James was only 18-years old when he captured the attention of guitar legend Stevie Ray Vaughan, who marveled at this prodigious guitar talent, and immediately decided to take him on the road through the Canadian prairies, and later the United States. It wasn't long after that the young musician began opening for the likes of John Lee Hooker, ZZ Top, Steve Winwood and Keith Richards, Colin's 1988 self-titled debut Colin James was the fastest-selling album in Canadian music history featuring the smash hits "Why'd You Lie?”, “Voodoo Thing” and “Five Long Years". It featured a team of three top producers, including Tom Dowd (Eric Clapton, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Allman Brothers), Danny Kortchmar (Bon Jovi, Billy Joel, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Stevie Nicks, Neil Young) and Bob Rock (Jann Arden, Michael Bublé, Bush, The Cult, Loverboy, Sarah McLachlan, Metallica).
James followed up his record-breaking debut with a strong 1990 release, Sudden Stop, which was produced by Joe Hardy (.38 Special, Steve Earle, The Jeff Healey Band, ZZ Top ). This release has two top forty radio hits: "Just Came Back" and, "Keep On Loving Me Baby", and features Bonnie Raitt singing backing vocals on "Give It Up". This sophomore album further helped established Colin's integrity as an artist to lookout for.
James formed The Little Big Band in early 1990's and would eventually release a trilogy of CDs fronting this 1930's-50's style punchy horn section band, playing classics and originals featuring his stellar guitar fills and confident vocals. The first Colin James and The Little Big Band was released in 1993, and it was produced by Chris Kinsley (The Cult, Duran Duran, Psychedelic Furs, The Rolling Stones). The second Colin James and The Little Big Band II was released in 1998 on Warner Music, while the third, Colin James & The Little Big Band 3 was distributed on Maple Music in Canada and Universal Music Group globally in 2006, and he would eventually do a fourth with the band, a holiday album Colin James & The Little Big Band Christmas.
In 2008 he took home three Maple Blues Awards (Toronto Blues Society), which included Entertainer of the Year, while his release Limelight also went gold in Canada.
James released his twelfth album Rooftops and Satellites on October 6th, 2009, and it was a return to his guitar Blues-Rock roots. The album was primarily co-written by Tom Wilson (Junkhouse, Blackie and The Rodeo Kings, Lee Harvey Osmond) and Thomas "Tawgs" Salter, co-writer and producer of Lights' debut and Josh Groban's Awake, and it has generated four Canadian radio singles, “Man’s Gotta Be A Stone”, “Lost Again”, “Wavelength” and “Johnny Coolman.”
2011's 'Take It From The Top: The Best Of’ pays tribute to James's career's first 23 years and serves as a celebration of Colin’s return back where he started his recordings, Virgin/EMI. This Greatest Hits collection also features two newly recorded tracks, “It’s Gonna Be Alright“ as well as an innovative cover of the Buddy Miles' classic “Them Changes”, that were recorded in Vancouver with veteran producer Bob Rock (Michael Bublé, Metallica), reuniting the two after almost twenty years.
On June 12th, 2012, James released his fifteenth album, appropriately entitled Fifteen, which was produced by Joe Hardy (ZZ Top, Brooks & Dunn, Jeff Healey, Steve Earle), who had handled three of Colin's previous album productions including his successful sophomore release. Colin co-writes with Gordie Johnson (Big Sugar, Grady) on the opener “Sweets Gone Sour” and the rocker “I Need You Bad.” Colin also re-teamed with Tom Wilson and Thomas “Tawgs” Salter on four high-octane tracks, including the bluesy “No Time to Get There” and the driving “Stone Faith,” the album’s first single.
Fifteen also features two beautiful co-writes with Ron Sexsmith that reveal Colin’s seductive side: “Finally Wrote a Song for You”, a soulful love ballad; and “Shoulder to Cry On,” a moving acoustic number that highlights his vocal range, while closing the album. The disc also features some inspiring covers, including John Lennon's "Jealous Guy", Peter Green's (Fleetwood Mac) "Oh Well", [artis]Foy Vance’s gospel-tinged “Shed A Little Light,” and Allen Toussaint's funky "Sneakin' Sally Through The Alley", which has perhaps become best known by Robert Palmer's cover.
On February 3, 2015, James released Hearts On Fire which was produced by Colin Linden at House of Blues Studios in Nashville, and this twelve track collection is distributed by Universal Music. The title track and all but two of the songs were written or co-written by Colin.
In 2016, James was named an inductee into the Western Canadian Music Hall of Fame presented by FACTOR (The Canadian Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings). In addition to this honour, Colin headlined the Western Canadian Music Awards Show at Casino Regina on October 13th, 2016, kicking off BreakOut West’s 14th year of celebrating Western Canada’s talent.
James's studio album Blue Highways features thirteen Classic Blues covers from guitar-hero greats like Blind Willie McTell, Freddie King, Peter Green, and Robert Johnson. The CD was released on October 16th, 2016. Recording and Production was primarily handled in Vancouver by Colin James and Dave Meszaros, with recording and mixing assistance from Eric Mosher, Chris Stringer and Jason Jaknunas. Blue Highways is being distributed by True North Records, and iTunes.
