Lee Hazlewood No. 13 (2-LP Deluxe)

(Light in the Attic) 30 tracks, gatefold cover

"13" was never planned as a Lee Hazlewood album. It is probably the most bizarre record by one of the most versatile artists in music history. Bombastic bass-heavy funk, soulful blues and soul are paired with Hazlewood's super-deep baritone. The album is probably best enjoyed with a large glass of Chivas in a far-off, seedy lounge in Las Vegas.
It contains some of the greatest lyrics Hazlewood ever wrote: "One week in San Francisco, existing on Nabisco, cookies and bad dreams, sad scenes and dodging paranoia."

In 1972, Lee Hazlewood had made himself at home in his new country, Sweden. He spent his days with Torbjörn Axelman, making films with him and releasing new records, all under the significant influence of alcohol. In order not to let his output of records drop, he constantly combed the LHI record archives for material. There he found a precious gem: a previously unreleased album by Larry Marks. LHI was on the decline and Larry Marks' fingerprints were on everything, as he had been an in-house producer: Songwriting, producing, arranging, and even his vocals.

He probably had the biggest influence on the label, steering it in the direction of soul and R&B. He arranged singles by Barbara Rudolph and Jon Christia. Larry's concept was to take Hazlewood's strongest compositions and arrange them with a soul vibe. The album was complete, but had no distribution in the US and there was no funding. So Lee didn't have the opportunity to release this album by Larry. So he took the recordings to Sweden and put his own voice over it instead of Larry Mark's. That's how "13" came about.
Light In The Attic is now releasing an extended edition of "Cowboy In Sweden" as a continuation of the Lee Hazlewood series. "Cowboy In Sweden" was the soundtrack to the film of the same name, which became a cult classic and in which Hazlewood also played the leading role. The psychedelic movie went well with the compilation of Hazlewood's best songs, which he had written during his three-year world tour. The album was produced in Paris, London, Los Angeles and Stockholm with a whole host of talented people.

"Cowboy in Sweden" is arguably the purest expression of Hazlewood's sound, melancholy country-pop with a wink ("Pray Them Bars Away"), some disappointment ("Cold Hard Times"), beautiful female vocalists ("Leather & Lace" & "Hey Cowboy") and even a couple of anti-war songs to round it all off ("No Train to Stockholm" & "For A Day Like Today"). The orchestral pop song "What's More I Don't Need Her", arranged by David "Bitter Sweet Symphony" Whitaker, and the Hazlewood classic "The Night Before" make it clear that this is absolutely the best album in the history of LHI Records - ironically, it was also the label's last.