Lee Ritenour

Lee Ritenour is one of those guitarists who makes you feel like the instrument was invented specifically for him. Born in Hollywood in 1952 and sharpening his craft at the University of Southern California, he became one of the most in-demand session players in Los Angeles before most people his age had even figured out their career path. His nickname "Captain Fingers" says everything you need to know — the man has technique for days, but what keeps me coming back is how he bridges jazz purity with fusion warmth without ever sounding clinical. His work across decades, from smooth jazz recordings to collaborative projects with the cream of the jazz world, shows a musician who never stopped being curious. He's one of those guys who defined an era of sophisticated, feel-good guitar playing that still sounds fresh.

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Name (English)

Lee Ritenour

Name (Japanese)

リー・リトナー

Reading

りー・りとなー

Born

January 11, 1952 (age 74)

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Capricorn / Dragon

Origin

Hollywood, California, United States

Occupation

guitarist / composer / jazz musician / jazz guitarist / record producer

University

University of Southern California

• Official sitehttps://www.leeritenour.com/
• Xhttps://x.com/leeritenour
• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee%20Ritenour
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC%E3%83%BB%E3%83%AA%E3%83%88%E3%83%8A%E3%83%BC
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q363320

Tags

• California
• guitarist
• composer
• jazz musician

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.