Biography
Northstar / First studio session / Eddie St.James Project
It all began in the early 1960s, as a young child after hearing and seeing one of the first Beatles performances on The Ed Sullivan Show . Soon afterwards at the age of eight years, St. James had the guitar in his hands and at age 15 began to perform at friends' birthday and garage parties as he gathered his first experiences and honorary. During 1978 and 1979 in his High School years he was also a (drum) and general roadie for his friend's band, the drummer Marti Frederiksen, who would later go on to become the successful songwriter and record producer for such groups as Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, Carrier Underwood, Mick Jagger- among many other top musical acts. [3] In the mid 1980s, he joined a local glam metal act called Northstar formed in L.A. Ca., in the late 1970s, [4] a band that during the height of the Hollywood Sunset Strip era in the mid 80's opened for such groups as: Great White, Warrant, Poison, Guns N' Roses, etc. The group also achieved status as a headliner at all the well-known clubs such as Gazzarri's (where The Doors and Van Halen got their start), The Roxy, The Country Club, and The Troubador, etc., but failed to generate a lucrative record deal. As an interesting side note, the group recorded their very first one song demo, written by St.James (City Lights- featured on L.A.'s KWEST radio program "local seeds") at Lelan Zales’ [5] (songwriter; title track / album Serious Slammin'- The Pointer Sisters, and session drummer for such groups as Earth, Wind and Fire, Welten Felder, Mr.Fiddler and Parlament Funk-etc.) private studios in Los Angeles, California in 1985. The sessions were engineered by Ryo Okumoto, who would later become the keyboard player in 1996 for the "Prog-Rock" band Spocks Beard. Northstar went on in 1986 to record a twp song demo (Push Comes To Shove and Take It To The Limit ),written and produced by St.James with the sessions being recorded at Hit Man Studios in Hollywood, the demos were also featured on local radio stations KMET and KNAC. Subsequently shortly after the Northstar sessions in 1985, St. James was then invited by Zales to work together along with Roland Bautista (Earth, Wind & Fire), John Pena (Simon Phillips) among others, on a Ruth Pointer (The Pointer Sisters) solo album, a heavy synthesizer funk style project (working title: Ruthless) in the same year. „There were approximately five or six song demos completed, I was asked to work on the lyrics and melodies plus add some guitar to some of the tracks, which I did. A couple of months into the project, the producer called me over to tell me that the project had been cancelled by the record label (RCA) and her manager Richard Perry at that time. Apparently they did not want Ruth to release any solo material, which to this day (2017) she has never done. It’s was a shame, the songs were incredibly good, there was easily a hit or two somewhere in there. In the same time period, there followed a generous offer to audition for Parliament Funk, which I regret to this day that I did not accept“. In 1989, he began a solo career with the Eddie St. James Project as well as doing some studio work for other artists; this same year saw the release of the Capitol supported album Out of nowhere. The album was recorded at Red Zone Studios, North Hollywood at the exact same time as the band Slaughter (Mark Slaughter / Dana Strum) previously of the Vinnie Vincent Invasion, were doing their 1st album in studio B. The album Out Of Nowhere was also mentioned in Billboard Magazine (September 2, 1989 Edition / Pg.60- Pro Audio Report: Los Angeles) [6] as well as in Music Connection Magazine (Aug.07-20,1989 Edition / Pg.18, Audio Report: Red Zone Studios) in conjunction with the Slaughter album. The ESJ album with St.James as executive producer was then mixed at Hit City West in Los Angeles by none other than academy award winning sound engineer Kevin "Kvoc" O'Connell and mastered at Capitol Records, Hollywood by Ron McMaster. There was one video made for the song She's On Her Way that was aired only briefly at the time on MTV Europe and has bis dato never been released to the general public.
The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. With members John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, they became regarded as the foremost and most influential band in history. Rooted in skiffle, beat and 1950s rock and roll, the group were integral to pop music's evolution into an art form and to the development of the counterculture of the 1960s. They often incorporated classical elements, older pop forms and unconventional recording techniques in innovative ways, and later experimented with several musical styles ranging from pop ballads and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock. As the members continued to draw influences from a variety of cultural sources, their musical and lyrical sophistication grew, and they were seen as an embodiment of the era's sociocultural movements.
The Ed Sullivan Show was an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the CBS Sunday Night Movie.
Martin Harold "Marti" Frederiksen is an American songwriter, record producer, and musician. He writes and produces music primarily in rock, country, and pop. He is best known for his work with many artists and bands including The Struts, Aerosmith, Gavin Rossdale, Carrie Underwood, Buckcherry, Daughtry, Ozzy Osbourne, Mötley Crüe and Faith Hill. He's also well known for performing the lead vocals for the fictitious band Stillwater in the movie Almost Famous.
