James was born into a musical family in London Ontario.   As a youth he was classically trained on piano, cello and voice.  In the early 80s he discovered Rush and the bass playing of Geddy Lee, and jumped head first into the realm of  the bass guitar.   James has been a bass player and singer for a variety of rock bands in the London area since the mid 80s.   A short stint living in Alberta and a few years of attending the Calgary Stampede led him to start appreciating country music, though cowboy hats and giant belt buckles didn't follow him back to Kilworth Ontario where he currently resides.    In late 2007, the opportunity to join Snakebite arose, and James decided it was time to start laying down the low end playing music that keeps the ladies on the dance floor!