That was a jolt when I opened Mudcat this morning!

I've known Stan since the late 1950s. I have a flood of memories about him that are all kind of swirling around right now. As I said, a bit of a jolt.

When he sang, he did so with a sort of "got to hell" quality and always with a smile in his voice. The last time I heard him sing, which was just recently, he sounded just as he had some forty-six years ago when he sang at the United Nations Pavilion at the Seattle World's Fair in 1962.

Stan in action in 1962.

And here he is again, with a sort of "signature song." He was forever getting request for this, and the last time I heard him sing it was at the 2008 Northwest Folklife Festival at the end of May.

Soggy Saga, also from the 1962 U. N. Pavilion concerts.

He bought "The Place Next Door," one of the nicest coffeehouses in Seattle, in 1962, redecorated it, and renamed it "The Corroboree." Stan was very much into Australian songs at the time. As "The Place Next Door" it was a very good place to sing, but under Stan's proprietorship it was even better. Being a singer himself, he made everything smooth for the singers he hired.

Stan James was one of the mainstays of folk music in this area. He will indeed be sorely missed!

Don Firth