James formed in Manchester in 1982, when Paul Gilbertson (guitar), Jim Glennie (bass), and Gavan Whelan (drums) met Tim Booth (vocals) at Manchester University and asked him to join their fledgling band. During the next year, James became regulars on the local club circuit, and by 1983 they had signed to Factory, releasing their debut EP, Jimone, later that year. Two years later, their second EP, James 2, was released, and Morrissey, the lead singer of the Smiths, publicly endorsed the group, asking them to open for his band. By the summer of 1985, Larry Gott had replaced Gilbertson, and the group signed to Sire Records. Working with producer Lenny Kaye, the group recorded its debut, Stutter, that year, releasing it in early 1986 to generally positive reviews.
Over the next two years, James toured constantly, building up a solid fan base. They released their second album, the folky Strip-Mine, in 1988. The record failed to capitalize on their live following, and the band departed Sire the following year, signing with the independent Rough Trade. On their new label, James released the moderately successful "Sit Down" and the live album One Man Clapping, which climbed to number one on the indie charts. In 1990, Whelan was replaced by David Baynton-Power, and James expanded to a septet with the addition of keyboardist Mark Hunter, violinist Saul Davies, and trumpeter Andy Diagram. The new lineup signed to Fontana Records and released Gold Mother in the fall. Following a handful of minor hit singles, Gold Mother finally became a breakthrough success in the spring of 1991, when a re-recorded version of "Sit Down" -- now boasting a contemporary baggy beat -- climbed to number two on the U.K. charts and became a staple on U.S. modern rock radio. Although the success of "Sit Down" was a blessing, it also was a curse, as the single became all James were known for. The band began to rebel in concert, playing almost nothing but new material, and its next album, 1992's Seven, was perceived as a misguided stab at big arena rock.
For the follow-up to Seven, James stripped away Diagram and worked with producer Brian Eno. The resulting record, Laid, was a quieter, more ambitious album, and it received some of the band's best reviews. While the album was ignored in the U.K., it was an alternative rock hit in the U.S. on the strength of the title track, which became a crossover hit. During the Laid sessions, James recorded another album's worth of experimental music with Eno that was released in the fall of 1994 as Wah Wah. The album received mixed reviews and the group took an extended break throughout 1995, partly due to guitarist Gott's departure. In 1996, Tim Booth recorded a collaboration with composer Angelo Badalamenti (Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet) entitled Booth and the Bad Angel, which received generally positive reviews.
With guitarist Adrian Oxaal in tow, James returned in early 1997 with Whiplash, a more straightforward record that was greeted with mixed reviews. Released in 1999, Millionaires, recorded with new guitarist Michael Kulas, was initially released only in the U.K. Their spectacular follow-up, 2001's Pleased to Meet You, was also available only in the U.K. A few months later, frontman Tim Booth announced his departure from the band he founded nearly 20 years before, and James called it quits following a winter tour of the U.K. in December 2001. The break was short-lived, however, as the band re-formed in 2007 and embarked on a tour in support of the double-disc compilation Fresh as a Daisy: The Singles. The following year saw the release of Hey Ma, James' tenth studio album.
The band returned in 2010 with a pair of "mini-albums" called The Night Before and The Morning After, respectively, before late 2011 brought a short, but novel, U.K. tour (the Orchestra of the Swan and the Manchester Consort Choir were their backup bands). In 2012, the lavish and long-awaited box set The Gathering Sound was issued, and included previously unreleased audio material alongside long-unavailable video concert footage. Details of the Max Dingel-produced La Petite Mort emerged in February 2014, and this first post-Mercury studio album was released four months later in June. Dingel then returned to produce their 2016 record, Girl at the End of the World. Written in Scotland and recorded in London, the album was described by the band as "big but personal, abrasive but warming" and "ultimately uplifting." Two years later, James teamed with producers Charlie Andrew and Beni Giles for Living in Extraordinary Times.
During the 2020 pandemic, Tim Booth teamed up with his Topanga Canyon neighbor Jacknife Lee to construct the basic tracks the rest of James completed while in quarantine. The resulting All the Colours of You was released in June 2021.
Biography by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
There are other artists using the same name:
2) James is the vocalist of popular Bangladeshi band Nagar Baul. He was a member of the band Feelings and later formed the band Nagar Baul. James was raised in Chittagong and later moved to Dhaka for his singing career. Stylishly longhaired James--overwhelmingly known as the Nagar Baul (the City Bard), was the pioneer of psychedelic rock in Bangladesh. Originally a lead singer and guitarist, he has always been respected for his solo projects. He became affectionately called Guru by his fans. His tunes were bright and his singing a divergence from the archetypal tunes preferred by the commercial-type directors. His songs expressed love, rage, discontent, frustration, and happiness.
