James Johnston | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | James Robert Johnston |
Born | 25 April 1980 |
Origin | Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, Scotland |
Genres | Rock, alternative rock, progressive rock, nu prog, art rock |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instrument(s) | Vocals, bass guitar, synth |
Years active | 1995–present |
Labels | Beggars Banquet, 14th Floor |
James Robert Johnston (born 25 April 1980) is a Scottish bassist, vocalist, and songwriter, best known for his work with Scottish group Biffy Clyro. He is also known as Jim or Jimbo and sometimes signs his name as such.
Johnston was born and raised in Kilmarnock with his twin brother Ben (who became the drummer for Biffy Clyro), and his younger brother, Adam Johnston (who was Biffy Clyro's drum tech [1] ). The first gig he ever attended was Rancid at Glasgow Barrowlands in 1995, when he was fifteen.
Having previously played bass with schoolfriend Simon Neil and brother Ben Johnston in a band called Skrewfish in 1995, [2] the trio moved to Glasgow, and were soon discovered by manager Dee Bahl, and then signed to Beggars Banquet, in 2001.
Johnston plays bass guitar when the conceptual rock duo Marmaduke Duke plays live.
Johnston is fond of cycling, and can often be found cycling around the hills of Ayrshire. [3] Johnston currently resides with his wife in Glasgow, Scotland.
The following is a list of musical equipment used by James Johnston.
Johnston's basses are usually tuned to Biffy Clyro's preferred tuning of (DADG), but sometimes (BADG) for "Pause it and Turn It Up" and (CGCF) for "Living is a Problem Because Everything Dies", as well as "That Golden Rule", "The Captain" and "Got Wrong".
His tech is Dave White
Biffy Clyro are a Scottish rock band that formed in Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, composed of Simon Neil, James Johnston, and Ben Johnston. Currently signed to 14th Floor Records, they have released nine studio albums, six of which reached the top five in the UK Albums Chart, with their sixth studio album, Opposites claiming their first UK No. 1 album. Three consecutive studio albums peaked at number one in the UK official albums chart. After their first three albums, the band expanded their following significantly in 2007 with the release of their fourth album, Puzzle, creating more mainstream songs with simpler rhythms and distancing themselves from the more unusual dissonant style present in their previous three albums. Puzzle peaked at No. 2 on the UK Albums Chart on 16 June 2007. The album went platinum in the UK in 2012, having sold over 300,000 copies.
The Fender Precision Bass is a model of electric bass manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrument usually equipped with a single split-coil humbucking pickup and a one-piece, 20-fret maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard.
The Fender Jazz Bass is the second model of electric bass created by Leo Fender. It is distinct from the Precision Bass in that its tone is brighter and richer in the midrange and treble with less emphasis on the fundamental frequency. The body shape is also different from the Precision Bass, in that the Precision Bass has a symmetrical lower bout on the body, designed after the Telecaster and Stratocaster lines of guitars, while the Jazz Bass has an offset lower bout, mimicking the design aesthetic of the Jaguar and Jazzmaster guitars.
Christopher A. Chaney is an American musician. He is best known as the former bassist of alternative rock band Jane's Addiction, and as a member of Alanis Morissette's touring and recording band for six years. Chaney was also a member of Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders and Camp Freddy. A prolific and versatile session musician, he has played with a variety of recording artists ranging from Joe Cocker, Shakira, Slash, Beth Hart, Adam Lambert, Alanis Morissette, Avril Lavigne, Bryan Adams, Sara Bareilles, Gavin Degraw, Cher, John Fogerty, Lisa Marie Presley, Meat Loaf, Rob Zombie, Romeo Santos, James Blunt, Shinedown, and Celine Dion.
Infinity Land is the third studio album by Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro, released on 4 October 2004 on Beggars Banquet.
The Fender Mustang Bass is an electric bass guitar model produced by Fender. Two variants, the Musicmaster Bass and the Bronco Bass, have also been produced from time to time using the same body and neck shape.
The Fender Jaguar Bass is an electric bass guitar currently manufactured in Mexico by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.
"27" is a song by Scottish band Biffy Clyro from their 2002 debut album, Blackened Sky. It was the band's first single on Beggars Banquet, released on 9 April 2001 in the United Kingdom. Although the song did not reach the top 100 on the UK Singles Chart, it managed to peak at number 43 on the UK Indie Chart.
"Joy.Discovery.Invention" is a song by Biffy Clyro which opens their 2002 debut album, Blackened Sky. It was their fourth single, appearing as a double A-side with "Toys, Toys, Toys, Choke, Toys, Toys, Toys", a track from their second album, The Vertigo of Bliss. It reached number 86 on the UK Singles Chart and number 46 in the band's native Scotland.
"Questions and Answers" is a song by Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro, and was the second single to be released from their 2003 album, The Vertigo of Bliss; It was their first single to enter the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, reaching a peak of number 26. It was also their first top-ten single in their home country, reaching number nine on the Scottish Singles Chart. The music video, directed by Bradley Beesley and Dan Brown, was recorded with Simon Neil in a wheelchair after he broke his foot the night before the video shoot at a gig by jumping off the PA system. Brown said of the making of the video: "Brad and I flew to London in March of 2003 to shoot a video for Biffy Clyro. We had very little money so we shot the video on DV, transferred the video to 35mm film and had a friend scratch animation on the films negative. He also painted frames with sharpies to give it a retro/psychedelic feel. I brought my small sony handycam and shot home movies during the shoot. This was the first of three videos we made for Simon, James and Ben. Who were, without a doubt, the absolute best to work with."
Puzzle is the fourth studio album by Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro, released 4 June 2007 – the album was later released in America in August. It is the band's first album since leaving Beggars Banquet.
"Saturday Superhouse" is a song by Biffy Clyro and the first physical single from their fourth album, Puzzle. It was released on 5 March 2007. The band undertook a promotional tour of UK HMV stores to coincide with the release of the single.
Simon Alexander Neil is a Scottish vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter.
Ben Hamilton Johnston is a drummer, vocalist, and songwriter, best known for his work with Scottish group Biffy Clyro.
Singles 2001–2005 is a compilation album by Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro, released 7 July 2008. The album features singles from the band's time with former label, Beggars Banquet.
Revolutions: Live At Wembley is the first full-length live album by Scottish alternative rock band Biffy Clyro, released on 27 June 2011 on 14th Floor Records. The album was recorded live on 4 December 2010 at the Wembley Arena date of their UK tour.
Balance, Not Symmetry is a soundtrack album by Scottish alternative rock band Biffy Clyro to the film of the same name, co-written by the band's frontman Simon Neil. Recorded at AIR Studios in England, Monnow Valley Studio in Wales and ICP Studios in Belgium with co-producer Adam Noble, it was released on 17 May 2019 by Warner Bros. Records. Initially available only for digital download and streaming, the album was also issued as a vinyl record on 26 July 2019.
MTV Unplugged: Live at Roundhouse, London is the third live album and second video by Scottish alternative rock band Biffy Clyro. Recorded at the band's one-off acoustic show on 8 November 2017 at the Roundhouse in London as part of MTV Unplugged, it was released on 25 May 2018 by 14th Floor and Warner Bros. Records. The video was directed by Sam Wrench, produced by Sian Larkin & Executive Produced for MTV by Jeremy Davies. The show won Best Live Concert at the 2018 UK Music Video Awards. Four recordings from the release were issued as digital download singles.