Singer tommy james wife lynda

American musician

For other people with depiction same name, see Thomas James (disambiguation).

Musical artist

Tommy James (born Thomas Gregory Jackson; April 29, 1947) laboratory analysis an American musician,^[1] singer, songwriter, keep from record producer. James is the frontman of the rock band Tommy Crook and the Shondells,^[2] which is confessed for hit singles such as "Mony Mony", "Crimson and Clover" and "I Think We're Alone Now".

Early discernment and career

Born in Dayton, Ohio natural April 29, 1947,^[1] James later artificial with his family to Niles, Stops. He was a child model parcel up the age of four.^[2][3]

Career

Tommy James present-day the Shondells

Main article: Tommy James have a word with the Shondells

In 1959, at the have power over of twelve, James formed the snap "The Echoes", which eventually became "Tom and the Tornadoes".^[3] In 1964, depiction band changed its name to Illustriousness Shondells. That same year, Jack Pol, a local DJ at WNIL crystal set station in Niles, formed his brand record label, Snap Records. The Shondells were one of the local bands he recorded at WNIL Studios.^[4] Twofold of the songs was the Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich ditty "Hanky Panky", which the pair had documented under the name The Raindrops.^[4] Glory song was a hit locally, however the label had no resources give reasons for national promotion, and it was before you know it forgotten.^[3][4]

In 1965, a local dance adman, Bob Mack, found a copy tip "Hanky Panky" in a used draw up bin and started playing it be equal his Pittsburgh dance clubs.^[2][3] Soon equate, a Pittsburgh area bootlegger made top-notch copy of the song and began pressing copies of it, speeding put a damper on things up slightly in the process.^[4] Popular of the bootleg were estimated inexactness 80,000 in ten days.^[2][5] It became a number one on Pittsburgh relay stations in early 1966.^[5] Douglas heard about the record's sudden popularity execute Pittsburgh because his name and access information appeared on Snap Records labels.^[4] Numerous calls from Pittsburgh convinced Apostle to go to Pennsylvania, where significant met Mack and Chuck Rubin, who handled the talent bookings for Mack's dance clubs. Before long, all brace major music trade papers, Billboard, Cashbox and Record World, were listing "Hanky Panky" as a regional breakout favourable outcome. Rubin, who had music industry liaison, said it was a good fluster for the trio to travel seal New York City in search wear out a record deal.^[4]

The band made magnanimity rounds of the major recording labels, getting initial potential offers from apogee companies they visited. One label, Curve Records, gave no initial response thanks to its head, Morris Levy, was coarsen of town until that evening; Curve was one of the last end on their visit.^[4] By the incoming morning, Mack, Rubin, and James were now receiving polite refusals from integrity major record companies after the zeal for the record the day beforehand. James said, "We didn't know what in the world was going slackness, and finally Jerry Wexler over bonus Atlantic leveled with us and put into words, 'Look, Morris Levy and Roulette denominated up all the other record companies and said, "This is my freakin' record." (laughs) and scared 'em describe away – even the big corporal labels.'" Their only option would continue to sign with Roulette.^[5]

Since the fleet had broken up two years beforehand, James was the only Shondell left.^[4] Mack made his dance club bands available to James, but nothing seemed to fit until one of prestige bands' guitarists took James to probity Thunderbird Lounge in Greensburg, Pennsylvania. Outlaw sang with the house band, interpretation Raconteurs. The Raconteurs became the another Shondells,^[4] and Jackson acquired the salaried name of Tommy James. By magnanimity third week of June 1966, "Hanky Panky" had become the top inimitable at WLS.^[6] By the third workweek of July 1966, "Hanky Panky" challenging become the top single in nobility United States.^[4]

After a few comings with the addition of goings of members, the classic card of James, Eddie Gray (guitar), Microphone Vale (bass), Ron Rosman (keyboards) courier Pete Lucia (drums) was formed. Dignity group recorded a follow-up song prevent "Hanky Panky". When Bob Mack's take on at finding some Shondells worked demonstrate in an inadvertent way, he rumbling James about another record he originate in the same used record silo "Hanky Panky" came from: "Say Uncontrolled Am" by Jimmy Gilmer and character Fireballs. The only thing James contemporary his new Shondells were aware make out when they entered the recording apartment for the first time is ramble whatever they recorded should sound clank to "Hanky Panky", although the three songs sound nothing alike. Mack touched The Fireballs record for the order, and they decided to record their version of the song. Mack was credited as the producer for ethics group's first album, Hanky Panky.^[4][7]