Projects / studio sessions / move to Europe
By 1991, St. James reformed the band with Steff Fontaine, Marc Droubay [7] and Wayne Hutsell. The band played a few dates with changes occurring in the lineup and even opened for Lynch Mob (George Lynch, guitar ex-Dokken) on part of the wicked sensation tour and shortly thereafter the ESJ project dissolved. St. James is also an ex-member of the Jon Dunmore Band and performed on two Jon Dunmore CDs – Hypnotica (ClearAudiorecords-1994) [8] which also features performances by Kelly Keagy (drums: Night Ranger), Phil Soussan (bass: ex-Ozzy Osbourne, Vince Neil, Billy Idol, etc.), Mayron Grombacher (drums: Pat Benatar), Bobby Gianetti (bass: ex-Edgar Winter, Dave Mason) and Kris Gustofson (drums). In 1995, St. James worked concurrently on the second Jon Dunmore CD entitled Baptized by fire (Seagul/Semaphore Records-1995), [9] while also at the same time contributing guitar and backing vocals for the actor Richard Grieco (actor: 21 Jump Street , A Night at the Roxbury etc.) CD- Waiting For The Sky To Fall (Edel Records-1995) [10] recorded in part at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles, California with these sessions being engineered by Chris Minto (Kiss, Santana, Herbie Hancock, Sammy Hagar-etc.). [11] The song Voice With No Name from the same album hit the No. 2 position on the Swiss Hit Parade Charts as part of a compilation CD titled BRAVO SUPER SHOW VOL. 1 [12] as well as the GUTE ZEITEN - SCHLECHTE ZEITEN 3 - DIE HITS ZUR SERIE compilation CD going to Nr.1 on the Swiss Charts and Nr.5 on the Austrian Charts. [13] Some previous members of the Eddie St. James Band include: Steff Fontaine (vocals, ex-Uriah Heep), Marc Droubay (drums: Survivor), Bobby Gianetti (bass) and Wayne Hutsell (bass: ex-Swift kick, Tracy G.(Dio)). In 1998, St. James was also shortly involved as guitarist with American singer/ songwriter Mark Pont, previous frontman for Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods (whose hits include "Billy Don’t Be A Hero" and "Who Do You Think You Are“), [14] on the independently released CD Flying. In an interview, St. James stated that he moved to Germany with just $250 in his pocket, one suitcase full of clothes and three guitars and nothing else. [7] Since 1996 the area of Mannheim / Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany has become his home base and to date, St. James continued with his solo career and is currently fronting his own group Eddie St. James as lead vocalist and guitarist. The ESJ Band makes regular stage, television appearances and radio broadcasts in Europe. The group was featured at the FIFA Soccer WM2006 in Kaiserlautern, Germany – in the main stage programme along with Reamonn, Xavier Naidoo and Revolverheld, etc. St. James also does a one-man acoustic rock show called Eddie St. James' Akustik-Underground.
George Lynch is an American hard rock guitarist and songwriter. Lynch is best known for his work with heavy metal band Dokken and his post-Dokken solo band, Lynch Mob. Lynch is considered to be one of the most influential and famous 1980s metal guitarists. He is known for his unique playing style and sound. He is ranked #68 on "100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time" by Guitar World magazine and is also ranked #10 on "Top 10 Metal Guitarists Of All Time" by Gibson.
Dokken is an American metal band formed in 1979. It split up in 1989 and reformed four years later. The band had many charting singles like and have sold more than 10 million albums worldwide. The live album Beast from the East was nominated for the inaugural Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 1989.
Night Ranger is an American rock band from San Francisco formed in 1979 that gained popularity during the 1980s with a series of albums and singles. The band's first five albums sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and have sold 17 million albums total. The quintet is best known for the power ballad "Sister Christian", which peaked at No. 5 in June 1984.
London (part one)
As of June 2006, St. James also became the new guitarist–songwriter for the newly reformed London alongside Nadir D'Priest (vocals). [15] The "New" London is currently working on song demos for a new CD as well as some live dates in the US and Europe in 2007. St.James was involved as a songwriter in conjunction with the singer Nadir D'Priest during 2006-2007 and due to scheduling conflicts unable to work in person with the group. Some of the duo's compositions are now being showcased by the group as stipulated in a U.S. on air radio interview by the singer Nadir D'Priest.
London is an American heavy metal band formed in Hollywood, California in 1978. The band included several members that would go on to play in more famous bands, such as Mötley Crüe, Guns N' Roses, W.A.S.P. and Cinderella.
Solo releases
In 2009 (newspaper: Rhein Pfalz, Germany) reported St. James is working on a new ESJ album entitled Streets Cry Freedom with drummers John "JR" Robinson, (Michael Jackson-etc.) and Bernie Pershey (Edgar Winter, Walter Trout), along with Spencer Sercombe (Shark Island / Michael Schenker) and Hagen Grohe (Joe Perry Project) [16] in co-production with Michael Leukel. Streets Cry Freedom was officially released in Europe in December 2013 and worldwide in January 2014, [17] with international distribution through PhonoNet Europe.
