James Gurley

James Gurley (born December 22, 1939, in Detroit, Michigan) is an American musician. He is best known as the guitar player of Big Brother and the Holding Company, the psychedelic/acid rock band from San Francisco.

Early life

James Gurley was born in Detroit, Michigan on December 22, 1939. As a boy, he sometimes worked with his father who was a stunt car driver. Occasionally, this work entailed performing as a "human hood ornament" with a helmet as his father sped through a flaming plywood wall. The stunt was popular with crowds, but knocked out his front teeth, and singed his hair to the point of being shaved off.

At the age of nineteen James took up the guitar and began practicing long hours while listening to old Lightnin' Hopkins records. He never had a guitar lesson, preferring to learn by ear. He spent four years at Detroit's Catholic Brothers of the Holy Cross, studying to be a monk.

Years with Big Brother

In 1962 he moved to San Francisco with his wife Nancy and became part of the coffee-house circuit, playing in the folk and country blues tradition. For a time, he played with J.P. Pickens and the Progressive Bluegrass Boys.

In the summer of 1965, Chet Helms brought James to 1090 Page Street to meet Peter Albin and Sam Andrew of Big Brother and the Holding Company, and shortly thereafter, he joined the band.

Relationship with Janis Joplin

A few weeks after Janis Joplin joined the band, James began having an affair with her. Once James and Janis became involved, he moved out of the apartment he shared with his wife and moved in with Janis. According to Janis, that arrangement ended the day Nancy came barging through the front door of Janis's apartment. "What an embarrassing situation," Janis told Jim Langdon later. "His old lady comes marching into my bedroom with the kid and the dog and confronts us." James continued his affair with Janis for a while, but eventually returned to Nancy, who forgave him and Janis, with whom she was close friends. In 1966, the members of Big Brother, along with their wives and children, all moved into a single house in Lagunitas, California.

After Big Brother

In 1970, James' wife Nancy died of a heroin overdose. James was charged with murder for injecting the drugs, and spent two years fighting the charges before being sentenced to probation.He remarried and had another child in 1972. Since then, James has been involved in a number of independent projects. In 1981, he had a new wave band, "Red Robin and The Worms". James played bass in this band with Robin Reed on vocals, Mitch McKendry aka Mitch Master on lead guitar, Jerome Jim Holt on Sax, and James's son Hongo Gurley (from first wife Nancy) on drums. He has recorded with New Age drummer Muruga Booker and has also been actively involved in writing and recording solo work. In May 1997, James stopped touring with Big Brother to devote his full attention to these projects. The first offering was entitled "Pipe Dreams" and was released in January 2000.

External links

* [http://bbhc.com/james.html Biography on the official Big Brother and the Holding Company website]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:e4ue4j370wai~T1 All Music Guide: James Gurley]
* [http://www.recordingeq.com/EQ/req0900/gurley.htm Interview with PT Quinn from the year 2000]