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 ’the Light EP’ consisted of 5 tracks. (http://jamesleeofficial.com/)
Stripmining
James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There are no landmarks you can recognise
Where is the jewel that will never fade
Will not decay with old age
Maybe a death, maybe a depression
Those things you thought you could lean on
Well, if you put your trust in things of dust
You're gonna feel the pain of loss
The pain of loss
When the world swallows whole all you've known
There are no landmarks you can recognise
We've got no understanding of this body's needs
We've got no understanding of real philosophy
We've got no understanding of mortality
So we keep putting our trust in things that rust
And then we feel the pain of loss
Keep putting our trust in things that rust
And then I feel the pain of loss
La la la loss
James's song "Stripmining" is a reflective and introspective piece that delves into the themes of loss, mortality, and understanding the impermanence of our lives. The opening lines convey the feeling of being lost in a world that has changed beyond recognition, where the once familiar landmarks have disappeared. It is a metaphorical representation of the feelings of isolation and disorientation that can come with significant changes in life - be it the loss of a loved one, a job, or the ending of a significant chapter in one's life.
The verses then segue into the questioning of our understanding of life's essential aspects: the needs of our bodies, philosophy, and mortality. James posits that our lack of understanding in these crucial life aspects makes us put our trust in things that are bound to decay, to our detriment. The chorus emphasizes this pain of loss that comes with depending on impermanent things, and the cycle of feeling this pain repeated after each loss. This iteration of the chorus serves as a reminder to the listener that the only constant in life is change and that relying on things of dust is futile.
"Stripmining" is a thought-provoking song that encourages introspection and emphasizes the importance of focusing on life's eternal aspects. It emphasizes that finding the eternal jewels that will not decay with age is more rewarding and fulfilling than putting our trust in things that will rust away.
Line by Line Meaning
When the world swallows whole all you've known
When everything familiar and known to you disappears completely
There are no landmarks you can recognise
You're left without any points of reference
Where is the jewel that will never fade
Is there something that is truly timeless?
Will not decay with old age
That will not lose its value over time
Maybe a death, maybe a depression
Events that will shake you to the core
Those things you thought you could lean on
People, objects, or ideas that you believed would always be there for you
Are suddenly just an impression
They disappear and leave you with nothing to lean on or rely on
Well, if you put your trust in things of dust
If you rely on things that are impermanent and temporary
You're gonna feel the pain of loss
You will experience the hurt that comes with losing something you depended on
When the world swallows whole all you've known
When everything familiar and known to you disappears completely
We've got no understanding of this body's needs
We are not completely aware of what our bodies require
We've got no understanding of real philosophy
We lack a comprehensive understanding of existence and belief systems
We've got no understanding of mortality
We have not completely come to terms with the inevitability of death
So we keep putting our trust in things that rust
We continue to rely on temporary things that will eventually lose their value
And then we feel the pain of loss
And when these things disappear, we feel the hurt of having lost them
Keep putting our trust in things that rust
Continuing to rely on temporary things
And then I feel the pain of loss
The artist personally experiences the hurt of losing temporary things
La la la loss
The repeated use of the phrase 'la la la loss' emphasizes the cyclical nature of the pain of loss
Contributed by Benjamin K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.