Artist: Lee Ritenour

Lee Ritenour is an American jazz guitarist who has been active since the late 1960s.  

Ritenour was born in1952, in Los Angeles, California, United States. When he was 16, he played on his first recording session with the Mamas & the Papas. He developed a love for jazz and was influenced by guitarist Wes Montgomery. At age 17 he worked with Lena Horne and Tony Bennett. He studied classical guitar at the University of Southern California. 

Ritenour's solo career began with the album First Course (1976), a good example of the jazz-funk sound of the 1970s, followed by Captain Fingers, The Captain's Journey (1978), and Feel the Night (1979). 

In 1979, he "was brought in to beef up" one of Pink Floyd's The Wall's heaviest rock numbers, "Run Like Hell". He played "uncredited rhythm guitar" on "One of My Turns". As the 1980s began, Ritenour began to add stronger elements of pop to his music, beginning with Rit (1981). Rit became his only release to chart in Australia, peaking at number 98. "Is It You" with vocals by Eric Tagg reached No. 15 on the Billboard  pop chart and No. 27 on the Soul chart. The track peaked at number fifteen on Hot Adult Contemporary chart. 

He continued with the pop-oriented music for Rit/2  (1982) and Banded Together  (1984), while releasing a Direct-Disk instrumental album in 1983 called On the Line. He also provided rhythm guitar on Tom Browne's album Funkin' for Jamaica. He recorded  Harlequin (1985) with Dave Grusin and vocals by  Ivan Lins. His next album, Earth Run, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance. The album's title track was also Grammy nominated in the category of Best Instrumental Composition.  Portrait (GRP, 1987) included guest performances by the Yellowjackets, Djavan, and  Kenny G. 

In 1988, his Brazilian influence came to the forefront on Festival, an album featuring his work on nylon-string guitar. He changed direction with his straight-ahead jazz album Stolen Moments which he recorded with saxophonist Ernie Watts, pianist Alan Broadbent, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer  Harvey Mason. During the same year, he composed the theme song for the Canadian TV series Ramona.