Tim Booth, fundador e líder dos James, tornou oficial a decisão de abandonar a banda no final da actual da digressão europeia. Os espectáculos de 23 e 24 de Novembro, nos Coliseus de Lisboa e Porto, são a última oportunidade que o público português tem de ver os James ao vivo, acompanhados pelo seu vocalista de sempre. Ao cabo de vinte anos de carreira, Tim Booth acha preferível retirar-se antes de entrar num período de possível decadência dos James. Tim vai agora entregar-se à formação criativa, através de workshops, e provavelmente vai dar início a uma carreira a solo. Quanto aos restantes membros estão ainda a reflectir sobre o futuro da banda, sendo que a vontade de compôr permanece. No entanto o futuro dos James é ainda incerto.
Tag Archives: Pleased To Meet You
James Wortlaut Biography
“Some … had wrongly assumed that James was a band rather than a person, something that James himself had politely but firmly put right in thousands of interviews.”
Unglaublich, dass eine Band, deren Auflistung des Line-Ups und der Line-Up-Changes eine knappe Seite ausmacht, so etwas von sich behauptet!
Aber nun mal von Anfang an: 1980 trafen sich vier junge Männer – Jim Glennie (Bass), Larry Gott (Gitarre), Gavan Whelan (Schlagzeug) und Paul Gilberston (Gitarre) an der Manchester University. Fehlte nur noch ein Sänger. Die ersten Gigs spielte man noch mit weiblicher Stimme und änderte für jede Show den Namen. “Model Team International” hießen sie zum Beispiel gerade Mal für die 30 Minuten, die ihr Gig dauerte. In dieser Zeit konnten sie schon The Fall für sich begeistern und diese bei einem Gig in Manchester supporten.
1982 entdeckten die Vier dann Tim Booth in einer Uni-Disko in Manchester. Ob sie dort versuchten seinen Drink zu klauen, oder ihn beim Tanzen entdeckten ist nicht geklärt. Auf jeden Fall war er von nun an Leadsänger der Band. Und auch der endgültige Name ließ nicht mehr lange auf sich warten: Für eine der Shows gaben sie sich dann den Namen “James” und als sie ihn für die nächste wieder ändern wollten, mussten sie feststellen, dass sie schon als “James” angekündigt waren. Und so blieb es dabei. Doch noch bevor sie ihre erste Platte aufnehmen konnten, verließ Paul die Band, da sowohl er als auch die Band mit seinen Drogenproblemen nicht mehr zurecht kamen.
Im November 1982 bietet sich eine große Chance für James: Sie supporten New Order in ihrer Heimatstadt. Im Oktober 1983 folgt ihre erste John Peel Session für Radio One, im Dezember spielen sie noch mal als Vorband für New Order, diesmal jedoch in London. Im November 1984 und von Februar bis April 1985 fungieren sie auf der Tour ihrer Vorbilder The Smiths als Special Guests.
Der Plattendeal, den sie mit “Factory Records” 1985 abschließen, hält nicht wirklich lange. Man entschließt sich, noch im selben Jahr zum Label “Sire” zu wechseln. Auf diesem veröffentlichen sie 1986 ihr Debutalbum “Sutter”. Für das zweite Album “Stripmine” braucht die Band fast ein Jahr, erst im September 1988 wird es fertig. Ihr Label “Sire” versucht unterdessen, James für weitere fünf Alben zu verpflichten, was die Band ablehnt und prompt wieder labellos ist.
Nachdem man ohnehin schon Probleme mit dem Drummer hatte, treibt dieser die schlechte Stimmung auf die Spitze: Auf einem Konzert Ende 1988 versucht Gavan Sänger Tim in eine Schlägerei zu verwickeln, was das Ende seiner Karriere bei James zur Folge hatte. 1989 macht man mit Dave Baynton-Power am Schlagzeug weiter. Er ist nicht das einzige neue Mitglied in der Band, Saul Davies wird als neuer Gitarrist, der gleichzeitig auch Geige spielt (ja, Violine in einer Popband!) engagiert. “One Man Clapping” wird im März rausgebracht. Kurz darauf verstärkt man den typischen James-Sound durch die Keyboards Mark Hunters.