3) A Dutch rapper connected to the Fakkelteitgroep.
4) James Lee - known as James - was a former member of Royal Pirates, a South Korean band. On 2015, he got into an accident that caused him unable to play bass any longer. Hence, he decided to left the band.
James moved back to Los Angeles and decided to release music written post accident in a project called βthe Light EPβ consisted of 5 tracks. (http://jamesleeofficial.com/)
Rabbit Hole
James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Is just a fake
Put my fist right through these walls
If I concentrate
The paint is wet
But I forget
I keep drifting off
But my pen moves on, keeps writing
No mistake
What we have, we share all in together
Always come prepared whatever the weather
What we have, we share all in together
Always come prepared whatever the weather
I'm late, I'm always late
I'm somewhere else
Not here and now
In time and space
I'm lost on a map
Where the satellites won't track
In an altered state
Which leaves no trace
I'm late in time
And lost in space
What we have, we share all in together
Always come prepared whatever the weather
What we have, we share all in together
Always come prepared whatever the weather
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
Rabbit hole
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
Ooh, rabbit hole
Rabbit hole
Ooh, rabbit hole
Ooh, rabbit hole
Ooh, rabbit hole
Ooh, rabbit hole, rabbit hole
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
The lyrics to James's song Rabbit Hole are quite introspective and contemplative. The opening lines suggest a sense of disillusionment with the singer's life, perhaps feeling as though it is all a facade or not authentic. However, there is a glimmer of hope present in the line "if I concentrate," as though the singer believes that they can break through the walls and find some kind of truth.
The following lines about the wet paint and drifting off suggest a sense of detachment, as though the singer is not fully present in their surroundings or is dissociating in some way. However, the act of writing with the pen implies that there is still some kind of creative force driving them forward.
The chorus, with its repetition of "what we have, we share all in together," suggests a sense of community or shared experience, perhaps with a group of friends or loved ones who are always there to support each other. The lines about being late and lost in time and space further enhance this feeling of being adrift, but the repetition of the phrase "rabbit hole" throughout the song could be seen as a reference to Alice's adventures in Wonderland and the idea of falling into a fantastical world that is both scary and exciting.
Overall, Rabbit Hole seems to be a song about grappling with feelings of disillusionment and detachment, but finding solace in the idea of shared experiences and the potential for creative expression.
Line by Line Meaning
My life
The singer describes their life
Is just a fake
The singer feels like their life is not true to who they are
Put my fist right through these walls
The singer wants to break free from their current situation
If I concentrate
The artist believes they can free themselves if they focus
The paint is wet
The artist is in a place of transition, surrounded by change
But I forget
Despite the changing surroundings, the singer remains lost
I keep drifting off
The singer is not grounded in reality
The floors can't take my weight
The artist feels overwhelmed and unsupported
But my pen moves on, keeps writing
Despite the chaos, the artist continues to create
No mistake
The artist is confident in their art
What we have, we share all in together
The singer values communal experiences
Always come prepared whatever the weather
The artist emphasizes the importance of being ready for anything
I'm late, I'm always late
The singer is perpetually behind schedule
I'm somewhere else
The singer is not present in the moment
Not here and now
The singer is not living in the present
In time and space
The artist feels disconnected from their surroundings
I'm lost on a map
The artist is directionless
Where the satellites won't track
The singer is in an isolated place
In an altered state
The singer is not fully conscious
Which leaves no trace
The artist's experience will not be remembered or recorded
I'm late in time
The artist is running out of time
And lost in space
The artist is adrift and disconnected from their surroundings
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
The 'rabbit hole' is a metaphor for the singer's overwhelming sense of confusion
Ooh, rabbit hole
The artist is expressing their feelings of despair
Ooh, rabbit hole
The singer continues to struggle with their sense of confusion and alienation
Ooh, rabbit hole
The singer is trapped in their own mind
Ooh, rabbit hole, rabbit hole
The repetition emphasizes the extent of the singer's despair and confusion
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
The artist is still struggling to overcome their sense of confusion
Rabbit hole, rabbit hole
The repetition indicates that the artist is stuck in a cycle of confusion and despair
Contributed by Ava S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.