Lee Shapiro, Ellensburg, WA, USA.

“My favorite kinds of music is the kind that surprises you. While I enjoy conventional type songs (verse, chorus, verse chorus, bridge, chorus), I prefer songs that take you on an adventure. This includes jam songs (Grateful Dead), and songs with many detours and lots of dynamics (Rickie Lee Jones, Dave Matthews). Although most of my songs tend to fall into some kind of normal verse/chorus formula, I do tend to try and mix things up a bit. Which is why most of my songs last longer than 4 or 5 minutes”.

Lee Shapiro started writing and recording songs in the late 70's using his dad's 2-track reel to reel recorder, an old acoustic guitar, a piano, and later on several synthesizers. As technology progressed, he started using a 4-track cassette recorder, then eventually switched to all digital, using a DAW with unlimited tracks. He've been in several bands that played both original and cover songs, he mostly writes music as a solo effort (less fights that way). Lee stopped writing songs for awhile in the 90's, but by 2010 he was writing again. Between 2012 to the present has seen his most prolific writing period. With currently over 100 songs recorded. He also produces his own CD's, and currently has 8 CD's worth of music, all recorded and packaged professionally. Each CD includes a CD case with an artistic cover, and a booklet with lyrics and background info about the songs.

Have you performed in front of an audience?

“I've played in several bands, including a Grateful Dead cover band, as well as an all original music band. I've played everywhere from high school gymnasiums to backyard parties, to bars and night clubs”.

Your influences?
“I have many musical influences, but the styles of music I like the best come from Rickie Lee Jones, The Counting Crows, Dave Matthews Band, The Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan, and even Thomas Dolby”.

Equipment: “I have a fully equipped professional grade DAW (digital audio workstation), with tons of music software including Cakewalk Sonar, hundreds of VST plugins and virtual instruments, including sampled virtual guitars, organs, pianos, drums, brass, all (played) controlled by an 88-key touch sensitive, weighted MIDI keyboard. I also own two electric guitars, a professional grade vocal microphone, MIDI/Audio interface, and other various MIDI equipment”.

Anything else?
“While I consider myself a pretty good songwriter, in fact, at times close to brilliant (IMHO), my weakest link is my voice. I consider it a cruel irony that I was blessed with such great musical talent of being able to write beautiful songs, only to be stopped short by a less than stellar voice. I've been compared vocally with Bob Dylan and Tom Petty among others. To that end, several of my songs I've enlisted the help of talented female vocalists, which I plan to do some more of in the future”.