I’m thinking there will more than a few ‘regulars’ who weren’t familiar with this blog back in the old days, which means I have nothing to lose from re-posting some old stuff, particularly if it’s to do with a singer or band who’ve rarely, if ever, featured since.
This one dates from January 2014, and was the only previous occasion when The Colorblind James Experience got a specific mention on TVV. It was the fifth part of a series in which I looked at bands from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean….which explains the seemingly strange title of the post.
BLUE JEANS AND CHINOS; COKE, PEPSI AND OREOS (Part 5)
The Colorblind James Experience were formed in 1980, but it took nearly a decade before they were ever heard of here in the UK.
The band centred, for the most part, around the talents of Chuck Cuminale whose stage name was Colorblind James, and the music they played was a mix of rock’n’ roll, country, polka, jazz, blues and rockabilly. They were renowned as an incredibly entertaining live act, first gaining success on the west coast of the States before Chuck moved back to his roots in Rochester, New Jersey New York in 1984. The stage successes, however, did not transfer into them getting any meaningful record deal – the music was just too weird for American radio stations as it didn’t comfortably fit into a single genre and there was no real market for maverick talents such as Cuminale.
In 1987, the band scraped together enough cash to record and press 1,000 copies of an LP, one of which was sent to the UK and into the hands of John Peel. Unsurprisingly, Peel fell for their talents and played the tracks again and again and again. They were picked up by Cooking Vinyl and for a few years were regulars on the UK and European touring circuits, but they never got beyond cult fame and placings on the Indie Charts. I don’t own anything on vinyl other than the self-titled debut LP from 1987*. It has ten tracks, some of which are sung, some are spoken and some are a mix of singing/speaking. There’s a lot of self-deprecating humour on the record and while there’s a couple of tracks that are a bit hit’n’miss there are some well worth a listen:-
mp3 : The Colorblind James Experience – Fledgling Circus
mp3 : The Colorblind James Experience – A Different Bob
mp3 : The Colorblind James Experience – Considering A Move To Memphis
The last of these tracks is a genuine classic, much loved by Mr Peel.
Despite the lack of success, the band continued to record and perform, mostly in the States, throughout the 90s (with ever-changing line-ups) but it all came to a sad and sudden end in July 2001 when Chuck Cuminale died of heart failure at the age of 49.
*I do also have a copy of a 19-track CD, released in 2000, on Stub Daddy Records, called ‘Greatest Hits’ which I picked up at least 15 years ago for next-to-nothing. There are currently two copies for sale on Discogs, both from American sellers, with asking prices of $60 and $100. I have no idea why such prices are the going rate.
JC
PS : Just to mention that I’ll be away from Villain Towers for a few days this week**, and won’t be able to monitor the comments section (and add the various names to the anon contributors thanks to whatever it is WordPress has done to make that happen so often!), nor will I see any e-mails. Thanks, in advance, for your patience!
**it’s a planned short break to Vienna (which is why that particular city featured on the blog earlier this year).
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 
One of the greatest moments of my record collecting life was when I found a Colorblind James Experience CD in a charity shop. It wasn’t one of the ones you mentioned, but it was still a thrill. No idea who had donated it – there was nothing else in the shop that displaced any kind of esoteric musical taste, just the usual tat.
I’m Considering A Move To Memphis wasn’t on that CD, but it is a song I never tire of.
Enjoy your break, JC.
Great to see this post as a new regular who wasn’t around in the past. I got into the CJE through Peel playing Memphis which, like Rol below, I never tire of. I got the album when it came out in 1987 and agree it has a few misfires on it. But when they are good, they are brilliant – Fledgling Circus is just such a great song.
that’s Rochester, New York. if you ever want to spend some time with early 80s Rochester bands that made some waves on the US college radio scene try Absolute Grey, Eleven Pond, New Math / Jet Black Berries, Personal Effects.