Артур Ли Мэй: Бейсболист и блюзовый певец

American baseball player (1934–2002)

Arthur Lee Maye (December 11, 1934 – July 17, 2002) was an American Major League Baseball player. He played eleven seasons in the majors as an outfielder for the Milwaukee Braves (1959–1965), Houston Astros (1965–1966), Cleveland Indians (1967–1969), Washington Senators (1969–1970), and Chicago White Sox (1970–1971). Maye was also well known as a rhythm & blues singer. He was the lead singer of the Los Angeles–based doo wop group Arthur Lee Maye and the Crowns in the 1950s.

Maye sang in a tenor and falsetto. Music journalist and critic Phil Milstein called his singing "deft" and "authoritative.". Maye recorded on over a dozen labels to include Modern, Tower, Specialty, ABC Paramount, and Buddah, and opened a Hollywood Bowl show featuring Jerry Butler, Billy Stewart, and Barbara Mason.

Arthur Lee Maye's dual career began at Los Angeles' Jefferson High School. Here he sang with Jesse Belvin and future members of the Platters, the Penguins, and the Coasters. Maye starred in baseball for both Jefferson High and local semi pro teams. Milwaukee Braves scout Johnny Moore not only saw his potential as a hitter with line drive power but clocked him in the 100 yard dash at under 10 seconds. Moore convinced the Braves to draft and sign him. Arthur Lee Maye later explained, "Baseball was my first love. I could always sing at fifty, but I couldn’t play baseball at fifty." A back injury and respiratory illness slowed his progress in 1961 and 1962. A 1965 ankle injury hurt his season and career. He was traded to the Houston Astros during the 1965 season. Playing his 1966 home games in the Astrodome, he hit .288 with 9 home runs. Huey Meax managed his music career during this time. Meaux got him studio time with JAMIE and regular bookings at popular Houston nightclubs. The Astros traded him to Cleveland before the 1967 season. In 1968, the year of the pitcher, Maye hit .281. but respected his knowledge and hit .290. He played his final year in 1971 with the White Sox, hitting .205. All of his MLB career was during baseball's second deadball era. Lee Maye said, "The greatest thrill is not getting to the major leagues. It's staying there. I played 13 seasons when they had only 16 teams and I think that was a great accomplishment for me."

Arthur Lee Maye's baseball and music career often conflicted. He sang under the name Arthur Lee Maye but played baseball under Lee Maye. Another Lee May (Lee Andrew May) broke into Major League Baseball in 1965 and soon put up bigger home run and RBI numbers. Only one record credits his dual career. A 1959 release "Will You Be Mine" on CASH had Lee Maye of the Milwaukee Braves on the label. Playing baseball full time created a time lag problem. Maye said, "When I was playing baseball all the requisite hours, I was a year behind in music, and I never got a chance to catch up with the music trend that I should have been with. I truly was behind the time, and I acknowledge that. Baseball and singing collided". Arthur Lee Maye was very proud of "Moonlight." "Moonlight" made several compilation CDs, played a role in the novel '64 Intruder, and gets airplay on doo wop radio programs. Maye had a European tour planned when he became stricken with liver cancer.

Maye died at the age of 67 in Riverside, California, of pancreatic cancer and is buried at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.