Over his illustrious career, James has earned 16 Maple Blues Awards, and he has worked and toured with the 'who’s who' in the international music scene (in alphabetical order): Luther Allison, Jann Arden, The Chieftains, Albert Collins, Robert Cray, Tom Dowd, Buddy Guy, Johnny Hallyday, John Hammond Jr., Gordie Johnson, Albert King, Bobby King and Terry Evans, Danny Kortchmar, Lenny Kravitz, Little Feat, The Memphis Horns, Craig Northey, Bill Payne, Bonnie Raitt, Keith Richards, Bob Rock, The Rolling Stones, Roomful Of Blues, Carlos Santana, Mavis Staples, Roebuck "Pops" Staples, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Tom Wilson, Betty Wright and ZZ Top. In addition to writing most of his own material, his music has been covered by artists like Maria Muldaur, Johnny Halliday and Lucinda Williams.
Big Bad World
Colin James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Close the door and stick in a dime
Traffic all around us is heavy
Better move before we're buried alive
Throwin the weight is, is hard to bear
There's no gettin over, nobody said it's fair
It's a big bad world
Push it a little bit further
Make you feel like you're sinkin on down
Cant get any lower, it's further
When you're trynna pick yourself up off the ground
Why do you listen to everyone else
When you gotta make your way, thinkin for yourself
Have you heard?
Baby it's a big bad world
Have you heard?
Alright, it's a big bad world
Now it's time for lovin
Dont you think that we've had enough
If there's a power above us
Dont you think it's makin it tough
In a big bad world
It's a big bad world
Have you heard
It's a big bad world
Have you heard
Careful, it's a big bad world
Dontcha know, dontcha know
Have you heard
Alright, it's a big bad world
Have you heard
It's a big bad world
Have you ... HEARD
That it's a big bad, big bad world
It's a big bad world
Have you heard
The song Big Bad World by Colin James speaks to the struggles and challenges of living in a difficult and complex society. The opening lines talk about taking a break from the harsh realities of life, represented here by the heavy traffic all around us. The artist implores the listener to keep moving and not let the weight of the hard times overcome them. James then goes on to question why people tend to listen to others instead of thinking for themselves. The lyrics suggest that in this big bad world, it is important to trust yourself and your instincts, and not let the opinions and judgments of others hold you back.
The chorus emphasizes the challenging nature of the world we live in, emphasizing the repeated phrase "it's a big bad world." James is reminding the audience that it is a difficult place, but we must continue to push through and persevere. The song then ends with the suggestion that it is time for love and unity, and that in this big bad world, if we rely on each other and work together, we can come out on top.
Overall, Big Bad World is a powerful and emotive song that speaks to the struggles of life and the importance of staying true to oneself. It is a reminder that although the world can be tough, we must keep pushing ahead and never lose sight of our own individual strength and potential.
Line by Line Meaning
Taken down from helping to hard time
I used to be useful and productive, but now life is tough and I can't do as much as I need to.
Close the door and stick in a dime
Let's shut out the world and listen to some music to help us cope with our struggles.
Traffic all around us is heavy
There are a lot of things going on around us that can distract and overwhelm us.
Better move before we're buried alive
We need to take action to avoid being overwhelmed by the difficult circumstances we're in.
Throwin the weight is, is hard to bear
Dealing with all of our troubles is really difficult and exhausting.
There's no gettin over, nobody said it's fair
We can't just ignore our problems and pretend they don't exist. Life isn't always fair or easy.
Have you heard? It's a big bad world
Life is harsh and unforgiving, and we need to be aware of that in order to face our difficulties.
Push it a little bit further
We need to push ourselves to our limits in order to overcome our struggles.
Make you feel like you're sinkin on down
Sometimes it feels like we're drowning in our problems and can't catch a break.
Cant get any lower, it's further
Things can always get worse, and we need to be prepared for that possibility.
When you're trynna pick yourself up off the ground
It's really hard to recover from setbacks and get back on our feet sometimes.
Why do you listen to everyone else
We need to trust ourselves and make our own decisions instead of just following what other people tell us to do.
When you gotta make your way, thinkin for yourself
We need to be independent and come up with our own solutions to our problems.
Now it's time for lovin
We need to take a break from our struggles and focus on something positive and loving.
Dont you think that we've had enough
We're tired of dealing with so much negativity and just need a break.
If there's a power above us
Maybe some higher force can help us deal with our struggles.
Dont you think it's makin it tough
Despite the possibility of a higher power, our difficulties still remain and are still really tough to overcome.
It's a big bad world
Once again, life is really difficult and harsh, and we need to be ready to face that fact.
Careful, it's a big bad world
We need to be cautious and aware of the many difficulties we'll face in life so that we can try to overcome them.
Dontcha know, dontcha know
I'm emphasizing the importance of being aware of life's difficulties.
Alright, it's a big bad world
Once again, life is really tough and we need to be prepared to face those challenges head-on.
Have you heard? It's a big bad world
I'm repeating the chorus to keep emphasizing the song's message.
Contributed by Stella I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.