Für ihre folgenden Singles plus ein Album unterschreiben James einen Vertrag bei “Rough Trade”. Noch vor den Aufnahmen zur nächsten CD stößt ein weiteres Mitglied zu James: Trompeter Andy Diagram macht den Sound der Band noch unverwechselbarer. Ihre Single “Sit Down” wird in England ein riesiger Hit und schafft es auf Platz zwei der Charts, auch das Album “Gold Mother” toppt.
Man entscheidet sich schon vor Veröffentlichung des Albums, nicht weiter bei “Rough Trade” unter Vertrag zu bleiben und wechselt 1990 zu “Fontana Records”. Dort wird auch das Album “Seven” veröffentlicht, das wohl als erfolgreichstes James-Album (Platz zwei der englischen Charts) gelten kann. Eine Schwemme von Single-Auskopplungen folgen dem Longplayer an die Chartsspitze.
Unmengen von Festival-Auftritten, sowie der erste Trip nach Amerika folgen. Man supportet David Bowie, The Cure und Neil Youngs US-Tour. Hier wird auch der Kontakt zu Brian Eno hergestellt, der sich später bereit erklärt, auch James-Alben zu produzieren. Die Alben “Wah Wah” und “Laid” werden innerhalb von nur sechs Wochen in Bath eingespielt. Danach kommen plötzlich Gerüchte auf, die Band habe sich aufgelöst. Die Wahrheit sieht so aus: Sänger Tims Nebenprojekt “Booth And The Bad Angel” mit dem Film-Komponist Angelo Badalamenti hatte Prioriät. Das war alles. Und das Folgealbum “Whiplash” beweist endgültig das Gegenteil.
Doch plötzlich plagt die Band andere Sorgen: Bei einem Check der Finanzen stellt sich heraus, dass James auf einem unüberschaubaren Schuldenberg sitzen. Folgerichtig erscheint 1998 erst einmal ein “Best Of”-Album. Die folgenden Tourneen sind auch ausverkauft und James trauen sich wieder an ein neues Studio-Album heran. Ende 1999 veröffentlicht man “Millionaires”. Während die erste Single “Just Like Fred Astaire” erwartungsfroh in die Top 20 der Charts schnellt, schafft es “We’re Going To Miss You” nicht einmal in die Top 40. Ihr frischer Release “Pleased To Meet You” steht seit Sommer 2001 den Regalen.
Ob das Album James den Status der “Millionaires” beschert hat, darf bezweifelt werden, denn im Oktober wird der Ausstieg des Sängers Tim Booth bekannt gegeben. Booth möchte weiterhin Musik machen, kann sich aber auch vorstellen, Workshops zu leiten oder ins Schauspielfach hinein zu schnuppern. Sein Ausstieg beziehe sich nicht auf interne Probleme. Im Gegenteil werde er die Zeit zwischen 1999 und 2001 als die freundschaftlichste der Karriere und die kreativste seit “Laid” in Erinnerung behalten. Die übrigen Mitglieder wollen in einer noch nicht geregelten Form weitermachen. Die letzte Tour im alten Line Up geht im Dezember 2001 in England über die Bühnen.
Tim Booth Leaves James – Go For Music
James singer Tim Booth will leave the group at the end of the year. The group’s UK gig in December will be their final one with the current line-up. Booth disclosed the information on a post on the group’s official Web site. “After much deliberation I have decided to leave James. I want to stop while we are on top. I feel proud of everything we have done”, Booth said. However, his departure will not lead to a dissolution because the remaining members of James plan to continue making music together. Booth is currently writing a screen play and is planning to act. The Manchester-based group released 11 albums as well as many Top Forty singles. “When we started the band, we said we’d give it a year and see how it went. Nobody would have thought that we would still be there 20 years later,” Booth said.
Final Tour For James – Scene One Feature
Tim Booth bows out of everyone’s favourite vegan-political-bloke band at the end of this tour…
James vocalist Tim Booth has said that he will leave the band once their current tour is finished.
In an announcement on the band’s website (www.jamestheband.com) Booth said: “After much deliberation I have decided it’s time for me to leave James. I am leaving on a high. The tour is selling well and will be a great farewell party. For the last two years we have been getting on better with each other than ever before. We have made a CD (current LP ‘Pleased To Meet You’) that I believe to be our best since ‘Laid’; So why am I leaving? Well because I want to stop while we are on top. And I am leaving because it feels like THE RIGHT TIME.”
