Sit Down: Tim Booth of James on their classic hit, and touring Ireland with The Smiths
Tim Booth, centre, with other members of the band James. Picture: Ehud Lazin
James broke through towards the end of the 1980s in indie and alternative circles and were often associated with the Manchester scene of the era, but as frontman Tim Booth points out, the band predated it. Initially signing to Factory Records and later Rough Trade, James played their first historic gig at the Haçienda in 1982.
“James came first,” Booth remembers. A cult fan base had been steadily built, with James T-shirts spotted around cities such as Manchester and Glasgow, as the scene coalesced around the likes of The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, and Inspiral Carpets, spearheading a pop-culture revolution.
“At the time I resisted it, in that we were going a year and a half before The Smiths,” explains Booth. “It was always a bit insulting to us. I love The Smiths, but we weren’t influenced by them; you can ask Johnny [Marr] which way round that might have been.”
While The Smiths were enjoying mainstream success, James retreated from the spotlight, shunning publicity to focus on their captivating, transcendental live shows. “The Manchester scene broke, and we’d been going for seven years. We’d built up a following based on our live performances, where we could eventually play to 10,000 people over two nights.”
Those G-Mex performances in December 1990 took place under the iconic arched roof of a Grade II-listed former railway station. Booth would work himself into an altered state with spiritual fervour, taking a new generation with him.
“We took the Mondays and the Inspiral Carpets on tour and they broke. The Stone Roses supported us [in 1988], even though they say they never supported any band. We liked all of those bands, that’s why we took them on tour, but we didn’t feel part of that scene. Any scene based around a city was only going to last two or three years. We felt we were here for longevity.”
Coming from Yorkshire, Booth notes that football, particularly Don Revie's Leeds side, served as a cultural gateway into the wider world. "I grew up in a little village 12 miles outside Leeds. There was no culture; I'd never been to anything like that. I walked into the stadium and heard men singing. I'd never heard men sing before, apart from in church. These were filthy and funny songs, and it just hit me, these men singing with such passion, showing emotion and singing."
Booth formed a strong bond with both Manchester after moving there to study in 1981 and later Glasgow, which became a significant stronghold for the band. “The energy and passion of Glasgow crowds were alive in a way that lifted us to another level. It was always astonishing and very important for our growth, and it really kept us going,” Booth suggests.
“We played Barrowlands, and we felt like we were being lifted to another place. Some of our best gigs happened there. We're not a cool band, we don't try to look cool, we don't just stand there, we want passion, and a lot of Glasgow audiences responded to that. It's direct and that's different to a London audience, who are cooler; it's a different thing."
That creative evolution found on stage soon found an outlet in the band's single Sit Down. Originally released in 1988, the song had been developing in their live sets for years, growing into something far bigger than its initial recording. When reissued on the major label Fontana in 1991, it became one of the last great anthems of the Manchester era, reaching number two in the UK charts.
“We recorded the Rough Trade version of quite early on,” the band's bass player, co-founder and namesake Jim Glennie recalls. “It’s a really nice version, with a bonkers video made by the wonderful Edward Barton. Through playing it live, it grew into a beast. We knew we had to capture some of that. We recorded it and, well, the rest is history.”
As the band muster their forces before hitting the road, their history is more prevalent than ever after curating a career-spanning setlist for the Love Is the Answer Tour. It follows the release of retrospective. A comprehensive vinyl box set begins with which The Smiths covered.
Booth recalls a short but close connection with Morrissey: “He’d take me for walks in graveyards,” he recalls. They are no longer in touch.
Glennie says of the Hatful of Hollow Irish tour. “I have a vague memory from 1984; it was such a long time ago. I know that we played the Savoy in Cork. Regarding the tour, we were travelling in the band’s caravanette, an old Commer van that we carried the gear in and slept and ate in. Everyone was so welcoming, and we got a great reception at the gigs.”
The now nine-piece (since 2024) is about to return for a string of summer dates in Galway, Kerry and Laois. “They (the fans) come for a good time, and they let you know when they are enjoying themselves. It’s a wonderful country, I’m so looking forward to coming," adds Glennie.
Even after more than four decades, James remain vital, partly because of a desire to keep writing new material that works alongside the likes of and Their most recent single stands up against their best known work with Booth's lyrical exploration of wonder, faith, and connection, carrying forward the same restlessness and depth that has helped define the band.
“I’m attempting to articulate, even though I don’t adhere to a religious belief in God, it’s difficult for me not to see a creator in the astonishing interwoven beauty of nature, so, hallelujah anyhow.”
Their last studio album, Yummy, also hit Number One in the UK in 2024. It was a reminder that their music continues to connect with new fans. Glennie adds: “It really does reflect James reaching a new generation of listeners, as well as previous generations of fans and families passing on the band’s energy."
James benefited from a willingness to experiment, recruiting Brian Eno for in 1993. When they performed Sometimes in preparation for recording, Eno described it as "the highlight" of his musical life. The forthcoming live set will offer fans the chance to experience the full arc of the band’s catalogue, but Glennie is reluctant to give anything away.
"We will be working on some new ‘oldies’ if you get me, some deep cuts that we haven't played for a long time. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but our choices have definitely been inspired by piecing together ."
Booth also has a connection with former Celtic manager Gordon Strachan. The singer became friends with the Scot when he was player/manager at Leeds. Booth also recalls attending an Old Firm derby in Glasgow.
“It was surreal on the streets,” Booth recalls. “Every man, woman, and child wanted to say hello. We couldn’t even get to Hampden; no taxis, nothing. Gordon flagged down a van full of Celtic fans, and the humour and energy in that crowd was unbelievable. They were taking the piss out of him, he was quipping back, and somehow we ended up in this cleared ‘no-man’s land’ section. It felt like a war zone; rage, passion, sheer enthusiasm, more than I’ve ever seen at any English game.
"The sectarian edge multiplied it. We met the Rangers manager, Alex McLeish, at the end; we were his guests. He was a James fan, but Gordon and I were both Celtic supporters; we had to keep that quiet. This was before he was manager, but we had to keep quiet about our own Celtic loyalties.”
- is out now across various formats.
- James will appear at Big Top Galway, Thursday, 23 July; Gleneagle Arena, Killarney, Friday, 24 July; and Forest Fest, Emo, Co Laois, Saturday 25 July. See wearejames.com
