Jim Bob
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Jim Bob | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | November 22, 1960 |
| Origin |  London, UK |
| Genre(s) | punk rock, acoustic |
| Years active | 1985- |
| Label(s) | Cherry Red EMI Big Cat Rough Trade Fierce Panda |
| Associated acts | Carter USM Jim's Super Stereoworld James Robert Morrison Abdoujaparov iDou Chris T-T |
Jim Bob is the stage name for the London born writer and musician best known as the singer of indie punk band Carter USM.
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[edit] Biography
Jim Bob was born James Neil Morrison[1] in the city of London, on 22 November 1960. He changed his name because he did not want to be mistaken for, in his own words, "a fat, dead, crap poet" - in other words, the former singer of The Doors.
He played in various bands during the 1980s, one of which was Jamie Wednesday who were performing between 1985 and 1987. In 1987 Jamie Wednesday split up just before a gig at the London Astoria. Morrison and Les Carter filled in playing along to a backing tape and Carter USM was born. In fact, Jim and Les had known each other since the late 1970s, when their bands The Ballpoints (featuring Jim on vocals) and Dead Clergy (Les on bass and vocals) used to rehearse at the same studio behind Streatham Common station. When The Ballpoints' bassist quit at the end of 1980, Les joined the band, who then went on to play several gigs under the name of Peter Pan's Playground.
In Carter USM Jim Bob had 14 top 40 singles, 4 top ten albums (including a number one) and played over 800 gigs all over the world as lead singer of the band. The band split up in 1997. Since Carter USM, Jim Bob has released two albums and three singles with his disco-pop-punk group Jim's Super Stereoworld, four solo albums as Jim Bob or James Robert Morrison and played various live shows both with his band and solo. In 2001 he joined his old Carter bandmate Fruitbat onstage once again as part of supergroup Who's The Daddy Now?.
Jim Bob currently tours as a solo artist playing both Carter songs and his solo material. His Goodnight Jim Bob - On The Road With Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine autobiography was published by Cherry Red Books in May 2004 to critical acclaim. Jim Bob's album Angelstrike, was released on November 22, 2004.
In 2005, Cherry Red released a DVD of a live solo acoustic performance titled Live From London featuring songs from throughout his solo career as well as many Carter USM tracks.
This was followed by a concept album entitled School, which was released in March 2006, brought forward after a leak to the internet.
A "Best of" album was released in the autumn of 2006, accompanied by a UK tour. This release was originally intended to be a download only release, but a physical CD was produced. The album was be accompanied by a free CD of Jim Bob and Jim's Super Stereoworld rarities.
Jim Bob contributed two songs to the Barbican's 2006/7 Pantomime, Dick Whittington, "The Lord Major's show" and "The Victory Of Evil Song".
Jim Bob has spent most of 2007 working on a new album that will be released in November 2007 via Cherry Red records. It will be called "A Humpty Dumpty Thing". Limited numbers of the album will come with a Jim Bob penned mini novel called "Word Count". Jim Bob will be supporting the release with a single in early November "Battling The Bottle" along with a UK tour later that month.
Jim Bob has just completed his full debut novel. He hopes to find a publisher for it soon.
[edit] Solo Discography
All releases credited as Jim Bob unless otherwise stated. See Carter USM and Jamie Wednesday for those bands' discographies.
[edit] Albums
- Jim's Super Stereoworld - Jim's Super Stereoworld, 2001
- James Robert Morrison - J.R., 2001
- Jim's Super Stereoworld - Big Flash Car on a Saturday Night, 2002
- Goodnight Jim Bob, 2003
- Angelstrike!, 2004
- School, 2006
- Best of Jim Bob, 2006
- A Humpty Dumpty Thing, Nov 2007
[edit] Singles
- Jim's Super Stereoworld - "Bonkers In The Nut", 1999
- Jim's Super Stereoworld - "Could U B The 1 I Waited 4", 1999
- Jim's Super Stereoworld - "Bubblegum EP", 2002
- Dumb and Dumber, March 2005
- Battling The Bottle (Fighting The Flab, At War With The World), November 2007
[edit] Other Releases
- Acoustic Party 7
A Free CD recorded by Jim at home and given away to the first 10 people to visit the T-shirt stall and ask for Marc or Neil on the October 2003 tour
- Stolen from Westlife
25 readers of Jim's book won a copy of the CD 'Stolen From Westlife' - 8 cover versions recorded by Jim - after answering some questions posed by the author on page 95. There were surprisingly few competition entries as most people presumed it was a joke.
- Busker
A free Cd recorded by Jim and containing six acoustic covers, the CD is currently being issues only to members of Jim's "street team". The CD includes a cover of a track originally written and recorded by former-Carter bandmate Les Carter.
[edit] DVDs
- Live From London, 2005
A DVD featuring a live acoustic performance of Jim Bob songs and Carter USM songs. Bonus features include an interview with Jim, Jim reading excerpts from his autobiography and the video for the Jim's Super Stereoworld song Bubblegum.