Booth said he was working on a screenplay and planning ‘creativity workshops’.
Further details will be on his web-site timbooth.net. In September it was announced that James had split from their label Fontana after ‘Pleased To Meet You’ fulfilled the demands of their contract. The band will release one more LP on Fontana, a b-sides LP ‘Now That’s What I Call B-Sides Vol. 1’ scheduled for next year.
James tour dates:
Dec 2 Brighton Centre.
Dec 3 Leeds University.
Dec 4 Newcastle Arena.
Dec 6 Birmingham NEC.
Dec 7 Manchester Arena.
Dec 9 Glasgow SECC.
Dec 10 Wembley Arena.
Tim Booth vai abandonar os James – Discodigital (in Portuguese)
O líder e vocalista dos James, Tim Booth, deverá abandonar a banda britânica após a digressão de «Pleased To Meet You», a qual vai passar por Lisboa a 23 de Novembro.
Num depoimento que se pode ler no site oficial dos James, Tim Booth sublinha que deseja sair enquanto a banda está no topo da carreira: «Quero deixar boas recordações sabendo que estou orgulhoso de quase tudo o que fizemos».
«Após muitas deliberações, achei que chegou o momento de abandonar os James. Quando começámos, tínhamos decidido tocar um ano e ver como corria. Se alguém me dissesse que íamos durar 20 anos ter-lhe-ia perguntado que tipo de drogas andava a tomar», explica Booth.
Na mesma declaração ao site, Tim Booth adianta que está a preparar uma longa-metragem e que espera dar workshops de criatividade, sendo que as novidades da sua carreira a solo poderão ser acompanhadas em www.timbooth.net (a ser inaugurado em Dezembro).
A concretizar-se a saída de Booth, a crise nos James acentua-se, uma vez que a banda está sem editora desde que a Mercury Records decidiu não renovar o contrato que unia as duas entidades.
Formados em 1982 em Manchester (Inglaterra), os James são liderados desde sempre por Tim Booth e ao longo da sua carreira criaram alguns dos temas mais conhecidos da pop da última década como «Sit Down», «Laid» e «Born Of Frustration».
Tim Booth Lascia I James – Rock Star Online (in Italian)
Un’altra brutta notizia arriva dall’Inghilterra, il cantante dei James (nella foto) ha deciso di lasciare la band a fine anno.
I Coldplay non si sopportano più, i Divine Comedy si sono sciolti, Wes Borland se n’è andato dai Limp Bizkit e anche Xabier ha lasciato gli Afterhours.
Negli ultimi quindici giorni solo Tom Waits e Billy Corgan ci hanno dato delle soddisfazioni.
Adesso il futuro è incerto anche per i James, band non molto conosciuta in Italia ma molto apprezzata in patria; il cantante ha deciso di lasciare il carrozzone dopo quasi 20 anni di carriera: “Se mi dicevate che saremo durati tutto questo tempo vi avrei chiesto che droga usavate” spiega Tim Booth con un comunicato sul loro sito ufficiale.
I motivi della dipartita non sono chiarissimi, spiega invece il momento: “Volevo lasciare i James nel momento più alto della nostra carriera, mi volevo sentire fiero per quello che ho fatto.
Me ne vado perché questo è il momento giusto”.
Booth ha deciso di fare l’ultimo tour con il suo gruppo e a fine Dicembre si dedicherà, molto probabilmente, alla carriera di attore.
I James continueranno a fare musica.
Tim Booth Announces Plans To Leave James – Ananova
Tim Booth has announced James’ upcoming tour will be his last with the band.
The singer says he is ‘midway through a screen play’ and is ‘looking forward to teaching creativity workshops, to act and create some new music’.
The remaining band members are to continue making music together although the future of James itself is uncertain.
Booth begins his statement on James’ official site saying their latest album is their ‘best since Laid’.
He also states the band are ‘getting on better with each other than ever before’.
“So why am I leaving? Well because I want to stop while we are on top. To leave great memories knowing that I feel proud of just about everything we have done.”
He has also sent thanks to everyone connected to the band, including the fans.
“The quality of your listening has enabled us to produce quality. Your faith in us has lifted us to higher levels.
