- Title: UK: BRITISH GROUP 'JAMES' UNVEIL THEIR NEW SINGLE "DESTINY CALLING"
- Date: 22nd March 1998
- Summary: BOOTH SAYING, "AND SO A LOT OF MY SONGS HAVE BEEN INTERESTED IN THAT PART OF LIFE, THE TORTURED ARTIST. I WROTE A SONG CALLED "JOHNNY YEN" WHO SETS HIMSELF ON FIRE FREQUENTLY FOR THE CROWDS' ENTERTAINMENT AND YOU CAN APPLY THAT TO MOST STARS, ROCK STARS, OF THE LAST TEN YEARS WHO'VE BURNED THEMSELVES OUT. ALL THOSE THINGS REALLY INTEREST ME. THEY'RE THE REALITY OF THE WORLD I LIVE IN. I FIND IT VERY STRANGE. I FIND THE WHOLE MUSIC INDUSTRY MACHINE VERY STRANGE. SOMETIMES I FEEL LIKE A COMMODITY. MOST OF THE TIME I MANAGE TO FEEL QUITE INNOCENT AND I'M WRITING FROM THE HEART AND THAT REACHES PEOPLE AND PEOPLE WRITE TO ME AND SHOW ME THAT THEY'VE RECEIVED IT IN THAT WAY. THEN EVERY SO OFTEN YOU SEE THE MARKETING AND YOU SEE THE PEOPLE BEHIND IT AND YOU THINK 'AM I A COMPLETE FOOL?'" (ENGLISH)
- Embargoed: 6th April 1998 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: Entertainment,General
- Reuters ID: LVA4X4VEVTLDXV752B7GC53A4CUZ
- Story Text: James, the British group responsible for indie greats like "Sit Down", celebrate their 16 years on the music scene with a new album, "Best Of".
The album, a compilation of old and new tracks, was released on Monday (March 23).The new single, "Destiny Calling", was released on March 9.
Despite more than a decade of making music, lead singer Tim Booth says the band hasn't achieved the recognition due to them.During an interview with Reuters, the frontman said the band wouldn't hang up their guitars until they did.
Booth is said to be the man who inspired Noel Gallagher to start a band.Morrissey once called them "the best band in the world" and Brian Eno, who produced one of their most successful albums said, "their best songs rank among the very best of British pop music".
Even with these accolades, Booth insists they still have a long way to go before the band reaches its peak.
Booth hails from a middle-class background in Wakefield, where his father worked in the wool industry.At the age of 13, he was dispatched to a public school in Shrewsbury, which he loathed and was eventually asked to leave.
He worked for a while in a brewery in Tadcaster and then found his way to Manchester University to study drama.
It was in a Manchester disco in 1982 that the other three founder members of James met up with Booth and invited him to join their band called "Model Team International".
The change of name came shortly afterwards -- James was chosen because it gave nothing away.
In their early days, James established a cult following and managed to survive life in Manchester by claiming income support.
Only in 1990 did the band finally hit the big time, with the release of their fourth album "Gold Mother", which contained the catchy single, "Sit Down".
At the same time, other indie bands like Happy Mondays, Inspiral Carpets and The Stone Roses also achieved chart success.
James' success was short-lived.Their next album "Seven", introduced a new sound but it bombed.
The following year they broke into the U.S.music market with the release of "Laid" which sold 60,000 copies.But the follow-up "Wah Wah", a series of ambient jams, put them back to square one.
The band's circumstances hit rock-bottom in 1995 when it discovered it owed huge sums of money to the tax office.
The band then split.
1997 was the year that saw James' luck turn with the release of their "Whiplash" album from which "She's a Star" became a big hit.
Success is snowballing.James' new single "Destiny Calling" entered the UK charts at number 16 and reviews of the band's album have been warm.
The single takes a cynical look at the way the music business treats artsits like bubblegum and includes the lines "Cover us in chocolate, sell us to the neighbours...guess that's the price of fame".
Booth considers the lyrics realistic, saying: "It's a multi-million pound industry and I know I'm a commodity." "I've always been very wary of success and the hollowing effect.People lose their edge and then there of course are seductions," he warned.
"It can easily turn into a nightmare, unless you've got discipline." That scenario is something the band is determined won't happen to them. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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