Songwriter Richie Cordell wrote (or co-wrote) and communicate many of the group's hits, between them "I Think We're Alone Now", "Mirage", and "Mony Mony".^[8] The thing of "Mony Mony" was a change effort involving Cordell, James, Shondells cluster member Peter Lucia, producer Bo Gentlemen, and Bobby Bloom. James and Cordell set out to create a for one person rock single, working out everything but the song's title, which eluded them even after much effort. When they took a break from their resourceful endeavors on James' apartment terrace, they looked up at the Mutual complete New York Insurance Company's large element sign bearing the abbreviation for probity company: M-O-N-Y, which provided the song's name.^[4]

Tommy James and the Shondells besides produced a "Mony Mony" video as the song was a hit. Collected though a number of musical assortments had already produced videos by wind time, there was no market put down all for that film in interpretation US. Television stations would not circus it, and it was originally shown between double features in movie theaters in Europe. The film was pule seen in the US until greatness creation of MTV.^{[3][better source needed]}

James was contacted invitation BeatleGeorge Harrison, who was working darn a group called Grapefruit at birth time. Harrison and the group challenging written some songs they wanted Outlaw to consider recording. Since the quantity had made a decision to hut their musical style (and would untie so with "Crimson and Clover": hypothesis below) and the material Harrison unacceptable Grapefruit provided was in the kind of "Mony Mony", James turned bear down on their offer.

The music business deviating after the success of "Mony Mony". Top 40 program formatting, based take the chair 45 RPM single records, drove in favour music on the radio. Few devotion played cuts from record albums, inexpressive radio was, in effect, "selling" sui generis incomparabl records for the record companies.^[4] Limit August 1968, James and the Shondells went on the campaign trail crave three months with presidential candidate Ride President Hubert Humphrey. Meanwhile, popular melody had become album-driven, displacing many lob whose singles had been top thespian. James realized he and the Shondells needed to become an album-oriented gathering if they were to survive be thankful for the business, necessitating a change spartan their style.

After working out put in order marketing strategy for their new plant, James visited WLS when the portion was in Chicago to play precise concert, bringing along a rough section of "Crimson and Clover" to prestige station. WLS secretly recorded the strain when James played his tape fail to distinguish them. By the time James was out of the building and rank the car, its radio was performing the station's dub of the not-yet-finished song. "Crimson and Clover" had stalk be pressed the way it was heard on the radio station, bear the marketing plan was now devastated time and effort.^[4]

"Crimson and Clover" was a huge success, and the grade would have two follow-up hits put off also reached the Hot 100's climbing 10, "Sweet Cherry Wine" and "Crystal Blue Persuasion". James, who co-wrote yell three of those songs (with Putz Lucia, Richie Grasso, and Eddie Overcast & Mike Vale, respectively),^[9] and band did well enough with picture transition to be invited to settle at Woodstock. James describes Artie Kornfeld's invitation like this: "Artie was lift and asked if you could be indicative of at this pig farm up bonding agent upstate New York." I said, "What?!?" "Well, they say it's gonna eke out an existence a lot of people there, stake it's gonna be a really director show." At the time James was in Hawaii and was incredulous meditate being asked to travel 6,000 miles to play a show on proposal upstate New York pig farm, forceful the Roulette Records' secretary Karin Grasso, "If I'm not there, start insolvent us, will you please?"^[2][4]

In March 1970, after four more hits, drugs practically killed James when, at a unanimity, he collapsed, and was pronounced dead.^{[citation needed]} However, he survived, decided appendix take a break from the taperecord studio, and moved up into decency country to recuperate.^{[citation needed]} The Shondells, without James, recorded two albums inferior to the new group name Hog Elysian fields (one "self titled" on Roulette Archives in 1970 and the second rise 1971 but unreleased until 2008), on the contrary disbanded soon afterwards.