“It seems like you have managed to always see us through the smokescreen of hipness and cool that the music industry is drowning in.”
Tim Booth Decide Abandonar James – Ocio (in Spanish)
El cantante de James, Tim Booth, ha anunciado su intención de abandonar la banda en cuanto finalicen su actual gira. El resto de los miembros de James continuarán trabajando juntos y darán a conocer proximamente en un comunicado sus planes de futuro.
“¿Por qué me marcho? Pues simplemente porque quiero irme cuando estoy arriba, para llevarme un buen recuerdo y sentirme orgulloso de lo que he estado haciendo todos estos años”, explica Tim Booth en la página oficial de la banda. El cantante cree que éste “es el momento justo” para irse y que su decisión responde a una intuición y a sus ganas de hacer cosas nuevas, aunque ya adelanta que “la prensa tratará de encontrar otras razones”.
Booth está actualmente escribiendo un guión y trabajando en nuevos temas. A partir de diciembre contará detalladamente cómo le va su nueva vida en una página web que lanzará con la dirección de “timbooth.net”. “No sé lo que hará ahora el resto de la banda, sólo quiero agradecerles todos estos años en los que hemos trabajado juntos y que se hayan tomado mi marcha tan bien”, añade el músico. “La calidad de vuestra escucha nos ha animado a producir música de calidad. Vuestra confianza en nosotros nos ha elevado a los niveles más altos. Es como si hubiéseis sido capaces de valorarnos más allá de toda la industria que rodea a la música. Gracias por escucharnos”, le dice a sus fans.
A pesar de todo, James continuarán con su actual gira hasta finales de año. En noviembre serán España y Portugal los destinos de la banda. El día 22 tocarán en Madrid (La Riviera) en un concierto-maratón junto a Eels, Sexie Sadie y Cecilia Ann. El 23 y 24 de noviembre tocarán en Lisboa y en Oporto, respectivamente, mientras que durante el mes de Diciembre recorrerán siete ciudades británicas. El Wembley Arena será la última cita de James con Tim. No podría tener una mejor despedida.
“Las entradas para los conciertos del tour se están vendiendo muy bien, no podría tener una mejor fiesta de despedida. En los últimos dos años nos hemos llevado cada vez mejor y hemos hecho un álbum (‘Please to meet you’) al que considero nuestro mejor trabajo desde ‘Laid’, digan lo que digan las críticas”, se despide el líder de James.
Han sido 20 años en la música, 10 álbumes de estudio, un grandes éxitos que ha llegado a vender un millón de copias… y una actitud de rechazo total de la industria. Tras todo este tiempo, y a pesar de sus altibajos, sólo se han ganado la admiración y respeto de su público y del resto de las bandas. Tim, te echaremos de menos.
Yahoo Musique : James Revient Dans Les Bacs Le 3 Decembre (in French)
Le groupe James a confirmé que son prochain album, B-sides Ultra , devrait sortir le 3 décembre prochain.
Ce nouvel album est composé de 18 morceaux choisis parmi les faces B de singles sortis ces dix dernières années. Par ailleurs, le groupe a pour projet la sortie de nouvelles éditions des albums God Mother, Seven ainsi que Laid et Whiplash .
BBC Manchester Biography
James are often accused of being underachievers, of failing to fulfil the potential they had and not becoming as big as, say, U2. The accusations are wrong, very wrong, and the success of the band’s Best Of album in 1998 is as big a signpost as any to their popularity and achievements.
Contrary to popular belief, James were more than just lead singer Tim Booth. There is also David Baynton-Power on drums and percussion, Jim Glennie on bass guitar and backing vocals, Saul Davies on guitars and violin, Mark Hunter on keyboards, Adrian Oxxal on guitars, and Michael Kulas on backing vocals, guitar and percussion.
The James story is one of various record labels, bad luck and brilliant songs. They began, as so many bands did, on Factory, putting out their first two singles on the label in 1983. But by 1986, they’d moved to Sire to release their debut album, Stutter.
Having replaced drummer Gavan Whelan and added David, Saul, Mark and trumpeter Andy Diagram, the band released second album Strip-mine and a critically acclaimed live album, One Man Clapping and promptly signed for Phonogram.
