Who killed Lenny Breau?

[Zappa68]

Hi folks. I just ran into a guitar player here in Nashville (I'm a retired trumpet player) and we soon found that we both knew Lenny 'back in the day.' He told me that Lenny has become a widely known legend as he certainly deserved to be. But I'm astounded at the amount of info that came up when I 'Googled' him up. Wow! That's how I found this forum.

Throughout the 70's and into the 80's Lenny spent about 3 months every year in Toronto, 3 months in L.A., 3 in Nashville, and 3 in NY. That seemed to be his life at the time. Several of us took turns being Lenny's "keeper" while he was in Nashville. I would go and find him passed out on the floor of a dirty apartment, bring him around, then take him out and put food in him to keep him alive. With Lenny, you just never knew when you'd get the bad news that we all knew was coming.

He met Jewel and things changed...............for the better. I'm not challenging the negative opinions of her shared here and elsewhere, but I'm here to testify that there was another side to the story as well. She cleaned him up, got him sober and healthy, and got him focused again on his career. He even got straight enough for me to take him into a studio for some recording that I have never bothered to mix down. Great music, of course, but to get the real essence of his genius, you needed to have him in a small club atmosphere, surrounded by his friends. The studio just couldn't bring out the natural "performer" in this man. Incidentally, another mutual friend, the late Richard Cotten, did exactly that.............recorded miles and miles of live performances, most of which Richard accompanied Lenny on bass. I wonder where those recordings ever ended up.

The Nashville Jazz Machine was an 18-piece rehearsal band made up of Nashville's 'A-team' of studio players back then. As I was privileged to serve as the band's leader, I constantly got calls from club owners to help them find and book small groups for the resurgence in jazz popularity we were enjoying at the time. Jewel would call me from L.A., tell me they would be in Nashville in a couple of weeks, and ask me to get Lenny some work. She was so protective of him she would always remind me to have a room away from the crowd that we could rush Lenny to between sets, before the dealers and ignorant hangers-on could get to him and get him high. He had no self control whatsoever.

Now, maybe Jewel was his killer, and maybe not. But what I saw was a woman dedicated to Lenny's protection and well-being. Lenny was reported to have been strangled. Do you know how much physical strength it takes to strangle another human being? Do you realize how much time one must hold the victims throat shut? Much more time and strength than the movies portray, and certainly much more than most women are capable of. Besides, Lenny had a short neck, and that would make strangulation even more physically difficult for anyone to succeed with. And forget the "inheritance" motive...........Lenny never had 2 quarters to rub together all the years I knew him.

I hope you guitar guys don't mind this old trumpet player encroaching into your domain here. But I just thought you might like to hear another side to the tragic saga surrounding the genius we were blessed to know, Lenny Breau.

Dave Converse

She sounds exactly like the woman who killed Lee Morgan. Got him clean and back on his feet then when she saw him talking to another woman shot him. Plus since Lenny was often passed out and or nodding out in a high coma how hard do you think it'd be to kill somebody that vulnerable.

[Zappa68]

She sounds exactly like the woman who killed Lee Morgan. Got him clean and back on his feet then when she saw him talking to another woman shot him. Plus since Lenny was often passed out and or nodding out in a high coma how hard do you think it'd be to kill somebody that vulnerable.

I thought you'd appreciate the Lee Morgan story since you play trumpet because let's face it he was a monster. Truly one of the greats. Another cool anecdote did you know that Kenny Dorham was a boxer before deciding on becoming a professional musician lol. Talk about one of the worse things for a brass player to do. The lips and mouth the most important things constantly being busted up. I truly find that fascinating and he was a monster virtuoso as well.

[lammie200]

I thought you'd appreciate the Lee Morgan story since you play trumpet because let's face it he was a monster. Truly one of the greats. Another cool anecdote did you know that Kenny Dorham was a boxer before deciding on becoming a professional musician lol. Talk about one of the worse things for a brass player to do. The lips and mouth the most important things constantly being busted up. I truly find that fascinating and he was a monster virtuoso as well.

Chet Baker also had a pretty busted up mouth but he could still play. I think Miles Davis was also a boxer. Somehow they still found it within them to cope.

[ragman1]

Wow, that was something!

[rbludgeon]

Believe it or not. I was there when Breau was murdered and drug to the swimming pool. I called Olympic Division of the Los Angeles Police Department yesterday to give my story to a Detective.

Read this excerp from "One Long Tune,"
One long tune: the life and music of ... - Google Books

Page 268-271, the last few days of Lenny's life. Raj told me specifically about that day during one of our lessons together.

He said the last time he saw Lenny play, Lenny's wife came and interrupted his set, and it pissed him off. There was clearly tension between the two, but Lenny decided he was going back to Jewel. That was the last he was heard from other than Joe Diorio.

The next thing you know, he was killed. The ONLY person who was with Lenny was Jewel, whom he had gotten in an argument with earlier on, and she was enraged. There was clearly no struggle when he died. His guitar or other possesions were not taken, so one could possibly rule out drug dealers ect, even though he did owe people money. The autopsy revealed that he did not die of overdose or natural causes.

Seeing that he and Jewel had a heated relationship, and she had a history of violence, which people close to him warned him of (Raj Rathor and Joe Diorio) she did kill him. How did she not get convicted? Not enough evidence. Keep in mind that forensics back then were NOT as advanced as they are today. That plus loopholes got her cleared