Legendary bassist and local radio personality Lee Vincent, whose keen business sense and musical talent helped make his 12-piece orchestra a Northeastern Pennsylvania institution died Wednesday.
He was 91 and had suffered from congestive heart failure for several years.
Born Vincent Cerreta in Shickshinny in 1916, Mr. Vincent grew up in Mocanaqua. He started learning the violin at 9, quickly switching to the bass.
He started the Lee Vincent Orchestra in 1946, and still helped book musicians for performers until his death. Members of his band played alongside Clay Aiken on Dec. 4.
His career as a disc jockey for WILK and other stations spread his voice and Big Band music across Northeastern Pennsylvania.
His band played along side Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra Jr., Aretha Franklin and more. He earned numerous awards, fought in World War II and hosted the "Sunday Serenade" on WBRE-TV starting in 1963.
"When he got hot on the bass, he used to pluck that thing just like the old jazz artists," said longtime friend Joey Shaver, who met Mr. Vincent once a week for breakfast in the past several years.
For hundreds of people, though, Mr. Vincent and his bandmates are forever memorialized in between the glossy sheets of photo albums.
"We're in a whole lot of wedding albums," said Frank Casty, who has played in the Lee Vincent Orchestra for more than 50 years. "We played Bar Mitzvahs, weddings, proms ... we played it all.
"For a while there, the only way to get a gig was through Vince."
For all the notoriety as a musician, it was his kindness, almost to a fault, they remember.
There was the time a woman stopped by WBRE studios in need of money and Mr. Vincent loaned her $25.
"He never saw her again," Mr. Casty said, "But he didn't care."
At a fast food restaurant on Christmas Eve, Mr. Vincent bought a hungry homeless man sipping coffee two bags of food.
"I didn't even notice the guy and (Vincent's) buying him food," Mr. Shaver said.
Like Mr. Vincent's awards and musical accolades, friends and family have more stories than time to tell.
"Those stories epitomize him," eldest daughter Juanita Namey said. "He was always there for people."
Lee Vincent brought a lot of pleasure into a lot of lives.
For eight decades he has been a band member, band leader and radio master of ceremonies.
During that time he played for kings and he played for newlywed couples at local weddings.
He had the honorable opportunity to perform before Russian Marshalll Gregori Zhukov, U.S. General Mark Clark and King Leopold of Belgium at the internationally known Salzburg Music Festival at the end of World War II.
Vincent performed with many of the greatest musicians of modern times. Nat King Cole and Natalie Cole, Frank Sinatra Jr., Jerry Vale, Bobby Rydell, Danny Thomas, George Burns, Eddy Arnold, Perry Como, Frankie Laine, Johnny Mathis, the Dorseys, the Temptations, the Four Aces, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, Marie Osmond, Rosemary Clooney, Glenn Miller, Aretha Franklin and Clay Aiken.
Vincent was honored as leader of one of the Top Regional Bands by the American Federation of Musicians. He was honored by the U.S. Senate for 50 years in the music business.
But he enjoyed his work most when he was home in Wyoming Valley, where he played at weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, reunions, proms and anniversary parties.
In the 1950s he hosted radio programs for WNAK and WILK, broadcasting mellow sounds across Wyoming Valley.
Always, Vincent was a gentleman and a kind man, giving a nod from the bandstand to all of his many friends in the audience. And working for many local charitable causes.
Typical of Vincent was a letter he sent to the newspaper thanking the staff of Wilkes-Barre General Hospital for caring for him during a recent stay.
Vincent lived a long life and was active right up to the end at the age of 91. During that time entertained hundreds of thousands of people.
The last paragraph of his obituary sum his life up.
"While Lee experienced great success in life, his family was his greatest accomplishment and most important to him. He was accepting of all faiths, races and cultures and always had a kind word. He leaves behind a large, loving family, many friends and a legacy of music. In the words of the leader of the band, 'remember to keep on dancin'."
