Retro ambassador of funk Jimmy James is back with a new attitude. With the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio in his rearview, Parlor Greens is his latest vehicle to showcase the tasty guitar sounds of early-’60s soul amidst Hammond B3 and drums. The record is called In Green We Dream and it’s absolute dynamite.
How did Parlor Greens come together?
I gotta give it up to Tim Carman from GA-20 and Terry Cole, CEO of Colemine Records, for bringing us forth. I’d heard from Tim about a project, and he had Adam Scone on keys. I was like, “Oh! Scone Cash Players! The Sugarman 3!” In 2019, I recorded with Adam on his Brooklyn to Brooklin album and I’ve done video shoots with him. We ended up at Terry’s place in Ohio. There were ideas thrown around, but I was like, “What’s happening here? What am I gonna do?” But, Tim and Adam started jamming, then I started playing, and we were having fun. We recorded that night.
Did you discuss stylistic concepts, or things you didn’t want to play?
We played things we wouldn’t have played in our other groups. Suddenly, it was, “I never played that before,” or “I’ve always thought of playing that!” We got to do things we normally wouldn’t do, and it was great. There was a lot of experimentation and going with the flow in a relaxed environment. You can do what you do – catch that wave.
You cover George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord.” (laughs)
(laughs) We were like, “Let’s see what happens!” It was so completely out of nowhere. We worked it out, established a groove, and I said, “Hey, Tim. Humor me for a second and try this on the drums.” He started playing and I was like, “That’s it! That’s the groove!”
The guitar on “The Ripper” really cooks.
I heard something from Wayne Jackson, the trumpet player with the Mar-Keys, house band for Stax Records. He had a thing he called “slick memory,” where you play something, but when you go back you can’t remember it because you were in the moment, digging it.
Sometimes you come in with a sketch of an idea. Like Miles Davis did with Kind of Blue. He sketched an idea, and everyone else filled in the colors. Someone plays a beat and someone else plays something around that. It’s organic. Same thing happened with the song “West Memphis.” We were playing and all of a sudden I said to myself, “I’m gonna play this...” When you’re not thinking, but hitting on all eight cylinders, that’s where the greatest music comes from. I’ll quote the great James Jamerson: “If you don’t feel it, don’t play it.”
What was your main guitar for the record?
It’s a 1964 Silverstone, and I got it at Georgetown Music, in Seattle – big shout-out to Chris Lomba and Mike Hitt. Those guys saved that guitar from the garbage. They rescued it and put it back the way it was. You know it’s yours when a guitar calls your name. And when you pick it up it makes you smile. It also makes you want to create, no matter how bad your day is; that’s the guitar you’re meant to have. It should be an extension of your soul. If you don’t sing, it should be an extension of what you want to say.
I ran into Tommy Brenneck, who played with Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings. He was playing in Bellingham, Washington, and I approached him and said, “You play Harmonys and Silvertones. How do you know what year it is?” He took my guitar, looked through the f hole, and said, “Oh, it’s a 1964!” I can’t figure out to this day how he found that (laughs). He knows quite a bit about those guitars.
Which amp did you use?
I ran it through an Ampeg Gemini, but tone is 95 percent player and five percent instrument. Hendrix played a Strat with a Telecaster neck through Fender amps at the Newport Pop Festival in 1969, and he sounded exactly the way he did through Marshalls. It’s all in your fingers.
Why don’t you use effects pedals?
I’ve used effects pedals for other things, but it’s rare. I like the sound of the amp as it is. You have more control. It’s the sound I want to hear.
This article originally appeared in VG’s August 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.
