Affects the Way He Plays'|url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/this_is_why_jake_e_lee_has_been_inactive_for_a_while_his_ex-bandmate_reveals_it_affects_the_way_he_plays.html|publisher=[[Ultimate Guitar]]|access-date=July 24, 2024|date=July 19, 2024}}</ref> However, in a later interview, Lee stated the surgeon clarified he did not actually have carpal tunnel syndrome, and he was now receiving cortisone shots as he no longer had any cartilage remaining in his right hand.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Blabbermouth |date=October 9, 2024 |title=JAKE E. LEE Offers Health Update, Says He Is Playing Guitar Again And Wants To Go On Tour |url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/jake-e-lee-offers-health-update-says-he-is-playing-guitar-again-and-wants-to-go-on-tour |access-date=October 16, 2024 |website=BLABBERMOUTH.NET |language=en}}</ref>

On October 15, 2024, Lee was shot multiple times while walking his dog early in the morning in Las Vegas and survived in an incident that authorities believe to be "completely random".<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 15, 2024 |title=Former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Jake E. Lee shot multiple times in Las Vegas |url=https://apnews.com/article/jake-e-lee-shooting-las-vegas-0b8693b456dd36cef956c652012b471e |access-date=October 16, 2024 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rosenbloom |first=Alli |date=October 15, 2024 |title=Jake E. Lee, former Ozzy Osbourne guitarist, expected to 'fully recover' after being shot 'multiple times' |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/15/entertainment/guitarist-jake-e-lee-shooting-las-vegas/index.html |access-date=October 16, 2024 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> In detailed social media updates made in late October through November, Lee explained that he confronted a group of masked men attempting to steal his neighbor's motorcycle. After failing to deter them, they opened fire on Lee and fled the scene. Police were called by another neighbor who heard the shots. Lee was then rushed to [[Sunrise Hospital & Medical Center]] and placed in their intensive care unit. Despite being shot multiple times, none of his wounds were life-threatening.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 29, 2024 |title=JAKE E. LEE Offers More Details About Shooting That Left Him With Multiple Bullet Wounds |url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/jake-e-lee-offers-more-details-about-shooting-that-left-him-with-multiple-bullet-wounds |access-date=December 18, 2024 |website=Blabbermouth.net |language=en}}</ref>

==Discography==

===With Rough Cutt===
* Songs "A Little Kindness" and "Used and Abused" (1981)

===With Ozzy Osbourne===
* ''[[Bark at the Moon]]'' (1983)
* ''[[The Ultimate Sin]]'' (1986)

===With Badlands===
* ''[[Badlands (Badlands album)|Badlands]]'' (1989)
* ''[[Voodoo Highway]]'' (1991)
* ''[[Dusk (Badlands album)|Dusk]]'' (1998)

===With Wicked Alliance===
* Twisted Beauty Demo (recorded 1994)

===Solo===
*''[[A Fine Pink Mist]]'' (1996, Pony Canyon Records)
*''[[Retraced]]'' (2005, [[Shrapnel Records]])
*''Runnin' with the Devil'' (2008, [[Cleopatra Records]], a collection of tribute albums appearances)

===With Mickey Ratt===
* ''[[The Garage Tape Dayz 78-81]]'' (2000)

===With Enuff Z'Nuff===
*''[[Dissonance (album)|Dissonance]]'' (2009)

===With Red Dragon Cartel===
*''Red Dragon Cartel'' (2014)
*''Patina'' (2018)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Facebook|id=reddragoncartel}}
* {{Discogs artist}}
* [https://www.frontiers.it/artist/1844 Red Dragon Cartel] at Frontiers Music
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20241014213707/http://reddragoncartel.com/ Red Dragon Cartel official site] (archived)

{{Ozzy Osbourne}}
{{Badlands}}
{{Rough Cutt}}
{{Rob Rock}}
{{Ratt}}
{{Dio}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Jake E}}
[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:20th-century American musicians]]
[[Category:21st-century American musicians]]
[[Category:American heavy metal guitarists]]
[[Category:American male guitarists]]
[[Category:American musicians of Japanese descent]]
[[Category:American rock songwriters]]
[[Category:American male songwriters]]
[[Category:Badlands (American band) members]]
[[Category:Dio (band) members]]
[[Category:Glam metal musicians]]
[[Category:American lead guitarists]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Guitarists from Virginia]]
[[Category:Musicians from Norfolk, Virginia]]
[[Category:Ratt members]]
[[Category:Rough Cutt members]]
[[Category:Songwriters from Virginia]]
[[Category:The Ozzy Osbourne Band members]]
[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]
[[Category:American people of Welsh descent]]