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.
When I Write The Book
Colin James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like it was only yesterday
Love was young and foolish
Like a little child at play
But oh how love has changed
I never knew how easily
Now I'm just a shadow
Of the boy I used to be
And when I write the book
About my love
It will be about a man
Who was torn in half
By his hope and ambition
Wasted through the years
The man will be written
On every page in tears
When I write, When I write the book
When I write the book about my love
When I write the book about my love
I was a fool to my self
When I kept on running around
I've been a little better
Oh when I tried settling down
Maybe some magic moment
You never know but not for long
But all too soon the magic
Was in a moment gone
And when I write the book
About my love
It will be a heart breaking story
About love and luck
And when I get down on the pages
All I have felt
It will make the hardest heart of the critics heart melt
When I write, When I write the book
When I write the book about my love
When I write the book about my love
When I was young love was fun
I was so happy
I looked so good
And I dressed so happy
Two tone shoes on my feet
Big old smile on my face
As I moved, moved, grooved
All over the place
Now I'm down on my luck
And my complexion is bad
Because my love love life
Is sadder than sad
And when I write the book
About my love
It will be a hard publication
Tougher than tough
When I get down on the pages
All I've amassed
It will shoot to the top
Of the bestsellers list
When I write, When I write the book
When I write the book about my love
When I write the book about my love
When I write the book
When I write the book about my love
When I write the book about my love
The lyrics of Colin James's "When I Write The Book" describe the changes that love has brought in the singer's life. The beginning of the song talks about how love was once young and foolish like a little child at play, but now the singer is just a shadow of the boy he used to be. The lyrics indicate the singer's realization that love has changed him, and not always for the better. He talks about his hope and ambition being wasted through the years and how he was a fool to himself when he kept on running around. He has settled down since then, but even that couldn't save his love. The song is about the singer's love life being sadder than sad and how it has made him a different person than he was at the beginning.
The singer talks about writing a book about his love life. He says that the book will be about a man who was torn in half by his hope and ambition and the heart-breaking story of love and luck. The lyrics indicate that the book will be a hard publication, tougher than tough, as it would be about all the emotions he has felt and the things he has amassed. He also says that the book will shoot to the top of the bestsellers list. Throughout the song, the singer reminisces about the days when he was young, happy, and looked good, but now is down on his luck, and his complexion is bad.
Overall, the song's message seems to be about how love can change a person and how some people are destined to have unhappy love lives, regardless of how much they try. It's a reflection on love, life, and the changes they bring about in the singer.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I can remember
I have a clear memory of what happened.
Like it was only yesterday
It feels like it happened recently.
Love was young and foolish
Love was naive and inexperienced.
Like a little child at play
Like a child playing without thinking of the consequences.
But oh how love has changed
But love has drastically changed.
I never knew how easily
I was unaware of how easily things could change.
Now I'm just a shadow
Now I am just a faint reflection of who I was.
Of the boy I used to be
Of the boy I was before.
And when I write the book
And if I were to write about it.
About my love
About my experiences with love.
It will be about a man
It will be from the perspective of someone who has grown and changed.
Who was torn in half
Who was conflicted and unsure.
By his hope and ambition
By his desire for a better future but fear of failure.
Wasted through the years
Lost and wasted over time.
The man will be written
His experiences will be documented.
On every page in tears
His emotions will be evident throughout the book.
When I write, When I write the book
If I choose to write about it.
I was a fool to my self
I made foolish choices.
When I kept on running around
When I was unable to commit to one person.
I've been a little better
I have improved to some extent.
Oh when I tried settling down
When I attempted to be in a committed relationship.
Maybe some magic moment
There may have been a special moment.
You never know but not for long
It was short-lived and did not last long.
But all too soon the magic
But the magic disappeared too quickly.
Was in a moment gone
It was gone in an instant.
It will be a heart breaking story
It will be a sad and emotional story.
About love and luck
About the unpredictable nature of love and luck.
And when I get down on the pages
When I describe my experiences in detail.
All I have felt
All of the emotions I have experienced.
It will make the hardest heart of the critics heart melt
It will be so moving that even the most critical person will be touched.
It will be a hard publication
It will be a difficult book to read due to its emotional content.
Tougher than tough
Even more difficult to read.
When I get down on the pages
When I write down everything explicitly.
All I've amassed
All of the experiences I have gained over time.
It will shoot to the top
It will become very popular.
Of the bestsellers list
A book that many people will want to read.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: DAVE EDMUNDS, NICHOLAS ORAIN LOWE, TERRY WILLIAMS, WILLIAM MURRAY BREMNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind