Hi Folks

I am very honoured to announce that legendary Blues and ragtime guitarist John James, appearing @ The Fraser Centre, Douglas St, Milngavie G62 6PE on Saturday 9th May 2009. This is John first visit to Scotland for some time!! Therefore a rare opportunity to see a true guitar genius in concert!!

Doors: 7.30pm

Tickets: £10

Tickets Available: Art Forum, Station Rd or Milngavie Bookshop, Douglas St (Both Milngavie)

John James Biography
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John James is a Welsh acoustic guitarist specialising in blues, folk, and jazz. He is an exponent of ragtime guitar playing.

John James was born in Lampeter, Wales at the tail end of the nineteen forties and is a guitarist with an international reputation having entertained audiences all over Britain, Europe and the USA for over 25 years. A leading figure on the acoustic music scene of the 1970's, John has recorded over 15 albums (including several duet albums with John Renbourn, Stefan Grossman and Pete Berryman) and also presented and guested on numerous TV and radio shows in both the UK and further afield.

John James, today remains one of the most accomplished and entertaining of guitarists. He has brought the art of fingerpicking/fingerstyle guitar from the initial acclaim of dedicated guitar fans to the appreciation of a wider audience.

John encompasses numerous music genres - folk, jazz, swing, ragtime, blues and a lot in-between and he really seems comfortable with even the most intriguing and difficult pieces. Add to this that classical composer Fernando Sor also found a way into John James' newest release "Guitar Greats: John James" for Stoptime Recordings and you will appreciate what a truly great and diverse musician he really is.

John still lives in South Wales and besides being a fantastic guitarist he also has a very dry sense of humour which makes his shows a bit out of the ordinary.

John started of playing guitar at the age of 12 and spent a lot of time in local Pop and R&B bands but later focused on solo acoustic guitar. With Peter Berryman, John recorded the most innovative acoustic guitar album of the time - "Sky in My Pie" - and later went on to perform at the Royal Albert Hall, Olympia Paris and The Other End in New York to name a few.

In the nineteen eighties he was hugely influential as the 'Ragtime Guitar' columnist for 'Guitar International' magazine. He has produced teaching cassettes for Homespun Tapes and produced a top selling Guitar video for Virgin Vision. John James has toured worldwide performing solo concerts as well as successful collaborations with fellow 'giant of the guitar' John Renbourn and the renowned British blues sax player Dick Heckstall-Smith. In addition he has worked with performers as diverse as Led Zeppelin, Ralph McTell and Jools Holland. He has worked with numerous other top guitar players including Happy Traum, and Eddie Walker but is mainly famed for his solo guitar pieces. They include transcriptions of Scott Joplin and other classical piano rags as well as instrumentals from John's own hands.

The resurgence of interest being shown today in the 'Guitar and its history' has John James in the vanguard of the current scene as one of the most accomplished and entertaining of guitarists playing around the world today. He is a hugely entertaining and accomplished performer with a sense of humour and repartee that has been likened to Billy Connolly. The Melody Maker once dubbed him 'the human side of guitar wizardry' and 'Wizardry' is what his playing is - a must to see in concert !!