James were formed in 1982 in Whalley Range, Manchester, when Paul Gilbertson persuaded his friend Jim Glennie to buy a bass guitar and form a band with him. Their line-up solidified when Gavan Whelan joined on drums, and they played a string of gigs under the names Venereal and the Diseases and Volume Distortion before settling on the name of Model Team International, then shortened to Model Team. They performed mostly improvised material derived from jam sessions, supporting The Fall at an early gig at Manchester Polytechnic, and their line-up remained fluid, with vocalists and other musicians drifting rapidly in and out, until the band encountered Tim Booth at a student disco. Gilbertson invited him to the band's scout hut in Withington to join them as a dancer, but he was soon promoted to lead singer, and in August 1982, after a brief period under the name Tribal Outlook, the band renamed themselves James, after rejecting Tim, Paul and Gavan (too heavy metal). A gig at the Haçienda caught the attention of Tony Wilson of Factory Records, and he offered the band an album deal with Factory, but they were worried about tarnishing their material in the studio and settled instead for a three-track EP. Their debut release, the 'Jimone EP', was recorded at Strawberry Studios, Stockport, in August 1983 and released on Factory Records in September, and it led to the band providing support for The Smiths between February and April 1985 on the Meat is Murder tour.
Although they were now being touted as the "next big thing", several complex issues slowed their progress, particularly Gilbertson's drug problems, which presented the band with no choice but to ask him to leave, while Booth and Glennie had joined a sect named Lifewave, that imposed many restrictions on their lifestyle and threatened the band's stability. Gilbertson was replaced by the band's guitar tutor Larry Gott, and their second EP, 'James II', was released over a year after the first, and was accompanied by a feature on the cover of the NME. Reviews were once again positive, and Factory were eager for James to record an album with them, but the band believed Factory were purely image-based and left the label, striking a deal with Sire Records. Their third release, the 'Sit Down EP' (no relation to the song of that name) came out in February 1986 and was followed by their debut album, 'Stutter', in July of that year, which reached number 68 in the UK Albums Chart. Low on money and lacking coverage and promotion, the band recorded their second album, 'Strip-mine', and attempted a more conventional song structure in an attempt to please Sire, but the album almost went unreleased, until after a slight remix to make it sound more radio-friendly, Sire released it in September 1988, over a year after its initial completion. It didn't fare as well as their first, only reaching number 90 in the UK albums chart, and after finding a clause for ending their contract, the band left Sire. In November 1988, Whelan became involved in an on-stage fight with Booth and was asked to leave the band, being replaced by David Baynton-Power a few months later.
During the following year James greatly expanded their line-up and sound palette by hiring three new members: guitarist-violinist-percussionist Saul Davies (whom Gott recruited from an amateur blues night), keyboard player Mark Hunter, and ex-Pale Fountains trumpeter/percussionist Andy Diagram, and this new seven-piece line-up went into the studio to record their third album. Before it was released, the singles 'Sit Down' and 'Come Home' became strong hits in the independent charts, and the latter featured on the compilation album 'Happy Daze'. The album 'Gold Mother' was intended to be released on Rough Trade, but owner Geoff Travis believed James could only reach an audience of 20,000 to 30,000, although the band believed they had more potential than this and bought the rights to the album from Rough Trade. A successful winter tour in 1989 attracted a deal with Fontana Records, and 'Gold Mother' was released in June 1990 just as the 'Madchester' movement, with its wave of popular Manchester-based indie bands, brought James to public attention and won them mainstream recognition. Top 40 hit singles followed, and the band's newfound success was re-affirmed when they played two sold-out dates at the Manchester G-Mex at the end of the year. In March 1991, the popularity of 'Sit Down' led to a re-recorded version being released as a single, reaching number 2 in the UK Singles Chart. The band spent the rest of the year recording their next album, 'Seven', which was released in February 1992, reaching number 2 in the UK Albums Chart, after which the band embarked on their first Stateside tour. They returned to England refreshed and ready to record their new album with Brian Eno, whom they had originally approached to produce 'Stutter', but who had been unavailable. Eno set about bringing out the ambience in their music, and took them through a recording process that the band later described as a "journey of self-discovery".
The process resulted in not one but two albums: the "song" album 'Laid' and the experimental 'Wah Wah', which showcased the band's improvised jams recorded on the spot then mixed by Eno, with Booth's vocals later being added to the results. 'Laid' was released in September 1993 to positive reviews, and as well as being a success in the UK, it also broke the band in the US, shipping over 600,000 copies and charting at number 72 in the Billboard 200.
The band spent most of 1994 touring the States, and when 'Wah Wah' was eventually released in September 1994 it was to a lukewarm reception. Rhe recording of the follow-up album faced difficulties from the start, with two key members of the James organisation resigning: guitarist and key composer Larry Gott, and manager Martine McDonagh. Booth also announced that he wished to take a break in order to record an album with Angelo Badalamenti, and then in 1995 the band discovered they owed a £250,000 tax bill. Determined to continue despite the setbacks, the band set up studio in Baynton-Power's house, and former Sharkboy guitarist Adrian Oxaal was drafted in to replace Gott, while Booth returned periodically from the States to add his vocals. 'Whiplash' appeared in February 1997, and proved to be a successful comeback album, reaching the UK top 10, as did the single 'She's A Star', and the band toured to promote the album, recruiting Michael Kulas as rhythm guitarist while in the States. Booth suffered a neck injury while dancing on stage in the US, resulting in a series of tour dates being cancelled as he underwent emergency surgery, and the band being offered a place instead on the Lollapalooza tour.
The band then returned to the studio to begin work on their next album, 'Millionaires', which was released in October 1999. The album did not reach the phenomenal sales level predicted, but still entered the UK Album charts at number 2, and sold over 150,000 copies. After the disappointing performance of 'Millionaires' the band chose to start anew in their approach to their next album, working with Eno once again, and they spent most of 2000 writing songs, then performing them live before actually recording them. The album, 'Pleased To Meet You', was released in July 2001, but only reached number 11, which was the lowest position for a James studio album since their signing to Fontana. Shortly after their last album release, James reached the end of their contract, and Booth announced he was leaving the band to concentrate on other projects of his own. They played a farewell tour of the UK at the end of the year, and their final hometown gig, at the Manchester Evening News arena on 7 December, was recorded for a live CD and DVD, 'Getting Away With It... Live'. The albums 'Gold Mother', 'Laid', and 'Whiplash' were re-released by Mercury Records the following year, all containing bonus tracks, and the 18-track B-sides compilation 'B-Sides Ultra' came out the following year. Although the band reformed in 2007 for a series of live shows, which later evolved into a full-blown re-union and further album releases, this seems the perfect point to pause and post this massively upgraded version of that b-sides collection, now expanded to a five-disc set of every non-album track that the band recorded up to 2001.
Track listing
Disc I - 1983-1989
01 What's The World (from the 'Jimone' single 1983)
02 Fire So Close (from the 'Jimone' single 1983)
03 Folklore (from the 'Jimone' single 1983)
04 Hymn From A Village (from the 'James II' single 1985)
05 If Things Were Perfect (from the 'James II' single 1985)
06 Chain Mail (single 1986)
07 Hup Springs (b-side of 'Chain Mail')
08 Uprising (b-side of 'Chain Mail')
09 Justhipper (b-side of 'So Many Ways' 1986)
10 Island Swing (b-side of 'What For? 1988)
11 Mosquito (b-side of 'Ya Ho' 1988)
12 Left Out Of Her Will (b-side of 'Ya Ho' 1988)
13 New Nature (b-side of 'Ya Ho' 1988)
14 Promised Land (b-side of 'Come Home' 1989)
15 Slow Right Down (demo) (b-side of 'Come Home' 1989)
Disc II - 1989-1990
01 Sit Down (single 1989)
02 Sky Is Falling (b-side of 'Sit Down')
03 Goin' Away (b-side of 'Sit Down')
04 Sound Investment (b-side of 'Sit Down')
05 Weather Change (demo) (included free with the 1990 James souvenir tour programme)
06 Whoops (Live) (b-side of 'How Was It For You' 1990)
07 Lazy (b-side of 'How Was It For You' 1990)
08 Undertaker (b-side of 'How Was It For You' 1990)
09 Dreaming Up Tomorrow (b-side of 'Come Home (Flood Mix)' 1990)
10 Fireaway (b-side of 'Come Home (Flood Mix)' 1990)
11 Lose Control (single 1990)
12 Sunday Morning (b-side of 'Lose Control')
Disc III - 1991-1993
01 All My Sons (b-side of 'Sound' 1991)
02 Tonight (b-side of 'Sit Down' 1991)
03 Be My Prayer (b-side of 'Born Of Frustration' 1992)
04 Fight (b-side of 'Ring The Bells' 1992)
05 Once A Friend (b-side of 'Ring The Bells' 1992)
06 Goalies Ball (b-side of 'Seven (Remix)' 1992)
07 William Burroughs (b-side of 'Seven (Remix)' 1992)
08 Still Alive (b-side of 'Seven (Remix)' 1992)
09 America (b-side of 'Sometimes' 1993)
10 Building A Charge (b-side of 'Sometimes' 1993)
11 Wah Wah Kits (b-side of 'Laid' 1993)
12 The Lake (b-side of 'Laid' 1993)
13 Seconds Away (b-side of 'Laid' 1993)
14 Assassin (b-side of 'Jam J' 1993)
Disc IV - 1997-1998
01 Chunney Chops (b-side of 'She's Star' 1997)
02 Van Gogh's Dog (b-side of 'She's Star' 1997)
03 Your Story (b-side of 'Waltzing Along' 1997)
04 Where You Gonna Run? (b-side of 'Waltzing Along' 1997)
05 Long To Be Right (b-side of 'Waltzing Along' 1997)
06 Gone Too Far (b-side of 'Tomorrow' 1997)
07 Honest Pleasure (b-side of 'Tomorrow' 1997)
08 All One To Me (b-side of 'Tomorrow' 1997)
09 Fishknives (b-side of 'Tomorrow' 1997)
10 Runaground (single 1998)
11 Egoiste (b-side of 'Runaground')
12 Destiny Calling (single 1998)
Disc V - 1999-2001
01 I Defeat (b-side of 'Just Like Fred Astaire' 1999)
02 Long To See (b-side of 'Just Like Fred Astaire' 1999)
03 Mary (b-side of 'Just Like Fred Astaire' 1999)
04 Goal Goal Goal (b-side of 'Just Like Fred Astaire' 1999)
05 All Good Boys (b-side of 'I Know What I'm Here For' 1999)
06 Imagine Ourselves (b-side of 'I Know What I'm Here For' 1999)
07 Downstairs (b-side of 'I Know What I'm Here For' 1999)
08 Stolen Horse (b-side of 'I Know What I'm Here For' 1999)
09 Wisdom Of The Throat (b-side of 'We're Going To MIss You' 1999)
10 Pocketful Of Lemons (b-side of 'We're Going To MIss You' 1999)
11 Make It Alright (b-side of 'Getting Away With It (All Messed Up)' 2001
12 So Swell (b-side of 'Getting Away With It (All Messed Up)' 2001
13 Stand (b-side of 'Getting Away With It (All Messed Up)' 2001
