James Apollo
Encyclopedia
James Apollo is an American songwriter
and musician. He was born in NW Arkansas
and spent formative years in Minneapolis, San Francisco, New York
and Tennessee
. He currently lives and works out of Silverton, Colorado
, and New York City.
The Scotsman
dubbed Apollo "King of the Road," in 2008. He is best known for creating emotionally textured soundscapes, often gaining musical and lyrical citations to William Faulkner
, Tom Waits
, and classic Americana
of the West. According to Allmusic, "Apollo's broken, bluesy tenor moans out his tale of broken hearts and substance abuse". His songs have been featured in a number of independent films, including the 2009 feature, "Sun Dogs."
First touring Europe with Canadian songwriter Morgan Finlay
, James Apollo was invited by Tom Robinson
to perform live on the BBC
. This led to numerous radio appearances, and a live television session on Channel M
in Manchester, gaining the singer a wide audience throughout the UK. He has since continued performing in both the US and EU, dividing time between music hubs of [New York] and London
, as well lesser trodden locales such as Reykjavik
and Slovenia
.
In 2008 Apollo recorded the record "Angels we have Grown apart" which features a number of prominent New York musicians such as Clifton Hyde
, Stefan Zeniuk
, and Jesse Selengut
.
In 2010 Apollo released his UK debut album Till Your Feet Bleed on the No Alternative label. The album gained some positive reviews. Mojo
awarded the album four (out of five) stars. “A record that’s shrouded in nocturnal melancholy, the singer-songwriter presiding over its dark delights with both a ghoulish air of danger and a charming fragility”. Uncut
also gave it four out of five stars. “You could accuse him of over-emoting, but there’s something intrinsically beautiful in how accordion, guitar and brushed drums are woven together to such doleful, quietly epic effect”.
Apollo also contributed the track "One After 909
" to Mojo's recreation of The Beatles
record Let it Be album, given away free with the September 2010 edition of the magazine.
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and musician. He was born in NW Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
and spent formative years in Minneapolis, San Francisco, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. He currently lives and works out of Silverton, Colorado
Silverton, Colorado
The town of Silverton is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, San Juan County, Colorado, United States. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District,...
, and New York City.
The Scotsman
The Scotsman
The Scotsman is a British newspaper, published in Edinburgh.As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 38,423, down from about 100,000 in the 1980s....
dubbed Apollo "King of the Road," in 2008. He is best known for creating emotionally textured soundscapes, often gaining musical and lyrical citations to William Faulkner
William Faulkner
William Cuthbert Faulkner was an American writer from Oxford, Mississippi. Faulkner worked in a variety of media; he wrote novels, short stories, a play, poetry, essays and screenplays during his career...
, Tom Waits
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car."...
, and classic Americana
Americana (music)
Americana is an amalgam of roots musics formed by the confluence of the shared and varied traditions that make up the American musical ethos; specifically those sounds that are merged from folk, country, blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll and other external influential styles...
of the West. According to Allmusic, "Apollo's broken, bluesy tenor moans out his tale of broken hearts and substance abuse". His songs have been featured in a number of independent films, including the 2009 feature, "Sun Dogs."
Background
After touring the USA for several years, Apollo was picked up by NoAlternative Records, which released a number of Apollo's albums including "Good Grief" (2005) and "Hide Your Heart in a Hive" (2007).First touring Europe with Canadian songwriter Morgan Finlay
Morgan Finlay
Morgan Finlay is a Canadian singer-songwriter from North Vancouver, British Columbia, and based for much of his career in Toronto. He has four solo releases in Europe and Canada, including 2002's Uppercut EP, his 2005 Splice EP, and the albums Everything Will Work Out Right and Shifting Through...
, James Apollo was invited by Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson
Tom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
to perform live on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. This led to numerous radio appearances, and a live television session on Channel M
Channel m
Channel M is a regional television station, based in Manchester, England. It began broadcasting on 14 February 2000 as Manchester Student Television and is owned and operated by the Guardian Media Group.-Coverage:...
in Manchester, gaining the singer a wide audience throughout the UK. He has since continued performing in both the US and EU, dividing time between music hubs of [New York] and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, as well lesser trodden locales such as Reykjavik
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
and Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
.
In 2008 Apollo recorded the record "Angels we have Grown apart" which features a number of prominent New York musicians such as Clifton Hyde
Clifton Hyde
Clifton Hyde is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer currently working from and residing in New York City....
, Stefan Zeniuk
Stefan Zeniuk
Stefan Zeniuk is a New York City based musician and filmmaker.Often seen performing on the tenor saxophone, bass saxophone, c-soprano saxophone, english horn, clarinet, contra-alto clarinet & bass clarinet he is noted for his intense musical personality and dynamic stage presence...
, and Jesse Selengut
Jesse Selengut
Jesse Selengut is a New York City based trumpeter, composer, and singer.A noted performer of American Roots music, Selengut helped create “Treasures of the Sea” and “The Cangelosi Cards”...
.
In 2010 Apollo released his UK debut album Till Your Feet Bleed on the No Alternative label. The album gained some positive reviews. Mojo
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
awarded the album four (out of five) stars. “A record that’s shrouded in nocturnal melancholy, the singer-songwriter presiding over its dark delights with both a ghoulish air of danger and a charming fragility”. Uncut
UNCUT (magazine)
Uncut magazine, trademarked as UNCUT, is a monthly publication based in London. It is available across the English-speaking world, and focuses on music, but also includes film and books sections...
also gave it four out of five stars. “You could accuse him of over-emoting, but there’s something intrinsically beautiful in how accordion, guitar and brushed drums are woven together to such doleful, quietly epic effect”.
Apollo also contributed the track "One After 909
One After 909
"One After 909" is a song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon, with input from Paul McCartney , and originally released in 1970 on the album Let It Be. The album version is the live performance from the rooftop concert which took place on 30 January 1969...
" to Mojo's recreation of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
record Let it Be album, given away free with the September 2010 edition of the magazine.