Lee Vincent was born Vincent Cerreta on April 15, 1916 in Shickshinny, to the late Frank Cerreta and Grace D'Angelo. Raised in Mocanaqua, Lee first learned music on the violin at the age of 9, but soon switched to the stand-up bass in order to play "danceable" music. He started his first band, The John Tearpock Band, at 11 years old. Lee graduated from Shickshinny High School in 1933 and began working at the Wanamie and Bliss collieries while playing in bands at night. A career in the service came next. Lee served with the 106th Cavalry of the 7th Army during World War II from 1943-1946 and was awarded two Bronze Stars for valor in combat, the French Croix De Guerre, and earned the Good Conduct Medal. During his service, he had the opportunity to perform before Russian Marshall Gregori Zhukov, U.S. General Mark Clark and King Leopold of Belgium at the internationally known Salzburg Music Festival at the end of World War II.
In 1946, the Lee Vincent Orchestra was formed, and the 12-piece orchestra began playing venues across the Wyoming Valley. Their popularity eventually took them to Atlantic City's Steel Pier and the American Stock Exchange in New York City. While the band played engagements in nearby states, Lee never found the idea of life on a tour bus and away from his family appealing, so the Orchestra stayed close to home. Among the many weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, reunions, proms and anniversary parties the Lee Vincent Orchestra played, they were often highlighted in Purvin's Sunday Serenade on WBRE beginning in 1963. Lee has been featured with an extensive list of performers such as Nat King Cole and Natalie Cole, Frank Sinatra Jr., Jerry Vale, Bobby Rydell, Danny Thomas, George Burns, Eddy Arnold, Perry Como, Frankie Laine, Johnny Mathis, the Dorseys, the Temptations, the Four Aces, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, Marie Osmond, Rosemary Clooney, Glenn Miller, Aretha Franklin and Clay Aiken. Numerous awards include Top Regional Bands by the American Federation of Musicians, recognized by the U.S. Senate for 50 years in the music business and Fine Arts Fiesta Friend of the Arts.
Lee simultaneously had a successful and expansive career in radio, beginning in the early 1950s for WNAK. He then moved to WILK where he hosted "Three for All," a popular radio music and entertainment show with daughters, Juanita and Candy (which was occasionally broadcast from the family home in Shickshinny).
During his tenure at WILK, he moved from sales to sales manager, then marketing consultant. After 28 years, he moved to WBAX, where the new music format was popular standards, perfect for the band leader. His radio career spanned 50 years, until 2006, when he retired from Shamrock Communications, which included WBAX, WEJL, WZTR and Rock 107.
Lee was an active community member. He belonged to organizations such as Candy's Place, corporate member; Local Musicians Union 140; Irem Temple Country Club; Jefferson Hospital, past board member; judge for Miss UNICO Pageant; and Rotary Club of Wilkes-Barre.
Lee Vincent was preceded in death by his first wife, the late Angeline Prince; and second wife, Lucille Cinti; daughter, Candice Vincent- Mamary; brother, Carl Cerreta; and sister, Lila Butzek.
Surviving family includes four children, Juanita Namey and her husband, Lee, Wilkes-Barre; Penny Cunningham and her husband, Bob, Kingston; Rose Ann Stevens and her husband, David, Peachtree City, Ga.; Michael Lee Vincent, Kingston; six grandchildren, Angela Falzone, Tara Namey, Jennifer Mamary, Kelly Maley, 2nd Lt. Brett Stevens and Brittany Stevens; six great-grandchildren, Samuel Falzone, Richard Falzone, Alesha Falzone, Lee Falzone, Kadar Namey and Elia Namey; siblings, Mary DiCariano, Port Richey, Fla.; Frank Cerreta, Wilkes- Barre; and many nieces and nephews.
The funeral will be held Friday at 9:30 a.m. in Luzerne United Methodist Church, 440 Bennett St., Luzerne, with interment in Italian Independent Cemetery, Wyoming. Friends may call at Luzerne United Methodist Church on Thursday, 4 to 7 p.m.
Arrangements are by Mamary-Durkin Funeral Services, 59 Parrish St., Wilkes-Barre.
Those who desire may give memorial contributions to Candy's Place, 190 Welles St., Forty Fort, PA 18704, or Hospice Care of the VNA, 648 Northampton St., Edwardsville, PA 18704.
While Lee experienced great success in life, his family was his greatest accomplishment and most important to him. He was accepting of all faiths, races and cultures and always had a kind word. He leaves behind a large, loving family, many friends and a legacy of music. In the words of the leader of the band, "remember to keep on dancin'."
