Enigmatic singer-songwriter Lee Baggett invites listeners into the haze of forgotten memories in his cannabis-inspired mixtape.

 

A true musical wanderer, Lee Baggett's timeless sound weaves a mysterious tapestry of ethereal melodies and introspective lyrics. A constant presence in the underground music scene, Baggett’s latest album Echo Me On delves into new emotional depths, creating an evocative journey where the sun never sets and the songs linger on.

 

 

Heads Lifestyle: Hey, Lee, where are you now?

Lee Baggett: The far south end of Puget Sound.

 

HL: What do you do with your time? 

LB: I horticulture, climb trees, surf, play guitar or piano (when no one is around), draw, feed my worms, and watch British mystery dramas on TV with my family.

 

HL: Do you get high when listening to music? 

LB: The traditional ceremony of a bowl with the vinyl record will always be best.

 

HL: Describe a typical music-weed session?

LB: The answer to the question is in the song selection. This list, by the way, is mostly stuff that blew me away from way back. I do love being at some friend of a friend’s house while travelling, say after a show, and we’re sitting around a hazy room listening to someone’s selection from a nice record collection. That’s the best. I’m taking steps to have that kind of collection, and space for space.

 

HL: What is your earliest memory of connecting the dots between music and cannabis? 

LB: My best friend had two super cool older brothers, who were into taking us to see the movies like The Warriors, going to the fair, playing Led Zeppelin for us (sounding like a swirling wash of colour that I didn’t understand, I didn’t even hear the beat, which is strange because they have the biggest beat in the history of rock), black lights, a giant Wings poster. Then I was hit with three massive torpedoes right before high school: going to see Rush, Van Halen, and Ozzy (with Randy Rhoads), one after another. Cruiser hit and sunk! Not that we totally indulged then but there was something in the air.

 

 

 

 

Allman Brothers Band

In Memory of Elizabeth Reed 

I like the radio. I used to tape-record songs off the radio. Once a week, our local station had midnight records when they played a whole vinyl record non-stop. I had my sister drive me the half-hour into town to pick up some yellow blank cassettes at Tower Records. Of course, there was a little detour to meet our little friend. I got back just in time, flat on my back, completely floored but entirely awake. The emotion and tone of Duane and Dicky’s guitars were so gripping. It set up a new chapter for me.

 

 

Nick Drake

One of These Things First

After playing a show in New England a long time ago with Little Wings, we got a ride back to where we were staying in a black sedan, which got all smoky inside. With the windows down, driving quickly on a winding, empty road under big black trees through the chilly midnight moonlight, this tape was put on. It sounded so good, like quicksilver in my ears, almost too good for my senses to handle. I was afraid of going back to listen to it. I can now, I think.

 

 

Little Wings

Where

I played this song at a gig with Kyle in an elfin-woods kind of place, just winging it. Later, when I got the chords down, I said we should put it on the list. He just looked far away and never said anything. I want to go where this song goes.

 

 

Pink Floyd

Dogs

My brother, his best friend, my best friend, and I were caravanning up for a Tahoe ski trip with a church group. We had the station wagon to ourselves, which filled with a light blue mist. Time on the freeway slowed to another dimension, turned to stone, as the church van pulled alongside us. We smiled and the dogs in the speakers barked in a faraway English countryside.

 

 

Willie Nelson

Time of the Preacher 

I first heard this song while travelling with my buddy Kyle. Looping back from west to east to west across the country, we arrived in Texas with our brand new cowboy boots and a cassette tape of Red Headed Stranger. Slow down, take it way back, we were transformed. It felt good. Under a starry night, we got pulled over by a sheriff way out in the vast no man’s land of West Texas. After looking around and finding nothing incriminating, the sheriff asked if I was still growing. Taken aback, I replied, What?! It was just a couple of plants in my backyard over a decade ago. My punishment was tea and acupuncture once a week for a month or two. I never heard or talked about it until then.

