Interview: James Holt

Bolton born singer James Holt released his latest single ‘Mystery Girl’ last month, and today (15/04) he sat down for a digital interview with me about all things inspiration, and how songs come together.

Nobody can dispute that James is a talented musician, and so it only felt natural to ask him which instrument he picked up first, “I started on piano aged about six, then guitar at nine, and cello aged 12,” Holt says, adding “we’ve always had an old piano, when I was younger I just used to bash at it, and my parents wondered if I’d be any good following some lessons. I went through and did all the grades and exams and stuff.”

It is also evident that James has been inspired by many artists of the last century, stating that The Beatles are probably his biggest inspiration but also naming a love for Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Miles Davis and the 1960s band Love. James’s covers of The Beatles, Bob Dylan have been well received and can be found here on his YouTube Channel. Despite the more modern influences – James said he would love to show his work to Beethoven, mainly to see the composer’s reaction to how far music has come since the composer’s death.

A persons favourite song says a lot about them, but when asked for his favourite song James was originally stumped saying that it was “too hard to choose” before settling on Leonard Cohen’s ‘Dance Me to The End of Love’ because of the vivid sense of familiarity the song invokes for him, and the “strange connection” he felt with the song, saying that it put him in a place he hasn’t yet reached. As well as the love for Leonard Cohen, James found it easy to settle on his favourite album – Abbey Road, acknowledging that there is not a song he could skip on the album, and the famous album cover features on his wall as well. Upon asking which song he wishes he could’ve written James answered simply “Good Vibrations, I think that answer will speak for itself”. James’ natural aptitude for music was also evidenced by him claiming that his favourite place is anywhere next to a piano, but also that anywhere within the countryside is also a favourite.

In terms of his career, James has had the opportunity to work with people such as Jim Spencer and James Skelly of The Coral, but when I asked James about his biggest achievements in his career, he gave three. In 2015 he performed at the Royal Albert Hall, Roxy Music’s ambient and electronic music pioneer, Brian Eno praised James’s work, calling it “fresh and exciting to listen to” and his charity single ‘Butterfly’ (performed in both English and German!) raised £1300 for Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity.

James described himself to me as a bittersweet songwriter saying that “some of the sad songs have hope in them, and the happy songs have an underlying sadness to them”. In terms of song writing James said he often writes two versions of the same song – which he says he did with ‘Whispers’. Lyrically James says his song ‘Little Green Light’ was based partially on the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel The Great Gatsby, and part of the songs plot alludes to the discovery of America in general. The little green light in question is the torch held by the Statue Of Liberty. James also doesn’t shy away from narratives, with him saying that “the girl found within ‘Mystery Girl’ is more of an allegory for my love of music” adding that “the song itself is split into three parts, the narrator’s discovery of music, the love of what he’s hearing, then the loss.”

You can find James’s work on his YouTube Channel and any announcements on his Facebook page or Twitter.