James Higgins
Bellingham, Washington, United States | SELF
Music
Press
James Higgins is the sun setting on a long day. The smoke at the end of an empty bar room. The dusty boots of a seasoned cowboy. His voice is Dylan meets the Doors for the gunfight at the OK Corral. The song “Twenty Tons of Thunder” is very visual, a folk song with country back porch roots. The CD is loaded with rich guitar tones accompanied by shakers, wood blocks and congas. The production is very back roots which complements the vocal tones. On tracks like “Balayeur” there are some biting electric guitar leads that tear into the soul. My favorite song on the CD is “Was It Love in Summer”. The mood of the song is one of sadness and wonder. Beautiful acoustic guitar with a harmonica begging for the answers. Was it love in summer, was it love at all. The puzzling question for which there is no answer. - Songsalive CD Review
Discography
Crawling out the Woodwork
Summair (Scottish and Irish songs and ballads)
The Sad Heart of Verdun
Neilston (portrait of his village in Scotland)
Drop in a Fall
Driftwood
Passing Story
Verse, Chorus, Train
Lavender and Gasoline
They are all available from www.cdbaby.com/all/jameshiggins
Photos
Bio
James Higgins is a man with a walking imagination who leaves songs in his wake like a musical litterbug. A native of Scotland, Higgins spent years traveling throughout continental Europe playing music on the streets, in pubs and at festivals. He settled in Germany for a while where he performed solo on the Irish pub circuit and also with several bands whose musical styles ranged from AC/DC rock and Grunge to Irish-Scottish Folk and Punk to Blues and Reggae.
Many of Higgins’ lyrics understandably cover the "on the road" theme, but they demonstrate that there is far more depth to that genre than just leaving behind a string of broken hearts. Higgins is a masterful storyteller who sings about street music, hitchhiking, true love, border guards, insects and hen houses. His lyrics tackle environmental issues such as extinction, deforestation and pollution and social issues such as famine, poverty, religion, war and politics. Whether from a rat’s eye view from the gutter or through the eyes of the drunk at the far end of the bar, he lets you into the daydreams and philosophies of the bums and punks on the street. Higgins shows us that every town has a tale, every face has something to say and that life is a passing story.
Higgins also has an endless repertoire of cover songs ranging from Scottish/Irish traditional, Americana and Roots and Acoustic Folk Rock and Blues and his influences include Neil Young, Dylan, JJ Cale and raw and rustic blues.
Higgins plays acoustic guitar and harmonica and has been known to squeeze a tune out of various other musical implements. He performs both solo and with the Muddy Boots Band (See EPK James Higgins and the Muddy Boots Band). He has several CD releases.
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