Brian James was the founding guitarist and a songwriter for the Damned, who went on to co-found the Lords of the New Church.
- Died: March 6, 2025 (Who else died on March 6?)
- Details of death: Died at the age of 70.
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Brian James’ legacy
Born in London, James got his start playing music in blues bands, then formed the band Bastard. As their sound evolved from the popular glam rock into an early punk sound, they discovered that their U.K. audience had dried up. Bastard moved to Brussels, where club kids had gotten a taste for punk and wanted more. In 1975, James left Brussels and returned to London, where he joined a like-minded group of punk fans in the band London SS. Some of its members went on to form the Clash, while James got together with former members of Masters of the Backside to form the Damned in 1976.
The punk scenes in New York City and the U.K. were still new when the Damned debuted, and bands were playing in clubs but not yet cutting records. James and crew changed that when they recorded “New Rose” and released it in October 1976. James wrote the track, and his blazing guitar riff drove it. Beating the Sex Pistols to the punch by five weeks – they released “Anarchy in the U.K.” that November – the Damned became the first U.K. punk band to release a single, and “New Rose” became a foundational recording of, and a major influence on, British punk.
The Damned released their debut LP (and the first album released by a U.K. punk band), “Damned Damned Damned,” in 1977, and James wrote most of its songs, including the follow-up single, “Neat Neat Neat.” He was also the primary songwriter for the LP “Music for Pleasure,” released later that year. The band briefly dissolved after their second album, and when they reformed the following year, James didn’t come back.
After leaving the Damned, James played with other acts, including touring with Iggy Pop and recording solo music with Stewart Copeland of the Police on drums. In 1981, he co-founded the Lords of the New Church alongside Stiv Bators (1949–1990), the U.S. punk pioneer with the Dead Boys. They embraced new sounds of the ‘80s, with their music tending more toward post-punk and goth than punk. Their hits included “Open Your Eyes,” “Russian Roulette,” and their cheeky cover of Madonna’s “Like a Virgin.”
James remained with the Lords of the New Church until their 1989 breakup. In later years, he recorded solo music, as well as performing with other bands. Among them was Racketeers, a supergroup he formed that included Copeland, Wayne Kramer (1948–2024) of MC5, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, and Clem Burke of Blondie. James also participated in a 2022 reunion of the Damned.
Notable quote
“I count myself lucky to have been in the right place at the right time in the company of people with a similar attitude; this was London in late 1975, and over the next six months or so, these people started forming bands and generally annoying as many people as possible and shaking things up.” — from a 2023 interview for In Your Eyes e-zine
Tributes to Brian James
Full obituary: Pitchfork
