James Simpson Biography
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James Simpson Mannheimer Str. 102 +49-(0)174-9101-767 $olid Rock Production$ 68309 Mannheim [email protected] Germany www.simpsonsound.com ________________________________________________ Instruments Organ, Keyboards, Drums Endorsements Kurzweil, Voce Inc. Professional 13 years Biography _______________________________ Over the years, I've had the opportunity to record and share the stage with some of the best and most innovative musicians in the history of recorded music, worldwide. Some legends and some local heroes. All of them are my heroes. I've learned so much from each and every one of them. I'd like to thank them all for allowing me the chance to be a part of history. As a kid, I was happy when I could afford a used Ramsey Lewis, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder or Jimmy Smith record or reel to reel from "Salty's Record Atic" back in Modesto, California. I never dreamed that one day I'd be on stage with or getting lessons with anyone of them. The recordings were lessons themself. Being on the gig or getting personal lessons just about "blew my mind". Thank you all so much. In the past eight years I've been more active as a producer, drummer and organist. I'm often asked if I perfer playing drums or organ and visa versa. My answer to anyone concerned is both. Drums and organ are deep in my roots. From the church to the chittlin' circut you'll find both. My love for both instruments are equal. To me, playing an instrument is about communicating through expression on your instrument. It's not about how many notes one can play at 400 bpm or how one can slide an odd meter rhythm into a simple tune or lightening fast fill in one bar. It's about groovin'. As the great Dr. James Polk would say, "Whatever you do, DO NOT FORSAKE THE GROOVE." I try to play and create music that feels good to me and the listener. That's jazz, soul, funk, rock or whatever. On both instruments, I'm able to express any emotion that I desire. From love to hate or joy to pain. If there is a spiritual or physical emotion involved, I'm able to express it on either instrument. James Simpson Mannheimer Str. 102 +49-(0)174-9101-767 $olid Rock Production$ 68309 Mannheim [email protected] Germany www.simpsonsound.com ________________________________________________ Biography _______________________________ I was born in Ft. Devens, Massachusetts on June 14, 1972. I'm the youngest of five children. In 1973, my father retired from the army and the family relocated to Ceres, California. At 3 years old after hearing my father playing Ramsey Lewis' "The In Crowd" and Stevie Wonder's "Living For The City", I became very interested in playing the piano. One year later my mother enrolled me in piano lessons and I began learning to read and write music. As a kid, I liked sports and toys just as much as the next kid but, tape recorders and music were my passion. All I dreamed about was recording music. When I entered the second grade there were no positions for piano in the school band so I had to select another instrument. Drums were my first choice. I was really into Art Blakey. The only problem was that two of my brothers were already playing drums in the house so my father suggested I select another instrument. Saxophone became my choice. Cannonball Adderly, Sonny Stitt, Gene Ammons and Eddie Harris really moved me when they played. Also, my brother had an old, beat-up alto that he didn't play anymore so my parents didn't have to spend any money on a new one. The school band thing was cool but, in elementary school there was no jazz band and I had no private sax teacher. It was very frustrating because at an early age I already knew what I wanted to play. 1983, I entered junior high school and it was a little better. We had a jazz band. The only catch was I had to start playing baritone sax to join the band because the upper class had too many alto players. Man, I had to carry home an alto and a baritone sax. Cats thought I was crazy! I really wanted to be in the band. I also began playing sports, break dancing, rapping and DJing. I had a good band teacher then. He really kept me focused on becoming a musician. He liked my time and feel on the drums so he'd let me play a couple of tunes. He had a country and western band on the side and when his drummer couldn't make it, he'd call my parents and ask if I could do the gig. He gave me my first club gig. I was 13 years old! I also got my first reel to reel recorder in 1983. A family friend from church gave it to me for keeping good grades in school. I was really happy with the reel to reel because I could record my own tunes. I could also record an album and then play it back at half speed. It made learning tunes much easier. When I entered eighth grade, I had a new band teacher with a new vision. She made me a drum major. I was the first black drum major in the history of my school district. She taught me how to lead a band. This was in 1984. That was also the year I put my first trio together. I’d teach them my originals, Ramsey Lewis and Les McCann tunes and we'd give concerts at lunch time for our friends. 1984 was also the beginning of a new chapter in my life. I suffered a bad asthma attack while running the 400 yard dash during the Junior California Relays in Modesto. I decided then, sports were not for me. James Simpson Mannheimer Str. 102 +49-(0)174-9101-767 $olid Rock Production$ 68309 Mannheim [email protected] Germany www.simpsonsound.com ________________________________________________ Biography _______________________________ During my teen years, I began traveling with my aunt and uncle (both were ministers of music and great pianists and organists) around California playing at various churches and events. I played alto sax and sometimes drums. I was also introduced to the organ at this time. I’d also play funeral gigs on piano with vocalist Rosie Brown. She was on the R&B scene in Philly and when she’d come home to visit she always had these funeral gigs. I felt bad about taking money from the bereaved families but, Rosie made it very clear that business was business and if I wanted to be a musician, I’d have to learn that musicians have to eat, too. Between 1984 and 1988, I spent lots of time writing hip-hop and R&B tunes. I was also listening to lots of different music then. Really focusing on how songs were put together. Everything from Wes Montgomery to Led Zepplin. I didn’t realize that this would play an important role in my life as a producer or artist. I started having thoughts about starting my own production company. So I did. I called it “Joyful Noise Productions”. In 1988, I started producing for local rap, pop and r & b groups. I met a lady named Michelle Flowers and started producing and co- writing songs with her. For the time, she had a really nice studio with a synthesizer, drum machine, sequencer and four track tape recorder. She couldn’t work any of the equipment. I was in heaven. We worked together for about six months but, her vision was different than mine so I decided to do my own thing. I had to sell my car to buy a drum machine. I got my first four track from my high school and borrowed a keyboard from them too. I borrowed five dollars from my mamma to buy a double pack of blank tapes and I recorded my first Ep entitled "Living in Reality". My sister loaned me her electric typewriter to make the j-cards. The typewriter had memory on it so I didn’t have to keep typing each j-card individually. I sold the tapes for five bucks each and paid my mamma back with interest. Mamma taught me how to make money with my music. With the money from those tapes, I bought, recorded and sold more copies. With help from a few friends of friends at the local radio stations in Modesto and Turlock, my music received airplay. "Love Defensively" (co-written by Michelle Flowers) and "I Loved You" from the Ep became local radio and club hits and I became somewhat of a local celebrity. By 1989, I began writing more hip-hop and getting interested in smooth jazz music. Hip- hop was very controversial at the time and traditional jazz was not popular anymore. I loved traditional jazz very much but, like most kids, I wanted to do what my peers were doing as well. At the time I had no idea that smooth jazz was becoming very popular and would later be the gateway to my musical career in the years to come. I had a vision of combining the two in one recording. During the 80s the east coast hip-hop artists were more into the jazz flavor. The west coast hip-hop was more funk driven. So, I recorded a second Ep entitled "Beginning of a Dream".