Hi my name is Colin James
At the risk of talking about myself, I have opted to create a bio that is a little more personal, off the cuff and will not contain the words, "incendiary", "triple threat", or "burst on to."
Oops!...........there they are. Now on with it.
I was born at home in Regina, Saskatchewan and much to my parents chagrin, (if they didn't want it this way, they shouldn't have planted those electrodes in my head), I started to show a serious interest in music at the age of eight or nine. I got my first electric guitar at around ten and have played it since, except for a small sojourn into mandolin territory from the age of thirteen to fifteen. Blessed with a lot of wonderful people around me who took the time to show me how to play, I soon realized I was probably going to make a go of it.
My first band, The Hoodoo Men, played their first show in a coffeehouse in Winnipeg when I was about sixteen. I was seriously hooked to the blues and I wouldn't listen to anything else. Things started rolling that same year when I opened up for George Thorogood and John Lee Hooker and got a couple of okay reviews. It wasn't long after, (unless you call a bunch of cockroach infested apartments across Canada not long) that I got a break opening up for Stevie Ray Vaughan for two shows in a row. I got some great press and moreover got to meet my biggest hero, Stevie Ray and his band Double Trouble. On those shows he got me up on stage for his encores which pretty much blew me away, especially considering it was my hometown. They were super nice to me and a year later when they came through Canada for a second time I got the gig to open again in two different cities. At that point I had a different band at every show, no manager, one guitar and the hope I could turn this into a real career.
Anyway, after this, things really started heating up and record companies started calling. My first worldwide release was on Virgin America in 1988 with the self-titled album. The album took off in Canada, had two number one videos, number one songs and some serious chart action in the U.S.A. where we embarked on tours with Steve Winwood, Keith Richards, and Little Feat.
The follow-up album, Sudden Stop, produced by Joe Hardy, (ZZ Top, Steve Earle) scored my highest U.S. chart topper to date( #2 AOR). a great review in the Rolling Stone, an appearance on Late Night With David Letterman, and a tour with ZZ Top and subsequent tours in Sweden, Germany and France.
After this we pulled an about face and did something extremely strange. We released a record of early rock and roll chestnuts and jump blues named Colin James and the Little Big Band, ........ that surprised, bewildered but obviously pleasantly pleased some people enough to keep us on the road for the next three years with appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brian and opening slots for the Rolling Stones.
This record allowed me to play material I loved at a time when musical tastes had shifted to "grunge" and what would soon become known as alternative rock.
In 1996 with the coast a little clearer I recorded Bad Habits with producer Chris Kimsey (Rolling Stones). With a little help from Mavis Staples and Lenny Kravitz this was my first full rock record in three years. This got me back over to Europe and gave me the opportunity to play some slide guitar.
From there my next record, National Steel, was something I had always wanted to do. In a home studio we had just built, I, with the help from Colin Linden, one of Canada's best slide guitarists, made a record of rare delta blues by the likes of Muddy Waters, Bukka White, etc. We played folk festivals across the country, which exposed me to a brand new audience.
1998 saw the second release of a jump blues styled album called Colin James and the Little Big Band II. Original Huh? Next thing you know swing was everywhere. New bands, movies, commercials and the timing was good. The record sold well, so well it kept us on the road for a long time.
In 2000 my eighth album Fuse was a step in a different direction. As much as I love old Rhythm and Blues, it really seemed time to create a record that was original and that would again take me in yet another direction. Teaming up with Craig Northey, writer/guitar player and front man from the great Canadian pop band Odds, we began writing a record that would return me to my rock roots with a funkier more soulful sound. By writing with Craig, using the production skills of Joe Hardy and drawing inspiration from artists such as the Meters, Al Green, Sly (and The Family) Stone, Macy Gray and The Rolling Stones, I was able to create one of the most enjoyable recording experiences of my life.
Which brings us square in the face of the present... Traveler. This record was a chance to delve into writing in a more personal way, and at the same time explore different styles with the Lennon, Hendrix and Nick Drake covers. It was recorded at the historic Paramour Studio in Los Angeles' Silverlake area with fellow Canadian, Mark Howard at the helm as producer. I teamed up once again with Craig Northey to write and found a great new writing partner in Jeff Trott (Sheryl Crow) who also played on the record.
So thanks for coming along so far, I sincerely hope you enjoy the record and try to come see us live!
