Lee Hazlewood, a hard-driving producer, songwriter and singer who was a key player in putting the Phoenix music scene on the national map in the mid-50s, died Saturday evening (Aug. 4) in Henderson, Nev., after a three-year battle with kidney cancer. He was 78.
Hazlewood who was diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2005 just released his final album, ‘Cake or Death’ in 2006. He was survived by his third wife, Jeane, his son Mark and daughters Debbie and Samantha.
Hazelwood is best remembered for his work with Nancy Sinatra, writing the likes of ‘These Boots Are Made For Walkin,’ which was a hit for Sinatra in 1966. He has also produced for Duane Eddy and Gram Parsons, and performed on a number of solo albums and with Nancy Sinatra in three ‘Nancy & Lee’ albums.
Hazlewood lived in Sweden in the 1970s and kept a low profile for many years. His work reached a new generation in the 1990s, when Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley began reissuing his solo albums.
