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Full
Album of
May 4, 2023
with the
Album: Diamond Rain
Artist's Biography
Jimmy
Lee Morris has been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen since
his first public performance at the age of 16.
Now 57 going on 18, he still continues to play live shows and release new
music.
To date he’s released 13 albums, 1 EP and 5 singles including two Xmas
songs.
His first album in 2016, “Wilderness Wood” was produced by Simon Scardanelli
who was half of the 80’s pop duo Big Bam Boo.
An eclectic songwriter who spans genres of Blues, Country, Folk, Pop and
Rock and Roll.
Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, songs have been sung from
folk clubs to festivals, around the UK and Europe.
About the Album:
Marking the 40th anniversary of joining the synth pop band A La Tienne in
1983 these are some of the songs I wrote whilst part of the band during
those years age 18. I recorded them as part of an archive project completing
all my written works for an anthology book of lyrics “Words of a Lifetime”.
Singer Songwriter pop/rock released 5th May 2023.
Full
Album of
December 31, 2022
with the
Album: Diamond Rain
Artist's Biography
Jimmy
Lee Morris has been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen since
his first public performance at the age of 16.
Now 56 going on 18, he still continues to play live shows and release new
music.
New album “Diamond Rain” Out Now.
To date he’s released 13 albums, 1 EP and 5 singles including two Xmas
songs.
His first album in 2016, “Wilderness Wood” was produced by Simon Scardanelli
who was half of the 80’s pop duo Big Bam Boo.
An eclectic songwriter who spans genres of Blues, Country, Folk, Pop and
Rock and Roll.
Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, songs have been sung from
folk clubs to festivals, around the UK and Europe.
Starting writing songs from the age of 12 when he got his first guitar for
Xmas 1977
In 1982 he worked with Pink Floyd Producer Ron Geesin on an original song
“Ronald Reagan Blues”.
Also in 1982 he earned his first £25 from making music when commissioned to
write a song about communications for a Sussex youth theatre company.
In the 80’s he was lead singer for synth pop band À La Tienne.
In the late 90’s and early 00’s he played in rhythm and blues band Mojo
Filter and rock 'n' roll 3 piece The Collaborators.
At the turn of the millennium he was half of the folk duo The Hat Band,
playing many long hours of gigs down the west coast of Denmark.
Musical influences Paul McCartney, John Lennon, The Beatles, Ray Davies and
Bob Dylan Music available from all streaming sites (Spotify and Apple etc)
and Digital stores (iTunes and Amazon etc)
About the Album:
The new album was written and recorded towards the end of 2021 and then I’ve
sat on it for a year to let the tracks settle. I am always too impetuous
with new songs and once they are done I always seem to rush them out and
then want to go back to them and fix all the stuff I hear later that I wish
I had done differently. Released at the end of 2022 a folk rock/pop blend.
In November 2021 I sat and absorbed the brilliant multi hour documentary Get
Back by Peter Jackson showing for the first time in decades how The Beatles
recording sessions for their album Let It Be unfolded. It was fascinating
from a songwriting perspective to see songs like Get Back come to life,
created out of the ether over a few days jamming in the studio. I thought I
would like to try to approach writing a few songs in that way. Starting with
a riff and stringing a few chords together I started singing any words that
created a tune to go over the top of what I was playing. I wasn’t fussed
what they were to start with and figured something would come together out
of the chaos process.
“Fiction Is The Truth Today” was one of those. I recalled some of the events
happening in the news and of course we were coming out of two years of
lockdowns and the Covid pandemic. I thought how strange life had become and
how it was more like a bizarre story than reality. I had a song back in the
80’s that was called Fiction Of Truth, written from headlines in the papers
and this idea gave me a start to the new song. I remember walking round the
park in the cold winter months with the tune in my headphones just making up
anything that came into my head which led to some odd lyrics that I then
hung current events and references to.
“Seventeen” is the next song on the album and tells the story of events from
my younger days. It has verses on my art college days, first band and first
job. All of which happened when I was 17 or maybe 18 but I used a bit of
artistic licence.
When I get into a groove of songwriting a few often come out over a very
short space of time. This one and the final two songs on the album, “She Is
So Precious To Me” and “Don’t Make It All About Something”, were all written
in a couple of days sat in front of the fire with my guitar and a note pad.
