Before Pitchfork, Complex, Fader, and even Spin, there was Lee Hildebrand. The Bay Area music writer has covered jazz, R&B and blues music for nigh on four decades at nearly every paper one can name, including the East Bay Express, which he helped found in 1978.
Now, the veteran writer is beset with health issues, and the musicians who he gave so much support to over the years give back with a jam-packed May 24 benefit fundraiser. Musicians include former Tower of Power vocalist Lenny Williams, jazz saxophone stalwart John Handy, Oakland legend Sugar Pie DeSanto, fusion drummer Norman Connors, local treasure Faye Carol, guitarist Calvin Keys and many others.
It’s all to raise funds for Hildebrand, who suffered a stroke late last year and can reportedly no longer write to earn a living. The celebration gets underway on Thursday, May 24, at Geoffrey’s Inner Circle in Oakland. Details here.