 

 

Rush 

A Passage to Bangkok

The Moving Pictures Tour was my first real concert, and the first time a doobie was passed to me (not sure if I inhaled). Rush became my favourite band for years afterwards, and I still play back the concert in the smoky arena of my skull. 2112 was our key to ascension. Exit Stage Left was the live record from The Moving Pictures Tour. I think A Passage to Bangkok is better than the 2112 one; the guitar solo is a smoker!

 

 

Neil Young

Oh Lonesome Me

After the Goldrush was the only Neil Young record I had for a long time. When I first moved to SLO, I’d come back in the wee hours after running around in the night, and put this on my little record player on the floor of the patio that was my room. It was a little fire in the darkness.

(Editor's Note: Neil hates Spotify and who can blame him. As a result, this tune does not appear on the playlist.)

 

 

B.B. King

How Blue Can You Get?

There’s something so sunny and stony in B.B.’s guitar tone and the way it communicates with a live audience. It’s a trip, like when you come face-to-face with a big animal at the zoo and you’re sure they know way deeper things than you do.

 

 

Sonny Rollins

All The Things You Are

If a serious instrument note can make me laugh, that's a good note, and there are a few somewhere in here, I think.

 

 

 

Bob Dylan

It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) 

Bob is raging full on.

 

 

 

John Hartford

Holding

I first discovered John Hartford at the High Sierra Music Festival when I heard Yonder Mountain String Band play this song on the little mountain stage under the high-elevation sun. Aereo-Plain is the great ‘70s huckleberry riverboat string band album. For the recording, John said they could play anything or any lick, anytime, regardless of whether they knew the song. They were virtuosos, smoking and keeping it loose. It’s a masterpiece!

 

 

BIO

Lee Baggett, also known as Lee Gull, is the enigmatic singer-songwriter from the West Coast who has carved a niche for himself in the indie rock world with his ethereal melodies and introspective lyrics. He's a constant presence in the underground music scene, and at times, serves as a guitarist for Little Wings. Baggett's captivating tunes echo with the warmth of Pacific sunsets and the haze of forgotten memories.

A true musical wanderer, Lee Baggett's elusive persona and timeless sound weave a mysterious tapestry that keeps audiences enthralled, leaving them longing for more. With each note, Baggett's music whispers of a hidden world, where the sun never sets and the melodies linger on, transcending time and space.

On his latest album Echo Me On, Lee delves into new emotional depths, creating an extraordinary musical experience. Backed by a full band, backup singers, and a rich string section perfectly arranged with sympathetic violins and cellos, along with honky-tonk piano and a swelling mid-60s country choir, Baggett's reedy vocals are masterfully accompanied, adding an ethereal quality to his poetic lyrics. Released in December 2023 via Perpetual Doom, the album showcases Baggett's unique artistry, and promises to be an evocative journey into his distinctive sound and a must-listen for discerning music aficionados.

Previous releases, including Just A Minute, Anyway, and Strings Across the Water, his collaborative album with Blind Dead Timmy, are all available via Perpetual Doom. His previous works include the Burn’r albums as Lee Gull and his collaborative album with Graves, titled Lee Gull and The Graves.

Album Info:

On his latest album Echo Me On, Lee Baggett, the enigmatic singer-songwriter, delves into new emotional depths, creating an extraordinary musical experience. Backed by a full band, backup singers, and a rich string section perfectly arranged with sympathetic violins and cellos, along with honky-tonk piano and a swelling mid-60s country choir, Baggett's reedy vocals are masterfully accompanied, adding an ethereal quality to his poetic lyrics. Released in December 2023 via Perpetual Doom, the album showcases Baggett's unique artistry, and promises to be an evocative journey into his distinctive sound and a must-listen for discerning music aficionados.

 

Listen to first single, All Star Day Here 

 

Watch All Star Day Video Here 

 

Order Echo Me On: Official Store or Bandcamp

 

Follow Lee Baggett on Instagram