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American singer, songwriter, and dancer. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is widely regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century and one of the greatest entertainers of all time. He was also known for his unorthodox lifestyle, residing in a private amusement park he called Neverland Ranch, and often becoming the focus of tabloid scrutiny. Jackson's contributions to music, dance, and fashion, along with his publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular culture for over four decades.
Bernard Pershey is an American drummer and record producer.
Edgar Holland Winter is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for being a multi-instrumentalist — keyboardist, guitarist, saxophonist and percussionist — as well as a singer. His success peaked in the 1970s with his band, The Edgar Winter Group, and their popular songs "Frankenstein" and "Free Ride".
London (part two)
In late August 2015, St. James was contacted by none other than Nadir D'Priest and asked to help out as co-writer and guitarist on the new and forthcoming London album, which also at the onset of the recording included such luminaries as: Chris Sanders (Lizzy Borden, Britny Fox, Ratt), Ronee Pena (Nadir Solo Band), Alan Krigger (Giuffria, Ike & Tina Turner, Brian Wilson), Tony Cavazo (Hurricane, Snow), Jack Frost (7 Witches), Chris Holmes (W.A.S.P.), Mike Varney (Shrapnel records) as well as members of the Bob Welch Band. [18] St.James recorded his tracks for 4 songs (titled: "Call That Girl", "Reach Up To The Sky", "You're Still The One" and "I Don't Know / Ayer Te Sone Aqui") in Europe and completed his part of the recording by the end of September 2015. The song "I Don't Know / Ayer Te Sone Aqui" which also features Mike Varney on rhythm guitar and on which St. James arranged and performed all the main guitar parts was on the initial release of the album incorrectly credited to the wrong musician. The band London (doing the main tracking in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Nevada-USA ) has in the meantime gone through several musician, producer and studio personnel changes and as of date continues to work on the album and has announced that it plans to release the new cd, entitled Call That Girl which is also the title track, sometime in 2018 [19] . The album was officially finished in mid 2018 and officially released on Jul.17.2018. The Group's new cd / album has been reported to have been produced by Dennis Ward (Pink Cream 69) [20] also the same producer / bassist for the 2018 Gus G. (ex-Ozzy Osbourne) release Fearless [21]
Lizzy Borden is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983. To date, the band has charted on the Billboard 200 four times. Lizzy Borden is eponymous of the band's lead vocalist.
Britny Fox is an American glam metal band from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area, initially active from 1985 to 1992 then subsequently reforming from 2000 to 2008 and then again reforming in 2015. They are best known for their music video for "Girlschool" and their minor hit "Long Way to Love".
Ratt is an American heavy metal band that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is perhaps best known for hit singles such as "Round and Round" and "Lay It Down", tracks that ranked on Billboard's top 40 at No. 12 and No. 40, respectively, as well as other songs such as "Wanted Man", "You're in Love" and "Dance". Along with groups such as friendly rivals Mötley Crüe, Ratt has been recognized as instrumental in the formation of the early 1980s Los Angeles glam metal scene, also known as "hair metal" or "pop metal".
Trance
St.James joins forces in August 2016 with German metal band Trance (not to be confused with "Trancemission") as second guitarist alongside founding members Markus Berger and Thomas Klein, including two other newer members: Neudi (Manilla Road) and Jens Gellner (Masters of Disguise). The group rehearsed for two months and then went immediately out on tour in October 2016 with three warm up shows and then joined Udo Dirkschneider (Accept) as support [22] along with Vicious Rumors on the last leg of the Back to the Roots European part of the Dirkschneider world tour in December 2016. [23] Trance has also recorded a brand new album entitled The Loser Strikes Back [24] which was issued in March 2017, and was also concurrently the start of the next European wide tour for the band. The album The Loser Strikes Back entered the German Top 100 Charts on 7 April 2017 and reached position 98.
2018
Trance joined Anvil (from Feb-Mar.2018) on their 40th Anniversary Tour "Pounding the Pavement" [25] european leg of the tour (21 dates / 7 countries) through Belgium, France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark. Trance is also reported to be featuring a new frontman by the name of Nick Holleman (ex-Vicious Rumors) [26] (german language). The group Trance also featured in addition to a new frontman and for the first time since the mid 1990s, three original members of the band, which included co-founding member / drummer Jürgen Baum alongside Markus Berger and Thomas Klein. The tour line-up for Trance: Nick Holleman (voc), Markus Berger (git.), Thomas Klein (bass), Eddie St.James (git.), Neudi (drums) and Jürgen Baum (drums).
Current ESJ Band lineup
- Eddie St. James: Vocals / guitar
- Michael Leukel: Keyboarder/ b.v.
Notable Ex-ESJ Band members
