Hang On / What’s The World / How Was It For You? / Government Walls / Bring A Gun / How Much Suffering / Walking The Ghost / Next Lover / Scarecrow / God Only Knows / Johnny Yen / Hymn From A Village / Whoops / Come Home / Sit Down
Ambitious Beggars
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What’s The World / Sandman / How Was It For You? / Government Walls / Hang On / Scarecrow / Next Lover / Bring A Gun / How Much Suffering / God Only Knows / Walking The Ghost / Stripmine / Johnny Yen / Hymn From A Village / Sit Down / What For
Ambitious Beggars
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Hang On / What’s The World / Sandman / Government Walls / Bring A Gun / How Much Suffering / Walking The Ghost / Stripmine / Scarecrow / God Only Knows / Johnny Yen / Hymn From A Village / Whoops / Come Home / How Was It For You / Sit Down / Top Of The World
Ambitious Beggars
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See attached press clipping.
How Was It For You / What’s The World / Hup-Springs / Government Walls / Don’t Wait That Long / Scarecrow / Walking The Ghost / Hymn From A Village / You Can’t Tell How Much Suffering (On A Face That’s Always Smiling) / Whoops / Next Lover / Johnny Yen / Come Home / Sit Down / Stutter / God Only Knows
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James headlined the festival, with Cud / Man From Delmonte / Bradford / Farm / Hollowmen / And All Because The Lady Loves / Zoot & The Roots / Bridewell Taxis / New Fast Automatic Dafodils / Pale Saints / Treebound Story / Frank Sidebottom
Thankfully James are incredible, pointing the way for modern, tuned-in pop. Rock music of the highest order – and make no mistake, this is rock music of the highest – order can capture the moods and the aspirations of its generation, and James do all of that tonight. As they end “Sit Down” (the entire audience doing precisely the opposite and dancing wildly) to absolutely deafening roars, it’s all I can do to stop the tears rolling down my face.
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See press clipping.
James are a bit of a shock. For a start, Tim Booth no longer has any hair. This, in tandem with his floppy shirt / straitjacket, gives him the look of the domeheaded weirdo who gets hooked up to the mains in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.
“If you want old songs buy the albums,” is his first directive. “This is a new band.”
It sure is, with violinist Saul Davies making all the difference. The songs on the new live album One Man Clapping are transformed by catchy little curlicues of slightly malevolent folk whimsy into songs from underneath floorboards. A new song called Look Strong confounds the band’s cosy image, Johnny Yen and Undertaker both carry knives and Riders is a blur.
Larry Gott, suddenly freed by the arrival of the violinist, who doubles on acoustic guitar, turns out to be an exhilirating slide guitar player on Whoops. And when he and Booth convene for a moving Why So Close, he cuts such a carnivorous figure that his lead singer actually applauds him after the song’s over.
“Baldie,” shouts one 85 percent short-hair
“I may be bald,” replies Booth, “but my hair will return. Your brain may not.”
The encore is Stutter. It is awash with Anglicisms – chirpy vocals, folky rhythms, Maypole structures – but pastoral and harmless it isn’t. It’s staggering.
The old James were pretty bloody incredible. The new one… well, they’re hair-raising.
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