Lee Hazlewood (born Barton Lee Hazlewood[1] July 9, 1929 – August 4, 2007) was an American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer, most widely known for his work with guitarist Duane Eddy during the late fifties and singer Nancy Sinatra in the sixties.[2]
Hazlewood had a distinctive baritone voice that added an ominous resonance to his music. Hazlewood's collaborations with Nancy Sinatra as well as his solo output in the late 1960s and early 1970s have been praised as an essential contribution to a sound often described as "Cowboy Psychedelia" or "Saccharine Underground".[3]
The son of an oil man, Hazlewood was born in Mannford, Oklahoma[1] and spent most of youth living between Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, and Louisiana. He grew up listening to pop and bluegrass music. [4] Hazlewood spent his teenage years in Port Neches, Texas where he was exposed to a rich Gulf Coast music tradition. Hazlewood studied for a medical degree at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.[1] He served with the United States Army during the Korean War.[1] "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" is a pop song composed by Lee Hazlewood and first.