Folklore: The official history of James(2000)

Stuart Maconie

James have been a bizarre, quixotic feature on the British musical landscape for over 15 years. The band fell together in their native Manchester in the mid-eighties and quickly became one of the leading lights of the British music scene. As the nineties developed, James penetrated the mainstream and became consistent chart-toppers while never losing the credibility earned by the quizzical intensity of their talismanic singer Tim Booth. James have now been a totem for two generations of alternative music fans, and they have entered the new millennium with their fire burning as brightly as ever. This official biography has been written after over a year of research and copious interviews with all surviving and former band members.