It all leads back to the Monkees. In the 80s, shortly before I got married, I
shared a house for a couple of years with two guys who were also huge Monkees
fans – to the degree that we ordered three copies of that infamous Hawaiian
3-record bootleg set. (I still have mine. Don’t worry – virtually everything on
it has been reissued in much better quality thanks to Andrew Sandoval.)
I stayed in Monkees fandom, and consequently heard in 1994
that Peter Tork was issuing his first solo album. Sent in my check, and when
the CD was delivered, there was also a cassette in the package from some guy
named “James Lee Stanley”. I quickly
realized that he had produced Peter’s album, so I listened to the cassette. Not
bad. Not half bad. Put it away for a couple of weeks. Listened again. Pretty
good. There’s a few songs on here that
have possibilities. Listened again the next day. And the next and the next and
then had to have everything the guy had ever recorded and meet him and talk to
him and start an email list for him and and and and and and and ……….
Twenty years later and I have the privilege of calling the
man, the artist that is James Lee Stanley - my friend and it all came from the
cassette version of “Ripe Four Distraction”
TOUCH LIKE MAGIC (James Lee Stanley) “Jimmy’s got a touch
like magic.” I’ll agree with that. A song about a gambler who has just a little
too much good luck…
EVERYDAY (Rick Ruskin/James Lee Stanley) – This was my first
favorite James song. (The first of dozens.) About a relationship that is over.
Well, sort of over. “No matter how I try, I love her more and more. I do all
right till I see her, then it’s ooh, such a teaser to have her so near and yet
so far.” “She never heard the word ‘forever’, I never opened up my eyes.” A
beautiful song, sung in James’ plaintive voice – has a haunted quality that
fits perfectly with the lyrics. (Note the video below is not the version from this album, but a later version with James & Peter Tork)
I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT (Severin Browne/James Lee
Stanley) There are a group of James’ songs from different albums (two from the
album) that I have always called “The Bitter Suite”. James tells the story of
writing this song, about a girl yelling at him on the phone as she pointed out
all of his faults, then kept saying “I don’t want to talk about it” and then
proceeding to continue talking about it. An absolutely wonderful song. “It was
so easy living in slow motion. It was so easy til you got the notion to fool
around, mess around, run around and – oh, I don’t want to talk about it.” “Every
time you leave you put on such an act. You say you’re going for cigarettes and
never do come back. What – am I crazy? I’ve heard this number before.”
ALL I EVER WANTED (James House/James Lee Stanley) – And on a
totally different note, one of James’ greatest love songs. His friends don’t
understand the relationship, but they don’t understand that “I love you, and I
love the mystery. What you do still holds for me. That ain’t news, it’s just
the same old history. Without you, I’d lose my way.” “All I ever wanted you give
me, all I ever wanted you are. All I ever wanted – without you, would leave me
with an empty heart.”
ME AND THE MOVIE QUEEN (James Lee Stanley) – James’
rumination on Marilyn Monroe. “I was
just a boy when I saw you on the magazine, looking like a sailor’s dream.” “Never
anything less than perfect to me, never anything more than a dream.” About how
the perception of a media image can disguise the reality. “Where does the time
go – all the glory, all the pain? What does it all mean? Without love, we’re
all the same." Amen.
RIPE FOUR DISTRACTION (James Lee Stanley) Lovely instrmental interlude. Sounds like it
could be playing in the background of a Humphrey Bogart detective movie.
TAKE IT FROM ME (Rick Ruskin/James Lee Stanley) – Part two
of the “Bitter Suite”. “Take it from me, I took it from you. And for all the
good that it did me, it can do you too!” “Maybe I’ve changed, maybe I’m brand
new. Maybe I’m colder now, but every trick in the book that I learned, I
learned it from you!” What happens after
being in a relationship with someone who has used you to the ultimate. We’ve all been there!
(DON’T GO) TALKIN’ TO STRANGERS (James Lee Stanley) Advice
for life – “Don’t go talking to strangers, these days you never know for sure.
Don’t go talking to strangers, don’t let them inside your door.” Simply put, a
song about being careful of the decisions you make.
MY MY (CHIARASCURO) (James Lee Stanley) One of the most
beautiful, haunting songs that James has ever written, in this case about Mohammed
Ali. “He stands at the window, watching
a blood red sun. He stares in a mirror; he says what makes me do this?” “He
stands in the shadows, he says people like a mystery. Selling old tickets, he
grins helplessly.” “My, my, isn’t the world strange.” It is indeed. At the time that James wrote this song, Ali
had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, but the news wasn’t widely known.
I wonder if early symptoms might be part of what inspired this song?
WELCOME TO THE GREENHOUSE (James Lee Stanley) And James goes
all political on us (and as James knows, my politics and his are pretty much a
match.) “Heads in the sand won’t hear another word.” “They turn away – who are
they anyway? Running the show, making all of the rules. Deep in the dark, they’re
caught in a spider’s web. Lost in the light ahead, we’re so many fools.” We’ll
get there by and by, get our rewards if we’re good little sheep.” “Follow the
herd into the slaughterhouse, can’t lose your place in the long-standing line.”
An intense song. If it doesn’t make you think, you’re not listening close
enough.
JUST KEEP IT UP (Rick Ruskin/James Lee Stanley(?)) – “Just
keep it up, looking at me with those eyes, just keep it up – you’re gonna get a
surprise.” Whatever it is that she is
doing, it’s working. He’s falling for her.
Overall, a fantastic “starting point” album for anyone
looking to get into James’ work. Available through Amazon, Itunes, CDBaby and
James’ website, http://www.jamesleestanley.com
– you can also check out James’ advice to aspiring musicians at www.datamusicata.com .