Traveler
trav-e-ler n - somebody who is on a journey to a particular place or who uses a particular form of transportation
"I've been touring since I was 16 and I still find it exhilarating to change my surroundings whether it be for work or vacation."
Colin James is a traveler. As one of Canada's best guitarists, he has sold over one million records worldwide, seen most of the world, won many industry awards and international recognition for his versatility as a guitarist and his unforgettable voice. His diverse catalogue of music includes the blues/rock that got his career going, big band and his first musical love: the blues.
His music is his journey and his transport and it has brought him to his eighth full-length recording, Traveler. The album, produced by fellow Canadian Mark Howard (Lucinda Williams), was recorded and mixed primarily at the stunning Paramour Studio in Los Angeles.
"When I first saw the Paramour, I went to listening party where they (Lucinda and producer Mark Howard) were wrapping up Lucinda William's latest record. It was late in the day and as I drove up to the gated entry, a long marble pool greeted me as I walked along the lit gas lamps to the main room where the recording was done. The lights of downtown Los Angeles were down below and from the hill the house is perched on, you were allowed a ridiculous 360 view on every side," recalls Colin in awe. "Mark and I had been talking about working together and the idea of recording there became that much more enticing."
As with his last album, Fuse, Colin teamed up with good friend Craig Northey to pen a number of the songs on Traveler. "I'd always wanted to write a Motown ballad," says Colin. ""Make A Mistake" was the closest I've ever come, so it was gratifying when Craig and I finished that one."
The song "Know How To Love You" is the self-penned track on the album. "I wrote lyrics during a long stop over at the airport in Nashville after a Ft. Lauderdale date and somewhere between St. Paul and Vancouver it was finished," recalls Colin.
Jeff Trott of Sheryl Crow co-writing fame collaborated with Colin for "You And Whose Army" and came to Los Angeles to record with Colin. It was at the Paramour where "Skydiving" was written the day before it was recorded.
Along with Northey and Trott, Colin was joined in the studio by legendary bass player Daryl Johnson (Emmylou Harris, The Neville Brothers), highly regarded session drummer Victor Indrizzo (Depeche Mode) and drummer Dean Butterworth (Ben Harper).
Traveler features 3 covers, the first being the opening track "I'm Losing You" written by a man who was on his own journey, the late John Lennon. It was a real find for Colin, as he had always wanted to record a John Lennon song.
"There's a great blues base that we thought would really work as a vocal and guitar vehicle," says Colin. "When we were finished it was somewhat spooky when we realized how much it evoked the original at times."
'70's folk icon Nick Drake's 'Black Eyed Dog' goes down in Colin's mind as one of the most memorable and oddest recordings he has ever done. " You could hear a pin drop in the studio as it was peppered with live mics, making overdubbing impossible," recalls Colin. "You can feel the tension as we tried not to make mistakes. It put us in almost a trance-like state."
Jimi Hendrix's "Rainy Day, Dream Away" is an example of how Traveler represents Colin's ability to grow and move with his music, learning as he goes. Under Howard's engineering, Colin experienced a more spontaneous recording session. With Howard's penchant for leaving rough edges and minimum overdubbing, most of Traveler is the first take.
"True to Mark's spontaneity, we listened to Jimi's version once and cut the song immediately," remembers Colin. " It was a one take affair."
In 1988, Colin exploded onto the music scene as young guitar-slinger from Regina with a sound reminiscent of the great blues masters but at the same time uniquely his own. Needless to say, the world stood up and paid attention. In the years since his debut, Colin has dealt out multi-platinum rock albums, best selling big band records and chart topping singles. He has been called to the podium no less than six times to accept Juno Awards.
Colin has performed with such noted musicians as mentor Stevie Ray Vaughan and Keith Richards and the likes of Mavis Staples, Lenny Kravitz, and Bonnie Raitt have made guest appearances on his records. His first "jump blues" album, Colin James & the Little Big Band, was certified double platinum in Canada and foreshadowed the big band craze of the late '90's by five years. His acoustic blues album National Steel won a Juno Award as Best Blues Recording and he was named Best Producer in 1999 for his work on Colin James & the Little Big Band II.
"For me this record was a chance to delve into writing in a more personal way," says Colin. "It's very different from my more blues oriented recordings. And I love the chance to expand the breadth of styles and sounds that more contemporary recordings afford."
New sound. New songs. New journey. Traveler.
