HAZLEWOODIZM: Incurable Lee

Lee Hazlewood spent most of his adult life in a psychiatric hospital.  “Haze” (as his fellow inmates called him) couldn’t sing or play any instruments, but was convinced that he could become a pop star.  He befriended Duane Eddy, a young hospital orderly who played guitar to entertain the patients.  Hazlewood made up band names and song titles in exchange for cigarettes. 

Duane Eddy’s success in the music business made Hazlewood bitterly jealous. He began writing songs day and night, and insisted on making a record.  Duane got Hazlewood a recording contract on the advice of the staff psychiatrist, who thought it might cure Hazlewood of his monomania.

To everyone’s surprise, Hazlewood’s debut wasn’t a complete disaster.  Haze escalated his demands.  He was obsessed with the original “Brat Pack” – Sinatra’s daughter Nancy, and the sons of Dean Martin and Desi Arnaz.  He wanted them to record his songs.  His original lyrics read like a confession (or a threat):

These boots are made for stalking

And that’s just what I’ll do

One of these days, the cops 

Are gonna catch me stalking you

ARE YOU READY, NANCY?  BETTER START RUNNING!

Nancy Sinatra never met Lee Hazlewood -- their duets were recorded separately.  She had a restraining order against him, and was terrified that he would one day escape or be granted release from the psych hospital.

Hazlewood’s next demand was to make a record with Ann Margret.  Hospital administrators were improperly swayed by the possibility of meeting the popular sex symbol.  But she was almost as delusional as Hazlewood about her own singing ability, and the pairing was a flop.

Hazlewood’s treatment team decided to invent a fake duet partner for their patient. This too backfired.  The album Requiem For An Almost Lady was written after Haze discovered that “Suzi Jane Hokom” was pure hokum.   Heartbroken and betrayed, Hazlewood spiraled into a deep depression.

A series of LSD treatments finally relieved his depression, and Haze found a new obsession.  This time it wasn’t a celebrity: it was an entire country.  And now he wanted to make movies as well as albums.  Hazlewood never actually visited Sweden.  Everything was done on a soundstage, constructed by hospital staff for their famous patient.  Everyone had to wear costumes and pretend to speak Swedish.  The ruse was abandoned after the record buying public lost interest.  

Hazlewood’s later albums are rare because “Lee Hazlewood Industries” was a vanity label that existed only to press small quantities of Haze’s music during his declining years.  Lee Hazlewood was one of the first “outsider” artists in pop music. He belongs to the tradition of Wild Man Fischer, Daniel Johnston, and Wesley Willis.