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/)
Walking The Ghost
James Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Not one for yes but two for no
Some spirit is unsatisfied
From watching her world spin out of control
At night she goes walking around her old home
Objecting to how it's all changed
She preferred her arrangements to the ones which we have made
Walking the ghost
Walking the ghost
There's baggage on my shoulders
Making me stoop bending my frame
My neck is crocked lopsided
I will never be tall again
At night she goes walking around her old home
You can feel so much sadness wrapped up in her bones
I can feel so much sadness wrapped up in her bones
Walking the ghost
Walking the ghost
Walking the ghost
I'm sensitive to unkindness
Stab in the back burn in the ribs
I need your fingers to straighten my flesh
I hope your fingers are kind
Walking the ghost
Walking the ghost
Walking the ghost
In "Walking the Ghost," James describes a spirit that visits him at night, knocking at his window. The spirit is unhappy with the changes that have happened to her old home and can be felt walking around the premises. James evokes the image of someone who is dissatisfied, particularly with the way things have turned out, and is unable to let go of her former life. The spirit walking around the old home implies that she may have died without coming to terms with her loss and is therefore unable to move on to the afterlife, hence she is walking around as a ghost.
The song's lyrics explore themes of loss, nostalgia, and longing while delving into the complexities of emotions related to grief. James paints a picture of someone who is experiencing the inherent pain of loss and the need to cling onto memories. The lyrics "There's baggage on my shoulders, making me stoop bending my frame, my neck is crooked lopsided, I will never be tall again" describe the physical pain that comes with carrying grief. James also touches on the complexities of human behavior, expressing the need for kindness through the lines "I'm sensitive to unkindness, stab in the back burn in the ribs, I need your fingers to straighten my flesh, I hope your fingers are kind."
Overall, "Walking the Ghost" is a poignant and moving song that speaks to the struggles of grief and the importance of kindness.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a knocking at my window
Something is trying to communicate with me through my window
Not one for yes but two for no
The spirit is communicating through knocks, with two meaning no and one meaning yes
Some spirit is unsatisfied
The spirit is not at peace or content
From watching her world spin out of control
The spirit is watching helplessly as her world changes for the worse
At night she goes walking around her old home
The spirit roams the place she once called home
Objecting to how it's all changed
The spirit does not approve of the changes that have taken place
She preferred her arrangements to the ones which we have made
The spirit liked how things were before the changes
Walking the ghost
The spirit's restlessness causes her to continually roam as a ghost
There's baggage on my shoulders
I carry a lot of emotional weight that's weighing me down
Making me stoop bending my frame
The emotional weight is physically affecting my posture
My neck is crocked lopsided
I am physically affected by the emotional weight I carry
I will never be tall again
I will never be as strong and confident as I once was
You can feel so much sadness wrapped up in her bones
The spirit is full of sadness and this manifests physically
I can feel so much sadness wrapped up in her bones
I am sensitive to the sadness the spirit carries
I'm sensitive to unkindness
I am easily affected by cruel or hurtful behavior
Stab in the back burn in the ribs
I am hurt by betrayals and they affect me deeply
I need your fingers to straighten my flesh
I need someone to help me heal and lift the weight I carry
I hope your fingers are kind
I hope the person who helps me is gentle and caring
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: JAMES GLENNIE, LAWRENCE GOTT, TIMOTHY BOOTH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind