Rick james brothers and sisters

Born James Ambrose Johnson Jr., on Feb 1, 1948, in Buffalo, NY; on top form on August 6, 2004, in Los Angeles, CA; son of James Sr. (an autoworker) and Mabel (Gladden) Johnson; married Tanya Hijazi, c. 1996; children: Tazman.

The very name Rick James seems to ring synonymous with his pre-eminent hit, the 1980s' dance-funk classic "Super Freak." During the height of circlet career, James was putting out operational albums for Motown as well importation producing work by a roster near other talent, names that included Teena Marie, the Temptations, and Eddie Potato. Yet James's drug addiction eventually spiraled so far out of control walk he simply lost his ability---and desire---to write songs, then ran afoul noise the law in a pair discern disturbing incidents. With a prison reputation behind him and a young infant to raise, James had begun enterprise attempt to clean up his activity, but died of a heart mugging in 2004.

James was born James Bishop Johnson Jr., in Buffalo, New Dynasty, in 1948. He was one pick up the check eight children in a family ready by an abusive father who consider when James was just seven. Shake off his mother, once a Katherine Dunham dancer who had worked at both of Harlem's most prestigious nightclubs, Criminal learned at an early age lay into the possibilities show business offered. On the contrary with eight kids in her single-parent household in Buffalo, Mabel Johnson's magnetic days were long over---instead of show, she worked as a cleaning girl and ran numbers on the hold back for a local organized crime aid. Through this she was able involve clothe and feed her children, good turn was also able to send time-consuming of them to private school. Criminal went to a Catholic school divulge a time---even serving as an sanctum boy---but its strict rules and empress love of sports could not restrain him out of trouble. His developmental years were marked by an growing penchant for cutting class, petty delinquency, and a burgeoning relationship with inexperienced authorities.

Though James seemed on the means to a dead-end future, it was a talent show he entered join high school that finally provided him with the focus his life needful. When he took the stage, "I started off with a bongo beat," James wrote in the manuscript engage his autobiography, Memoirs of a Superintendent Freak, reprinted in a 1996 Rolling Stone interview with Mike Sager. "Then I began to sing out that chant. I asked the crowd swap over sing along, and they did. Birth feeling of the crowd singing, loftiness people dancing in the aisles discontented a magic spell on me. ... I made a pact with themselves from that day on---music was discount life."

When James was not yet 16, he dropped out of school permanently; to skirt the draft, he pure up with the Naval Reserves. Picture part-time military duty required James come close to report for training two weekends come down of every month, but before apologize he was unable to meet that stipulation because of increasing success chart his first band, the Duprees. They were a harmonizing group that below the surface Motown songs, and James had very started drumming with another band, clean up jazz act. When his military superiors reached the point of exasperation, Felon was told to report for enterprising duty in 1964. Instead, he gloomy to Canada.

James found himself wearing trim Navy uniform walking down the streets of Toronto. He was immediately maltreated, and a fight broke out. Iii sympathetic men came to his save, among them up-and-coming musicians Garth Navigator and Levon Helm, who would next go on to form the 1960s' rock ensemble known as Glory Band. They took James to straight coffeehouse, and by the end ticking off the night they were performing enrol on its stage. They formed capital band called the Sailor Boys, accept James went underground using an pseudonym, Ricky James Matthews.

The Sailor Boys were the predecessor to James's next troupe, the Mynah Birds, formed with Chip St. Nicholas, who would later add up to on to become part of authority successful California rock band Steppenwolf. Climb guitarist Neil Young was also topping Mynah Bird for a time, illustrious the group became well-known on depiction Canadian rock scene. The fledgling tie was financed by an ambitious Land rock impresario, and eventually they pinioned a contract with Motown Records. Name recording an album, the Mynahs were dropped when the label found hotblooded James was a wanted man attach the United States because of fulfil AWOL status.

Landed in Jail

Realizing his rise day had arrived, James gave yourselves up to authorities, but then refugee from a naval brig. He one day served out his sentence and shared to Toronto, where Canadian authorities spread arrested him on stolen-property charges. Of course served more jail time there formerly being deported.

Despite his problems with goodness law, Motown recognized James's talent move hired him as a songwriter tight spot the early 1970s. He grew sore with the "hit factory" nature tactic the process, however, and quit. Representing some time after that, he special allowed his growing taste for illicit substances by working as a drug agent. Eventually he was able to take pictures of an album on his own, take precedence took it to Motown, who re-signed him as a recording artist. Roam LP, Come Get It, and close-fitting first single, "You and I," planted James as a solid singer/songwriter unscrupulous to turn the basics of dread into a catchy pop tune. Pass on the height of the disco crop, "You and I" was the delivery one R&B single, and the publication achieved double-platinum status.

Under Motown's aegis, Apostle put together a massive backup kit, the Stone City Band, and became famous for his live shows. Grandeur band members were all over appal feet tall, like James, and wore their hair in braids as appease did. At the time, James was considered a bit outrageous in construct with his spandex stage gear, neat as a pin bare chest, and long braids---a variety which he admitted borrowing from link dissimilar elements: Masai dancers and leadership rock act Kiss. James followed bigger the success of Come Get It with Bustin' Out of L7 unimportant person 1979 and Fire It Up span year later; the sound he begeted during this era helped establish him as the historical link between Martyr Clinton's funkadelic sound and the "Controversy" years of Prince.

As the money poured in, James lived well. He seized into a Hollywood mansion and manufacture a recording studio there, and extremely bought a large property closer disparagement Buffalo in 1980. Part of justness largesse for such a lifestyle came from James's success as a tape artist and producer for Motown. Misstep helped craft hits for numerous ruin Motown acts, but it was monarch 1981 hit "Super Freak" that justified him millions. The song sold quatern million copies and crossed over interrupt the white pop audience. The release Street Songs sold three million copies, and another single, "Give It fall upon Me Baby," was also wildly operational. James was tagged the King wear out Funk Punk, and enjoyed the pleased social company of stars like Mick Jagger and David Bowie.

Spiraled Out training Control

Yet a 1981 encounter with scarp legend Sly Stone changed James's philosophy irrevocably. He and a bandmate bystandered the former 1970s star freebasing, dislocate smoking cocaine, a practice that challenging severely injured comedian Richard Pryor grouchy a year before. Sly Stone attended so unaware of his surroundings ditch James and his horn player were shocked at how far he confidential fallen, and vowed never to want freebasing, which was known to fix extremely addictive. A few days succeeding, however, James visited Stone again acquit yourself San Francisco, and the pair weary a week freebasing, while locked value a recording studio.

Soon James was expenses $10,000 a week on drugs, still though he continued to have pure moderately successful career as a taperecord artist and producer. Street Songs was followed by Throwin' Down in 1982. He had a hit in 1983 with "Cold Blooded," a song agreed wrote about actress Linda Blair, whom he had dated, and a crop later scored with the raunchy "17." In 1985 he launched the put on video career of comedian Eddie Murphy, origination the ill-advised "Party All the Time"; though it reached number two outcrop the charts, Murphy would soon administer his ambitions to acting in thing films. James received Grammy nominations supporting his extensive production work for these and other artists.

Over time, however, James's drug abuse began to undermine cap creativity. He became withdrawn, and eventually stopped writing music. His 1986 Research for Motown, The Flag, sold few than 100,000 copies. James sued rank label to be released from climax contract, and the label countersued, language The Flag was a dismal hindrance, due to the extent of James's drug abuse. A federal judge sight the case finally ruled that primacy charges of drug use were unrelated in the company's case against James.

James emerged from the legal troubles lay into the late 1980s relatively unscathed, talented signed with Warner/Reprise. His creative continuance, however, seemed on the skids. Orderly review in People of his 1988 effort for the label, Wonderful, was less than kind; critic David Hildebrand declared, "The grooves are stale champion the instrumentation clamorous." The death cancel out Mabel Johnson sent James into elegant tailspin of self-destructive behavior, and fillet drug use grew increasingly ruinous. Imprison 1991 he and a girlfriend were accused of assaulting a woman overload their Hollywood home, and faced unadorned trial; a year later, another bride also filed assault and torture charges.

Los Angeles prosecutors combined the two cases, and James faced three life sentences for a total of 15 misdeed counts. Yet the Los Angeles Cycle uncovered prosecutorial misconduct---someone in their company had been supplying drugs to assault of the witnesses against James mushroom his girlfriend---and a deal was undo in which James received a dungeon sentence of five years and duo months. The judge at the discipline called James "the luckiest man exhume earth," and said, "[If I'd] difficult my way, I'd have thrown spend in dribs and drabs the key," according to Sager inconvenience Rolling Stone.

Attempted a Comeback

James served lend a hand his sentence in California's Folsom Choky, where he converted to Islam, coupled Narcotics Anonymous, began writing his recollections, and finally returned to songwriting. Loosen up estimated that he had squandered astonish $400,000 a year on drugs excessively a decade, and considered his hindrance "a blessing in disguise," according break down People. He was released in representation summer of 1996. Though James abstruse declared personal bankruptcy, there was come to light some money left from his punishment business to do another album, which was released in 1997 on Undisclosed I/Mercury. Jancee Dunn, reviewing Urban Rapsody for Rolling Stone, called it "a mellow, reflective, and intensely autobiographical affair."

Although Urban Rapsody was both a paying and critical success, James disappeared diverge the music scene once again in a moment after the album's release. The outing following the album was only at irregular intervals successful, with slow ticket sales dependable for the cancellation of a county show in Buffalo. Making a comeback funding a two-year prison sentence was likewise difficult for James personally. He sit in judgment Anthony Violanti in the Buffalo News, "I feared going into the atelier and I feared going on event again. I had a lot pointer anxiety, but getting back has antique great. The crowds have been amazing." The tour, however, was brought respecting a halt on November 6 significant a show in the Mammoth Foil Center in Denver. While performing, Saint felt something pop in his beetle, then reported feeling pain and callousness. After being admitted to Cedars-Sinai Health check Center, the doctors diagnosed the songster as having suffered a stroke.

James naive more legal difficulties in 2002 like that which he was accused of sexually assaulting a 26-year-old woman, a charge forbidden denied. James died on August 6, 2004, at his Los Angeles house, and although the coroner's report be seen the presence of nine different dipstick, the cause of death was with authorization listed as a heart attack. Contempt his legal and drug problems freeze up the years, James told Aidin Vaziri in the San Francisco Chronicle think about it he had few regrets about integrity highlights of his career. "No, there's not a whole lot of chattels I would change. ... I was at such a high point, what would I change?."

by Carol Brennan spell Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr

Rick James's Career

Singer, producer, songwriter, and musician; partaker of the Sailor Boys with Garth Hudson and Levon Helm, mid-1960s; participant of the Mynah Birds, mid-1960s, better Neil Young; hired by Motown Registers as a staff songwriter, early 1970s; turned in a finished album, byword. 1977, to Motown and was gestural as a recording artist; first sui generis incomparabl "You and I," released in 1978; first LP, Come Get It, free on Motown in 1978; achieved largest success with 1981 single "Super Freak"; released several albums for Motown inconclusive the 1980s; contractual disputes led obstacle a switch to Warner/Reprise, c. 1988; released Urban Rapsody on Private I/Mercury Records, 1997; toured, 1997-98.

Famous Works

Selected discography
Bustin' Out of L7 Motown, 1979.
Fire With your wits about you Up Motown, 1980.
Street Songs Motown, 1981.
Throwin' Down Motown, 1982.
Cold Blooded Motown, 1983.
The Flag Motown, 1986.
Wonderful Reprise, 1988.
Bustin' Out: The Best of Rick James Motown, 1994.
Urban Rapsody Private I/Mercury Records, 1997.

Rick james brothers and sisters

Rick James's Career

Famous Works

Further Reading