The latter song was inspired by my son sitting behind me on the drum kit and
we started jamming a riff and rhythm which turned into that song. Again I
was singing anything that fitted with the groove and let whatever come out
stick and then tinkered with it to finish it off. Once you have a first
verse idea the rest falls into place to suit the mood you have started.
Track three, “Talent Is Timeless” was written earlier in the year as part of
a songwriting competition I entered. I was part of the Facebook group and
one of the challenges was to write a song on the theme that talent is
timeless. I like the discipline of having to write from a given subject. I
first did it when I was 16 and was commissioned to write a song about
communications breaking down. This was for a local youth theatre group and I
got paid my very first money for making music for that song. I also did it
for the title track on my album “Wilderness Wood”. A local woodland centre
had asked the albums producer whether he would come up with a song for them
and he gave the idea to me. I remember writing it on my journey back home
from the studio that evening. So that is how I wrote “Talent Is Timeless”
and also discovered that I hated songwriting competitions as you soon
realise that you can’t judge which song is the best, it is too subjective
and therefore a waste of time. Never again. I should say that my son plays
the Cajon on this one.
The next two songs on the album were written by a performer and songwriter
Roger Brooks back in the late 70’s and early 80’s. He released them on a
tape cassette album to sell at gigs but they are now also on streaming
services for all to hear. I knew Roger back then when I was only 13 or 14
and he kindly took an interest in my early first efforts to write songs
having had a guitar for Christmas shortly before that. He was a gigging
musician on the UK folk circuit and mixed in those famous folk circles
including the likes of Ralph McTell. I remember playing football on Barnes
Green in South West London with them both. As I grew up and life moved on we
lost touch but in 2021 I sadly learned that Roger had passed away quite a
few years before. He was only in his 50’s and it shook me up a bit. Things I
had forgotten about those years came back to me and I realised what an
influence he had been on me as I started my musical journey. I discovered
his music again on Spotify and listened to his songs. I started to play a
few of them on my guitar and soon decided to pay a small tribute to him and
his memory by recording, “In The Diamond Rain” and “Special Reservation”. I
would have loved to share stories with him now and for him to see how my
music turned out, thanks in some part to him all those years ago.
“Woke Up This Morning”, is a bit of a tongue in cheek reference to all those
blues songs that start with that line. In actual fact though I did wake up
one morning and saw the light creeping in through the curtains which made me
guess at what time it must be to decide if I was getting up or not. The song
wrote itself there and then. It was at the end of making my lockdown album
“Truth Is The Talisman” in 2020 but it was too late to be included on that
one. It hung around a while and then came back out for this new album.
The only one left to mention is “Wipe The City Dirt From Off Your Face”. I
had to take my car to Exeter for a service just before Christmas 2021. It
was going to be there the whole day so I had to kick around and fill the
time. I walked from the industrial estate where I left the car and went via
the riverside over bridges past rusting old boats and run down warehouses. I
climbed up the hill to the Cathedral and explored the city for the day. The
castle ruins, the parks and the Christmas market. I watched as the place
filled with people and eventually wandered back to pick my car up the way I
came in. All these pictures in my head were so poetical that when I got home
I wrote down the journey as it came back to me and it all streamed out to
create a musical picture of events, pretty much as they had happened.
Another one that wrote itself. Like I said earlier, when you are lucky
enough to get in that songwriting groove, magic can happen. It’s a real
folksy acoustic song with just a touch of festiveness about it
The whole album needed a theme and so I roped in my lovely other half to
play flute across all the tracks. This gave the whole album a “sound” and
created a folk feel which permeates throughout. I kept the production
simple, restricting myself to acoustic guitar, bass and drums to fit the
flute around. It has, I hope, made for a spacious soundscape. Room to listen
to the words and enjoy the stories being told.
Full
Album of
January 17, 2021
Album: Truth Is The Talisman
Artist's Biography
Jimmy
Lee Morris has been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen for
over thirty years. Newest release in January 2021 is the album Truth is the
Talisman. Past releases include the albums Jumping Falling Flying and
Wilderness Wood which includes his most popular track Campervan Song.
Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, songs have been sung from
folk clubs to festivals, around UK and Europe and he continues to play live
shows, record and release new music. Previously played in rhythm and blues
band Mojo Filter and rock 'n' roll 3 piece The Collaborators. Back in the
80’s was lead singer for synth pop band À La Tienne and at the turn of the
millennium was half of the folk duo The Hat Band, playing many long hours of
gigs down the west coast of Denmark.
About the Album:
Contemplative personal story telling about love, break ups and growing
older. Twenty songs which encompass forty years of song writing. From the
embryo of the lyrics to Moon Over Cairo in 1980, to 2020's title track, the
album is a newly imagined retrospective of previously unrecorded songs and
new material.
The title track for the new album was inspired by a review of the 2020 Bob
Dylan album Rough and Rowdy Ways and looks at creativity as part of the
ageing process and the gift of experience over the exuberance of youth.
The tracks were recorded during the Covid 19 lockdown of 2020.
credits
All songs written by James Morris except Giving It All Away written by James
Morris & Ryan Mawer and
Sound To You written by James Morris & Nelson King
Performed and Produced by Jimmy Lee Morris
Flute played by Clare Lees
Full
Album of
July 12, 2020
Album: Distant World
Artist's
Biography:
Jimmy Lee Morris has been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen
for over thirty years. Past releases include the albums Jumping Falling
Flying and Wilderness Wood which includes his most popular track Campervan
Song. Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, songs have been sung
from folk clubs to festivals, around UK and Europe and he continues to play
live shows, record and release new music. Previously played in rhythm and
blues band Mojo Filter and rock 'n' roll 3 piece The Collaborators. Back in
the 80’s was lead singer for synth pop band À La Tienne and at the turn of
the millennium was half of the folk duo The Hat Band, playing many long
hours of gigs down the west coast of Denmark.
About the Album:
Between 2003 and 2005 I was in a rocking and rolling band called The
Collaborators. This new album is an acoustic re-imagining of songs from that
bands 2004 album "Far and Distant World". (now re-released and available as
"Another Far and Distant World). During the Covid 19 lockdown of 2020,
whilst there was no opportunity for live performances, I hit upon the idea
of reworking these songs in an acoustic folk style for flute and acoustic
guitar to post videos on Facebook. The reaction was good and it was
suggested an album of the songs would be nice, so here it is. It has been
recorded to keep that live feel we had when performing the video shoot to an
empty room. Feel free to add your own audience noise.
Full
Album of
February 18, 2020
Album: Jumping Falling Flying
This is from a new 10 track album of self penned original tunes with
a certain style of Travelling Wilburys or their component parts from Tom
Petty to Bob Dylan.
Jimmy Lee Morris has been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen
for over thirty years. Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, songs
have been sung from folk clubs to festivals, around UK and Europe and he
continues to play live shows, record and release new music. Previously
played in rhythm and blues band Mojo Filter and rock 'n' roll 3 piece The
Collaborators. Back in the 80’s was lead singer for synth pop band À La
Tienne and at the turn of the millennium was half of the folk duo The Hat
Band, playing many long hours of gigs down the west coast of Denmark.
Featured Artist of
April 29, 2019
with
the song: Midnight Special Late Night Radio Show
Midnight Special Late Night Radio Show" will be released May 10th 2019 and
is accompanied by a lyric video on You Tube.
The single is from the forthcoming new Jimmy Lee Morris album Run to the Sun
(July 12th). The album was made at home in Devon away from everything and
everyone.
The album grew itself, jamming around with my 9 year old son Archie on
drums, having fun and just keeping it simple. He did a great job, so cool.
Been weaving songs into hearts of those happy to listen for over thirty
years. Originally from East Sussex now based in Devon, I’ve sung my songs
from folk clubs to festivals, around UK and Europe and continue to play live
shows, record and release new music. Previously played in rhythm and blues
band Mojo Filter and rock 'n' roll 3 piece The Collaborators. Back in the
80’s was lead singer for synth pop band À La Tienne and at the turn of the
millennium was half of the folk duo The Hat Band, playing many long hours of
gigs down the west coast of Denmark..
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