Born 83 Years Ago Today in the Windy City, the Drummer Whose Band Went From the Top 5 to Making Commercials for Coca-Cola and the US Navy

On this day (November 9) in 1943, Lee Graziano was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is best known as the drummer for the 1960s pop band The American Breed. They notched a few top 40 hits in the mid-60s. Their biggest chart success was the 1967 single “Bend Me, Shape Me,” which landed in the top 10 in the United States and Canada. They also recorded jingles for major corporations, including Coca-Cola, Bell Telephone, the United States Navy, and American Airlines.

Graziano made a name for himself as a drummer and trumpet player in the Chicago music scene. He played with bands like The Fabulous Royals and Jimmy Beck & The Young Stars. At the same time, he was holding down a full-time job. Eventually, he decided to walk away from music. “We were playing all these lounges ‘til three in the morning. It was insanity,” he recalled. “I had a full-time job and getting up at six in the morning. And I couldn’t handle it. I finally told Jimmy I just couldn’t do it anymore.”

Lee Graziano Joins the Knight Lights

Fate had other plans, though. A week after he quit his regular drumming gig, he got a call from the manager of a band called Gary and the Knight Lights. Their regular drummer, Jim Michalak, had gone to Las Vegas for the weekend and they needed someone to sit in for a gig. Lee Graziano agreed, thinking it would be a fun weekend gig. Eventually, Michalak quit the band and Graziano took his place full-time.

The band inked a deal with Acta Records in 1967. The label told them that Gary and the Knight Lights sounded dated. “There was a suggestion of The New Breed, with the label feeling there needed to be an American feel to the band–and we became the American Breed,” Graziano recalled.

The American Breed Finds Success

The American Breed released “I Don’t Think You Know Me” as the first Acta single in 1967. It failed to chart. They followed it with “Step Out of Your Mind,” which reached No. 24 on the Hot 100. Later that year, “Bend Me, Shape Me” became their biggest hit when it reached No. 5. Their next single, “Green Light,” was the last to reach the top 40.

The American Bred also found major success in the jingle market. They were one of many bands who contributed to Coca-Cola’s “Things Go Better with Coke” campaign. The band also recorded a jingle for New York Telephone’s “Alone Phone” campaign, which advertised secondary private home phone lines. They also recorded the jingle for American Airlines’ “Fly the American Way” ad campaign, which included a line of popular TV commercials.

[RELATED: This 1971 One-Hit Wonder Came From a Short-Lived Band and Had a Commercial To Thank for Its Success]

They split before the end of the decade. Then, Lee Graziano and other former American Breed members formed Smoke, which later became Ask Rufus. Later, the band became Rufus and helped launch Chaka Khan to stardom. However, Graziano exited the band long before Khan joined.

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