Classic hard rock guitarist Jake E. Lee provided squealing metal solos for Ozzy Osbourne in the 1980s, indulging in blues jams with Badlands in the '90s, but took a long hiatus from the music industry before finally returning with new outfit Red Dragon Cartel in 2013.
Growing up in San Diego, Lee was first sent for piano lessons at six-years-old but soon got hold of his sister's guitar and started falling in love with 1960s greats such as Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and Cream. As the hair metal scene took off, Lee played with decadent Sunset Strip favourites Ratt and Rough Cutt, before helping Ozzy to create his classic, million-selling solo albums 'Bark at the Moon' in 1983 and 'The Ultimate Sin' in 1986. He was unceremoniously fired and went on to form Badlands and release two successful albums of grunting, bluesy, metal before the death of the band's front man Ray Gillen.
Lee flitted from different projects, released low-key solo records and worked as a touring guitarist in tribute bands, but disappeared from sight in the mid-1990s amid rumours and speculation about the reasons for his disappearance. The truth was he simply needed a break from the industry, but with the help of bass player Ronnie Mancuso, Lee started working through a decade's worth of rough, musical ideas at a studio in Las Vegas. They used a variety of musicians and singers to complete the songs, but despite the disjointed process, the self-titled debut album 'Red Dragon Cartel' in 2014 was seen as a triumphant return for Lee and his brand of classic, good-time, glam metal anthems. With bassist Anthony Esposito from Lynch Mob, singer Darren James Smith and drummer Phil Varone, second album 'Patina' in 2018 was made in a much more traditional jam band fashion, and was recorded with Ozzy Osbourne's producer Max Norman, who Lee had last worked with 25 years previously.
