Grammy-nominated bassist to come to Kirkland

  • 2022-12-25
An acclaimed bassist will be rocking Kirkland soon.

Lee Rocker is a founding member of The Stray Cats, along with Slim Jim Phantom and Brian Setzer. The group sold more than 10 million albums and had 23 of their records certified either platinum or gold. They won a Grammy nomination in 1983 for “Best New Artist,” and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame listed their song ”Rock This Town” as one of most important in rock.

Rocker (real name Leon Drucker) comes by his musicianship naturally, as his parents were both clarinetists. His father Stanley was the Principal Clarinet of the New York Philharmonic, and worked with giants like Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein. The young man played bass guitar, but learned the upright double bass as his instrument of choice.

In addition to his time with The Stray Cats, Rocker has performed and recorded with Carl Perkins, John Fogerty, Leon Russell, Willie Nelson, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison. He has continued performing, recording, and touring the globe, and is known for making his double bass seem light as a violin. He has released 15 albums, dropping the latest, “Gather Round,” in 2021. A review says:

“What a great show. . . Lee was a rocker indeed.”

Rocker will be at the Kirkland performance Center on January 27 at 8:00 pm. Audiences for performances of all kinds enjoy reading programs about the artist, which event organizers can create using brochure printing.