FRESH WIND SESSION No. 18
JoJo James
Recording Dates: 12 September 2024
KNCE 93.5 FM Premiere: 22 September 2024
Substack Premiere: 26 September 2024
It is commonly said that some singers are joyful birds, while others tend toward tragic themes. I find JoJo James to be the “secret third thing”, as the meme goes: in this case a sultry bird. There’s something irrepressibly sexual about his music, especially when you see it performed live. Often strutting and shaking his hips throughout his songs, moaning his lyrics with a zealous smile on his face - there’s an undeniable joy to James’ musical world, and I’ve seen it change the energy of many a room.
James was born in Lubbock, Texas - which he described to me in our interview as: “the flatlands of the South Plains; home of Buddy Holly, Weylon Jennings, Butch Hancock, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Joe Ely, The Maines Brothers, Bobby Keys, the Original Stubb’s Barbecue; so flat you can stand on a coffee can and watch your dog run away for three days…” His first musical memory was listening to his parents sing each other Hank Williams songs while cooking dinner. By the time he was in elementary school, he ritualistically listened to Willie Nelson cassette tapes in bed before going to sleep. At the age of 10 or 11, he got his first guitar, and has been writing songs consistently since that time.
Though he was part of a number of groups and scenes across Texas, especially while living in Austin for a number of years in the 2010s, James has made a home in Taos for the last six years, slowly developing a loyal local following. Now, at the age of 41, he’s been consumed with recording his first true solo record at the vaunted El Cortez Theatre (formerly owned by Dennis Hopper) in Ranchos De Taos with engineer Johnny Kerry. Rounding out his core band on that record, which should see the light of day in Q1 2025, is Collin Morlock (Fresh Wind Session No. 18) on bass, and Lonnie The Cloud (Fresh Wind Session No. 20) on drums.
Despite the joy that permeates much of James’ music, he’s a singer who knows a thing or two about grief. In his early 30s, he was a caretaker for a number of years for the woman he thought would be his life partner. Instead, he watched her slowly slip away with cancer. Understandably, his musical explorations went on the back burner for a number of years as he pieced his life back together in the aftermath. As he’s slowly built his repertoire back up in Taos, certain songs from his time living in Texas have resurfaced - and five of the seven original songs that James performs during his session originally date back from that era. Along with a cover song that rounds out the session, all of these songs are currently unreleased and unavailable elsewhere.
The newest song in the session, “Dance Floors In The Rough”, is also the most hopeful. Written after a recent heartbreak, its opening lyrics read:
So it spins, a broken record, ‘round and ‘round again
Same old long chorus, and I just can’t pretend
I think it’s time to pick up the tempo, my hearts on the mend
I’m steppin’ out people, watch my stride
Got a new song for my friends to sing along
I’m excited to be able to share this session with you all today, and introduce you to James’ musical world. Follow along on his Instagram @jojojames for information on his forthcoming debut album!
18: Fresh Wind Session No. 33: JoJo James