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Lee Coulter

RIYL

Michael Tiernan, John Mayer, Jack Johnson, Paul Simon, Ben Harper, Jason Mraz, Dave Matthews, Eric Hutchinson

Inception

Encinitas , 2004

Influences

Paul Simon, Butterfly Boucher, John Mayer, Bob Marley, Van Morrison, Tupac, Jack Johnson, the Eagles, Babyface, Natalie Merchant, Norah Jones, Carol King, Ray Charles, Tristan Prettyman, Rodney Jerkins, Sarah McLachlan, Nirvana, Brian Wilson, Crowded House, Sting, David Gray, Bob Dylan, Michael Franti, the Rolling Stones, U2, Nelly, Tracy Chapman, Jesse Harris, the BeeGees, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Beatles, the Everly Brothers, Dave Matthews, Lenny Kravitz, Dave Grohl

Discography

Video(s)

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Based in Encinitas, singer/guitarist Lee Coulter is a soulful troubador along the lines of Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, and local ladies man Michael Tiernan.

For Coulter, who was originally inspired by Simon and Garfunkel and Back to the Future (“I played the tennis racket to the soundtrack”), it’s about the music. And producing. And giving Rockstar 101 lessons on YouTube. It’s also about turning on people to unheard gems by other musicians via “Live from the Laptop.”

“It’s another way to share music,” says the Encinitas resident, who left Australia in 2002 to join Sharisse in America. (“She imported me.”) From the couple’s Encinitas home, he messages, “I post ‘Live from the Laptop’ Mondays, on YouTube. Playing obscure covers is a result of being covered by other musicians. I thought I’d do the same for virtually unknown songwriters that I admire.”

Coulter makes ends meet “with performances at corporate and private events and bread-and-butter gigs around town. As Lee Coulter’s Perfect Wav, I produce other artists. And there’s royalties, but that’s a fraction of what I hope it will be someday.”

How did his Sirius Radio exposure happen?

“A friend of a friend came to a show and said he wanted to help. He had no experience and no connections. At first I was suspicious. I guess I’m so used to being under the radar...it’s the kind of thing I hear all the time, and nothing comes of it. On this occasion, I lucked out. This guy just sent my CD in cold. Sirius picked up ‘I Would Love’ and started playing it three times a day on The Coffeehouse.

“Then I flew to Sirius’ New York headquarters for a live recording. They have a studio called the Fishbowl, with glass walls so people can watch from the lobby. I played five originals and “59th Street Bridge Song.” It aired the last week in April.”

As his comedic “misguided, sexier alter ego, Walter Legeaux,” Coulter morphs into hip-hop mode for the “Rockstar 101.”

“Rockstar 101 is about having fun with the absurdities of ‘Indie Cred.’ Anyone can be a star. It’s about attitude and being larger than life.”

His 2011 video for “Gray or Blue” features Kate Vincent and was shot by Sharisse Coulter. Also in 2011, his LeGeaux character teamed with rapper friend Stepchylde for a new band, Square Pegs Baby.

His full-length Mr. Positivity was released in March 2012. When his wife Sharisse’s first fiction book was published in 2013, the duo spent six months on a novel-music tour, crossing the country in a custom RV painted with green-and-blue tropical murals and their names emblazoned on the sides, hitting 55 cities accompanied by their four-year-old son.

It’s a lifestyle he feels lucky to have long enjoyed. “I only had three real jobs before playing music full time,” he says, noting that — even in his worker bee days — good fortune seemed his favor. “I was never fired or anything. I like to think that’s because I’m too pretty.”

At the 2021 San Diego Music Awards, Coulter took home the trophy for Best Folk or Acoustic Song: "Look Away."

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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