‘Ullapool helps me recover from life in rock band James’

Jonathan Geddes

BBC Scotland News

As a band they have partied through Madchester, experienced Britpop and watched streaming take over the music industry.

But indie pop veterans James might never have made it that far without a supply of Scottish support.

The band’s bassist Jim Glennie believes the group were encouraged to keep going in their early years because gigs in Scotland were so good.

And Jim, the group’s only remaining original member, has another reason to feel fond of Scotland – as he has spent the past 25 years living in Ullapool, a place that provides a relaxing contrast to life on the road.

“Outside of Manchester there’s no place that’s been as devoted to us as Scotland”, reflects Jim.

“In the early days, when no-one was interested, it was amazing to come to play shows in Scotland and to have a boost of ‘we must be doing something right, loads of people are coming to shows here and loving it!’

“That fuelled us – Manchester and Scotland gave us a feeling we were doing the right thing so we should keep on going.

“It was a long period to reach Sit Down [the band’s No 2 hit in 1991], and there were a lot of conversations before then about whether to keep going and whether we were making progress.”

The band did keep on going, from early days that featured constant line-up changes and record label fallings-out to a 90s packed full of hits.

After breaking up in 2002 and reforming five years later, the group have enjoyed a prolific second life, releasing several albums and last year enjoying their first ever chart-topper with their 18th record, Yummy.

“I was surprised how much it meant to me,” says Jim.

“I’ve got used to giving my runners-up speech over the years, I think we’ve had three, number three albums and four number two albums so getting to number one was a complete shock, a ridiculously pleasant surprise.

“It was a real joy to think that there are people we are still connecting with.”

Jim has had a long connection with Ullapool, starting when he visited the area on holiday with his parents.

Around the turn of the millennium he found himself the last James member still living in Manchester, and wondered about moving to Scotland for a spell.

And 25 years later, he’s still here.

“I love it as a contrast to the bonkers world of James. Often I’ll travel from Inverness, and coming back into the airport after a tour feels like the weight coming off my shoulders.

“The drive to Ullapool is stunning and it’s like therapy to me, like someone giving me a massage for half an hour.

“Everything else just dissolves into unimportance at that point and a big smile comes on my face. It feeds both my physical and mental health.”

Despite the full-on nature of life in James, the group’s desire to keep making new music is as strong as ever.

Work on a new album is already under way and Jim believes it’s crucial the band stays fresh, rather than just relying on old familiar hits like Laid and Say Something.

“It’s that buzz of going into a room and creating something from nothing and getting all excited about taking it into the big bad world”, he says.

“We want to keep being relevant and keep challenging ourselves. We also always want to change from album to album, so that’s not the easiest path through the industry – but it’s why we’re still here.

“You have to do what you need to do to survive and make this work. If you get dragged along by doing exactly what the industry wants then you’ll just be destroyed.”

The band veered close to destruction on several occasions, including discovering they owed hundreds of thousands of unpaid tax in the mid-90s, and a period when Jim says “relationships were getting messed up”.

“We were being childish and silly and selfish, and were very close to messing the whole thing up,” he recalls.

“It’s ridiculous when it’s the best job on the planet pretty much, and to blow it through being childish is really shooting yourself in the foot. But good gigs remind you there is still something worth fighting for.”

Next on the group’s gigging list is the Pavilion festival in Ayr – the event curated by local DJ Ewan McVivar that’s now in its third year.

However, it comes at a difficult time for festivals in general, as the music industry still recovers from a turbulent few years.

“The industry’s been battered with Covid and Brexit. There’s huge pressure on festivals and people don’t have an endless supply of money now.

“There’s so much uncertainty, which is a shame, because people need an uplift in their life, the collective joy they get from something like a festival or a football match. That shared experience can be something that’s so euphoric.”

For Jim, the creative arts need support from governments, to ensure that people can get involved – whether it’s music, theatre or dance.

“It’s a way out of people’s problems and issues, and it can give them hope,” he argues.

“It can give a voice to people from disadvantaged backgrounds and right across the board, there is no support given to that.

“There seems to be no recognition of the importance in that to society. Helping kids into music seems a no brainer to me and it seems to be ignored by government after government.”

Jim knows of what he speaks – last year he found himself onstage at Greece’s legendary Acropolis theatre, performing a special James gig with a orchestra and gospel choir.

“We’d been trying for years as they only give so many permits a year. It was so hot they closed it three days later – but it was amazing to do, a real pinch me moment. I fancy the pyramids next.”