One of the most interesting second-division California psychedelic musicians, keyboardist
was one of the most soulful white vocalists of the late '60s and early '70s. Between 1968 and 1972, he released half a dozen accomplished albums on A&M that encompassed baroque psychedelic pop and gritty white (sometimes gospel-ish) R&B with equal facility. A capable songwriter,
was blessed with an astonishing upper range, occasionally letting loose some thrilling funky wails. In 1971, he landed a surprise Top Ten single with "Do You Know What I Mean," one of the best and funkiest AM hits of the early '70s.
But
Michaels was really much more of an album-oriented artist, from the time he began recording in the late '60s.
Michaels started playing music in Southern California, where he was in a band with future members of
Moby Grape,
the Turtles, and
Canned Heat. By the time he signed to A&M, however, he'd moved to San Francisco, joining the management stable of
Matthew Katz (which also included, at various times,
Jefferson Airplane,
Moby Grape, and
It's a Beautiful Day).
Michaels was unusual for a San Francisco act in that he relied mostly on an organ-based sound, especially after the first pair of albums, when for a time he played (live and in the studio) with the mammoth drummer "Frosty" as his only accompanist.
"Do You Know What I Mean," ironically, was a throwaway tune that
Michaels wrote hurriedly. Though
Lee himself didn't think much of it, the song was a first-rate blast of blue-eyed soul; around this time, the gospel influence that had often informed his sound came to the fore. His albums in the mid-'70s for Columbia, however, were both critical and commercial disappointments.
Michaels moved to Hawaii for an extended retirement from the music business. In the early '80s he announced the forthcoming independent release of a new solo album entitled Absolute Lee, which finally saw distribution through One Way Records in 1996; however, little has been heard from him since.
–
Richie Unterberger, Rovi