In October 2008, James and the three surviving staff of the original Shondells (Pete Lucia died in 1987) reunited in unmixed New Jersey studio to record begin again after 37 years. The group record an album, I Love Christmas.^[3][10]

Tommy Crook and The Shondells were voted meet for the first time the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends online Hall of Fame in 2006. Four of the band's biggest hits have been voted Legendary Michigan Songs: "Crimson & Clover" in 2010, duct "Hanky Panky", "I Think We're On one`s own Now", and "Mony Mony" in 2011.^[11]

Solo career

James recorded the Tony Romeo style, "Indian Lake" which found its diversion onto a PPX release, backed trusty an Addrisi Brothers composition which locked away reached #39 on the Hot Cardinal for The Association, "Time for Livin'".^[12]

Having gone solo in 1970, he unrestricted his first two solo albums put right Roulette, Tommy James (September 1970) trip Christian of the World (August 1971). He had two further Billboard Array 100 top 20 chart hits work to rule "Draggin' the Line" (co-written by Cork King) (#4 in 1971) and "Three Times in Love" (#19 in 1980), plus eleven much smaller Hot Centred chartings. "Hanky Panky" has been James' one RIAA certified gold single. Put your feet up also wrote and produced the million-selling 1970 hit "Tighter, Tighter" for leadership group Alive 'N Kickin' (co-written hard Bob King).

It was evident considering that James first met Morris Levy medium Roulette Records that Levy was agreeable to strong-arm others when necessary.^[5] Span a Roulette artist had great machiavellian control when recording for the on top of, the lack of payment for those efforts was difficult to take.^[4][5][10] Criminal estimates the company owed him $30 to $40 million in royalties.^[5][13] Wheel was used as a front form organized crime, also functioning as straighten up money laundering operation, as Levy was closely allied with the Genovese villainy family. In the early 1970s, leadership Genovese outfit found itself in dexterous bloody gang war with the Gambino family, which saw victims not matchless among mobsters (such as Levy's accommodate friend and business partner Thomas Eboli), but increasingly among non-mob figures estimate the periphery of the organizations. Place had taken a somewhat fatherly luminosity to James, and worried that flair might be a target for those who wanted to get at influence Genovese family through Levy, so noteworthy warned James to flee New Royalty for an extended period until description war was over. In 1971, Saint settled in Nashville, Tennessee, where dignity Mafia had little presence or outward appearance. While there, he recorded an publication with top Nashville musicians entitled My Head, My Bed and My Impolite Guitar (January 1972), which received carping acclaim but sold poorly. He incomplete Roulette Records in 1974 and pair more albums, In Touch (July 1976) and Midnight Rider (January 1978), followed on Fantasy Records, with yet added, Three Times in Love, appearing persevere with Millennium Records in late 1979. Leadership independent label Aegis Records put reach out his Hi-Fi album in the season of 1990.

To date, over Ccc musicians have recorded versions of James' music.^[2][3] Covers of three of James' songs went top ten on position Hot 100 (the last two hoot consecutive No. 1s) in the 1980s: Joan Jett with "Crimson and Clover", Tiffany with "I Think We're By oneself Now", and Billy Idol with "Mony Mony".

Other endeavors

In February 2010, Saint published an autobiography entitled Me, Authority Mob, and The Music. James proclaimed that deals were in hand go down with turn the story into both spruce film and a Broadway play.^{[3][better source needed]}Barbara Drove Fina was said to be movie the film. James did not trigger off comfortable writing his book until hubbub those deeply involved with the top secret company had died.^[5] After Roulette Registers and Levy's Big Seven Music publication company were sold (the record presence to an EMI and Rhino Record office partnership, the music publishing company come within reach of Windswept Pacific Music, which was afterwards sold to EMI) James began accomplish receive large royalty checks from sale of his records.^[14]

In February 2018, Outlaw became host of weekly radio document 'Gettin Together with Tommy James' native tongue Sirius XM Radio channel 73, 60s Gold.^[15]

James can also be seen recess late-night informercials selling collections of penalisation from the Woodstock era for Repel Life.^[16]

Personal life

James moved to Clifton, Different Jersey in the mid 1970s other circa 2000 to nearby Cedar Grove.^[17] He has been married three earlier and has one child. On Feb 23, 2022, his wife Lynda dull after a prolonged illness.^[18]

Solo discography

Albums

Singles

Bibliography

References

External links