James Taylor (59) is one of Britain’s most cherished and in demand jazz, soul, groove and funk musicians. Beginning his career with the garage and mod-influenced band The Prisoners over 40 years ago, he went on to form his eponymous Quartet group, who have contributed to the Austin Powers film soundtrack, collaborated with U2, Tom Jones and the Manic Street Preachers, and released over 25 studio albums
I GREW UP IN THE MEDWAY TOWNS IN KENT IN THE 1960S and my earliest memory is of sitting on a red counter top in my parents' kitchen. I must have been about three and I recall just feeling so happy, being in a family where there was so much love and laughter. I suppose that’s what I’ve been searching for ever since; to regain that feeling I had when I used to sit on that red counter.
I WAS SENT TO A SHACK ON A MOUNTAIN somewhere in the Lake District when I was 11 by my grammar school on a trip organised by the Christian Union. It was utter and absolute hell. I remember being told I was evil for not going along with the wailing and singing and praying that was going on. I just sat outside and refused to be part of it. The whole experience was incredibly traumatic and a lot of boys who were with me were deeply scarred by the experience. From that day on I was a changed person and I definitely went off the rails for quite a few years.
I BECAME A BIT OF A BAD BOY but I was sent to Coventry by the gang of lads I fell in with at school. They refused to speak to me and I got a really savage beating one day. I didn’t have a friend in the universe so I guess I really retreated to my bedroom for a while. I would listen to Billy Childish’s first group The Pop Rivets and then to Bach. Two very, very different types of music but both were equally important. I’d lost my gang and music took over. The preludes and fugues of Bach were such an incredible solace for me at that time. It’s been such a backbone of joy and beauty for me ever since that day until now. Both those artists, Billy and Bach, say the same thing to me, which is, basically, "live life".
MY MATE JOHNNY WAS ON THAT AWFUL CHRISTIAN MOUNTAIN TRIP with me but we had drifted apart. He got back in touch to ask if I’d come for a rehearsal with his band The Prisoners. Playing organ with them for the first time felt like my life turning from black and white into colour. It was just glorious. I was back in a gang again with the group and there’s something about being in a quartet that really works for me. I had three brothers and both of th
