all about the music

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009 6:32 PM PDT

Who is James Lee Stanley?
James was born in Philadelphia, PA on April 30, 1946. He lived there until they moved to Africa in 1951. They moved back to the Pennsylvania in 1953. His family lived in the area until 1960, when they moved to Norfolk, Virginia..
James has been recording since he was 14 when he and his sisters Sandra and Pamala were signed to their first contract. At 15, he and a friend (Bob Zentz) formed a duet called The Rovers. The next year, he joined the local trio, The Churchkeys, whose other members included Mike Jenks and Keith Ryan.
Working with a fake I.D., James met Peter Tork in 1963, at a club in Virgina Beach called The Shadows, a club that was only open in the summer. They became life long friends.
In 1964, James and some other friends, Ronnie Holloman and Bruce Stampley opened a Norfolk nightclub, The Folk Ghetto. He was 17 at the time. James recalles, " The first big act that I hired was Peter, whom I had known for almost a year by then."
James spent some time in New York City around 1967, studying the folk scene, just before entering the Air Force. There he was stationed for a time in Monterey, CA where he was taught Chinese and then assigned to Taiwan as a linguist during the Vietnam era. Upon his discharge, he majored in music at Los Angeles City College and at California State at Northridge. While studying, he was hired as a songwriter for Bones Howe (producer for The Association and The Fifth Dimension). Through a contact named Jonnie Barnett (who wrote "Chain of Love), he landed a recording contract with Wooden Nickel Records (a division of RCA). James had recorded for Jollye Roger, MCA/Regency, Asylum and Takoma before releasing his work on his own Beachwood label. James has been the opening act for a plethora of names - Steven Wright, Bonnie Raitt, Robin Williams, Karla Bonoff, Michael Murphy, Nicolette Larson and Art Garfunkel among others.

How many albums are there, and what are the songs?
James has released more than 20 albums. His newest releases are Live at Tehachapi, Volumes I and II. The playlist for this album and for other James Lee recordings can be found on the Store page or on selected albums listed in the CD rack to the left. He has been involved in the production of several other albums as well. Check the discography for a complete listing of his productions.

How can I get some of the cool James music?
Beachwood Recordings
Post Box # 4848
West Hills, CA 91308
Attn: Stephen Chandler
Telephone: (818) 888-3534

Is there a James Lee Mailing List?
Sure enough! "The List" is hosted on Yahoo Groups. To subscribe, send an email to: jamesleestanley-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. You can also go to http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/jamesleestanley/ and join there. If you have any questions regarding subscription to the mailing list, please contact a moderator/owner on the Yahoo site.

Is there a James Lee Web Page?
The home page is located at http://www.jamesleestanley.com.

What are James Lee's musical influences?
As a child of the sixties, James was exposed to a large variety of music. That's the way radio stations were back then before a few corporations took them all over. He loves everything from Miles Davis to the Kingston Trio to Sarah McLaughlin to Beck. His collection of recorded music is actually daunting. There are literally thousands of recordings from world music to rap to county to classical. His favorite recording artists thru the years are the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, the Buffalo Springfield, CS&N, Dylan, Bruce Hornsby, Miles Davis, Van Morrison, Sarah McLaughlin, Joan Osbourne. It's all over the place.

How do I get to meet him?
The best way to meet James is to just walk up and say "hi" at one of his concerts. James really is a nice guy and loves to meet his fans. To find out when he's gonna be coming your way check out the personal appearance web page for the latest tour dates.

How do I get James to come to my town?
If you have a venue or a house concert in mind where you'd like to see James perform, send the name of the establishment, along with the address and phone number to James at james@jamesleestanley.com.

Is James online? And does he like fanmail?
Yes, James is on-line and can be reached at james@jamesleestanley.com. He does enjoy hearing from his fans.

Has he ever appeared on television?
James has appeared on Star Trek:Deep Space Nine. He had a recurring role as a Bejoran (to quote James, "...one of Odo's thugs..."). In one episode, he did play a singing Klingon in the spacestation's cabaret. Photos of him in his Bejoran and Klingon make-up are available on-line by stepping aboard the Starship James. James and Peter appeared on Prime Time Country on April 29, 1997.

Are there any bootlegs out there?
James says to consider him the rebate artist. Fans are allowed to tape the concerts they attend and to sell them as they see fit. In fact James has said that he doesn't mind if fans tape his shows. Or if they sell the tapes and keep the money.

How live is "Two Man Band"?
James encourages everyone to audio or video tape his shows so there are literally hundreds of bootlegs out there. As for "Two Man Band", it was recorded in the studio. It is a re-enactment of the duet show that James and Peter Tork performed when on tour in the late 1990's. James wanted to make sure that the sound quality would be something worth paying for, so he and Peter recorded the songs that we are used to hearing live. Just the two of them, their guitars and a microphone. Since Peter was on tour with the Monkees 30th Anniversary Tour during the recording of this album, some of the songs were recorded in studios in Nashville. Although it isn't "live", as in recorded at a club or concert, it is exactly the same show with the same people playing the same instruments as you would experience at a live show.

What are James Lee's plans for the future, music-wise?
James Lee has completed a musical starring his lovely and talented sister, Pamala. It is entitled "Sex and the Single Mom" and is recorded and will be mixed this spring (2005) and released in the fall. James has also released a full blown Christmas CD with pictures, lyrics, and about 50 minutes worth of old favorites and brand new pieces. The CD includes James Lee, Pamala, Peter Tork and Tom Paxton. And he is always working on the next CD, some of which is already recorded. He also has plans for a piano record, as there has been no collection of his keyboard works. There is also a plan for a comedy album of many of the dialogues he has created for his live shows. There is plenty more in the pipeline, so stay tuned.