The year was 1989 and the world began to notice James with the release of their Gold Mother album, complete with the brilliant albatross that was Sit Down. The band broke through and followed the release up with the million selling Seven in 1992.
They went on to recruit Brian Eno for their next album, a move that turned into a masterstroke when the subsequent product was the immense Laid (and it’s sister project Wah Wah), and album that also broke them in the USA.
At the cusp of greatness, Black Thursday happened. While recording the next album, Whiplash, in America, founding member Larry Gott announced he would no longer tour with James, Tim announced his plans to record his long-stalled solo project, and the UK taxman announced the unfortunate discovery of an overlooked James debt of roughly £150,000.
Despite the subsequent Greatest Hits album and two more albums, Millionaires and Pleased To Meet You, it was a blow that James never seemed to recover from. Tim Booth announced he would be leaving the band after their 2001 tour. Where that leaves the rest of the band is something we’ll just have to wait to see.
Things you might not know:
– James recorded a version of Ring The Bells for the X-Files series at a studio in Hollywood that was powered exclusively by solar energy.
– Four months after they had left the label, James received a fax from Sire demanding to know why they’d released the self-financed One Man Clapping album.
– Larry Gott doesn’t appear in the Born Of Frustration video. He was mugged the day before the shoot and sent the band manager dressed as him to take his place!
Aftershow Press Release
James Aftershow Party Press Release
7th December: Quay Bar, Manchester
Gig aftershow parties are for the press, promoters and publicity merchants. Sometimes the band turn up. What about the people who make it all possible, the ones that pour their hard earned cash into the tickets, the merchandise and travelling over massive distances, the ones that excite others through word of mouth, the ones that dedicate themselves to the band – the fans? They are barred from such events. Eleven o’clock rolls around, the gig finished, the night has just begun, leave the venue in a state of ecstacy, out in to a strange city all revved up for a big night out, with no-where to go.
Aftershow.co.uk is changing that by providing parties for the fans. The hugely successful Depeche Mode Aftershow parties in London, Birmingham and Manchester, have caused considerable demand for more. The NEC has even enquired about playing host to the Birmingham parties. Each party is arranged around the fans. Band merchandise is given out, classic band posters are framed on the walls, an avid fan is always in the DJ line up, photo’s of the night’s gig are printed at high speed and made available at the party, and the website displays photos of the parties for fans to download pictures of themselves and their mates having a damn fine time.
Manchester’s next Aftershow party is on December 7th at the Quay Bar (Deansgate, Castlefield. Tel: 839 8803) straight after the James gig at the MEN arena. Ex-Haçienda resident, Madchester oracle and best selling author of Manchester, England, Dave Haslam, will be DJing and has agreed to sign copies of his books for a short time after his set.
Tickets are £6 (plus booking fee) from Piccadilly Box office in Virgin Megastore (tel: 832 1111) or ticketline.co.uk. 50 tickets are always held back for the door in case old friends meet up and only some have bought in advance. To pay on the door, get there as soon as you can as they go very fast.
Plastica Na Primeir Parte dos James – Music Net Portugal (in Portuguese)
PLÁSTICA NA PRIMEIR PARTE DOS JAMES
7 de Novembro de 2001
As primeiras partes dos concertos dos James em Portugal vão ser conduzidas pelos portugueses Plástica, que ficaram conhecidos com o lançamento da colectânea Optimus 2000, onde participaram com o tema “Baby Gasoline”, e que já partilharam o palco com o grupo liderado por Tim Booth em Maio de 2000.
De recordar que os James vão estar em concerto nos dias 23 e 24 deste mês, nos Coliseus de Lisboa e Porto, respectivamente. Os concertos estão inseridos na última digressão que reunirá os James com a actual formação, já que Booth anunciou que iria deixar o grupo assim que as correntes datas terminassem.
Entretanto, noutras notícias relacionadas com os Plástica, o grupo anunciou na passada sexta-feira ter realizado um contrato com a EMI. Através do mesmo, o grupo de Almada irá editar quatro álbuns, sendo que o primeiro está já a ser gravado. A produção está a cargo do britânico Rick Pest, e o primeiro single está previsto para Fevereiro de 2002. Antes, o público poderá conhecer o novo tema através da rádio, onde irá passar já a partir do mês de Dezembro.