ShareJames Bay, an English singer, songwriter and guitarist, chats with Kevin Cooper about wanting to work with Beyoncé, supporting Newcastle United Football Club, his latest album Changes All The Time and his 2024 UK acoustic dates.
James Bay is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. In 2013 he released his debut EP, The Dark Of The Morning. His second EP, Let It Go was released in 2014 which debuted in the top ten iTunes album chart, and the lead single of the same name peaked at number ten in the UK charts.
In 2014 Bay released the single; Hold Back The River, which was certified platinum before he released his debut studio album Chaos And The Calm in 2015. The album went to number one in the UK album charts and number fifteen in the US.
In 2015 he received the Brit Awards Critics Choice award. At the 2016 Brit Awards he received three nominations, for Best New Artist, Best Rock Album and Best Rock Song. The same year he performed on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury.
In all he has released four studio albums and has toured with the likes of Hozier in 2014, Taylor Swift in 2015, The Rolling Stones in 2018, Ed Sheeran in 2019, The Lumineers 2022 and Noah Kahan in 2024.
Whilst busy preparing for his intimate tour of the UK, he took some time out to have a chat with Kevin Cooper and this is what he had to say.
Good morning James, how are you today?
I’m alright Kevin, thanks for asking. I’m good, I’m getting right into the swing of talking about the latest music which is as challenging as ever really (laughter).
Before we move on, let me firstly thank you for taking the time to speak to me today.
Of course man, no worries, it’s a pleasure.
And just how is life treating you at this moment in time?
I’m doing alright, life is treating me okay. Last night I played football, and I try, as often as I can, to play football simply because it takes my head away, even in a time like this when I am releasing new music, which really is a pretty hectic time. It makes me feel heathier whenever I can step outside of that, and run around for a bit, and we won so I am doing okay (laughter).
That’s great but we will come onto football later (laughter). We must talk about your latest album, Changes All The Time, and I have to ask you where did the title come from?
The title came, as usual, right towards the end of us making the record. Often, I will write all of the songs; I will write lots of songs which I will then narrow down to the ones which I think that I am going to take into the studio, and often again like it did this time, I will be making the music, and I still won’t have a title because I really do need that perspective. I was speaking to my wife as we were sat together on the sofa one night and we were talking about all manner of different things. We have a nearly three-year-old daughter; we have been on a long journey together, and we were talking about the music as well, together with some of the ingredients and meanings behind some of the songs.
It fell into the conversation that everything changes all of the time. You have to stay on the ride and try to enjoy whatever it is that we do, seeing the great things for what they are when they happen. And it was when I heard that sentence, everything changes all of the time, I immediately felt that was what all of this new music is all about, and born from. So Changes All The Time felt like a good title.
Are you happy with the album?
What a fantastic question. I imagine like most artists, I am as happy as I can be. I am the artist, I am the creator; I know that I could have kept tweaking it, but with this album I am very, very happy to have left it well alone. I specifically describe it like this; I eventually put the paint brush down and I stopped dipping it in the paint, even though I could have carried on. I really do like this music, more than anything that I have done before. Which I know is the typical cliché for any artist’s new music, but I really do believe it in this case.
Are we seeing a different side to James Bay?
I hope so, as I would hate you to keep seeing the same one. I have always tried not to replicate to closely to the things that I have done before. However there are also parts of me which are natural and effortless; normal and genuine parts of who I am, when I am not trying overly hard in any particular direction. These parts of me are just who I am in my bones as a singer songwriter and a musician. And you are witnessing those. I try to pare back these recordings; I try to pare back my approach as an artist and let my emotions come through the most, and let me tell you I have had a lot of fun in the past with heavily effected sounds, tracks busy with synthesisers, different types of drums, different layered-up vocals, different guitars and I fucking love it (laughter)
I love playing around with sounds. This time, I didn’t want to do that so much, I wanted to let the sounds breath. Having said that, there are moments that are very busy, which is a big part of who I am as an artist. There are also moments that are very empty and sparse, but that is a big part of who I am as an artist too. I am never one thing, I am never one dimensional, I am always multi-dimensional in my approach to making records and performing.
There is a track on the album called Easy Distraction, and I have to ask you, is it autobiographical?
Every single song that I write is in some capacity autobiographical, whilst none of them are necessarily entirely autobiographical. Having said that, some songs I am writing because I have witnessed a friend or somebody who I am close to, going through the things that I am writing about. So, I can’t necessarily have all of the experiences and then write about all of them. When I wrote the song it was at the time that I was collaborating with Brandon Flowers of The Killers. We wrote that song together; he in part fabricated the story around this feeling of what the song is about. It’s about realising a little bit too late that someone was really good to you and wanted to let them know all the same.
I have to be totally honest with you and say that Up All Night is in my head, and it just won’t go away (laughter).
Wow, what a compliment. Thank you so much. It’s interesting, the writing of that song and the recording of that song really wasn’t laboured. Sometimes you can go for hours and hours, days and sometimes even weeks working on an idea trying to make it feel right. We went into the studio to make this album, and that song didn’t even exist yet, which really is a very dangerous move for me. Typically, I will take all of the songs that I want to record with me to the studio, simply because studio time is so fucking expensive, no question, so you tend to use your time wisely and just record the things that I have agreed with my team are the best songs.
Gabe Simon who I produced the album with, dared me basically to try and write a song whilst we were in the studio recording the other songs and a moment came when Mark who engineered the album was playing a bit of the piano and he did something that sounded good. I said, “Mark what was that” to which he replied, “oh I wasn’t thinking about it I just did a thing” (laughter). So, on a guitar I played back what I thought that he had played, and about three hours later we had been jamming this riff, and it was written into a song, and that was the birth of Up All Night. It really was a very immediate experience, and I hope that comes through, and it is one of the things that makes the song feel so infectious.
Now please do not take this as anything other than a compliment, but when I first heard Up All Night the harmonies immediately reminded me of The Eagles and The Doobie Brothers.
Kevin, you are saying all of the right things. I personally love those artists, in fact I am a massive Eagles fan so mate, thank you so very much. I really do appreciate that because I love that music so much. I grew up listening to a lot of that music, which I always hope comes through in the music that I make. I really do appreciate you saying that and let me tell you, it really does mean a hell of a lot to me. There is no offence taken whatsoever; it really is a massive compliment.
What was it like working with Noah (James Shebib)?
Noah really is a lovely lad. I have known Noah for quite a long time and once upon a time Noah used to open for me (laughter). Going back to 2019 they really were wonderful times. We are both signed to the same record label. He released two brilliant albums before this third one which has taken him off into the stratosphere and really has made him so successful. Working with him really is so very easy; he really is a lovely lad. He currently is enjoying some well deserved and well-earned success. We have lots of mutual friends, we are signed to the same record label, and Gabe who produced this album with me, he also produced Noah’s album, so we have known each other all of this time, so it was very easy for me to ask him that, despite being a very busy man, if he would produce my latest album. It really was a wonderful pleasure to have him working on my album.
Is James Bay currently in a good place?
(Laughter) I am in the best place that I can be at this moment in time. I have to tell you that I am an introspective, sensitive, vulnerable, performer who puts on a performance for a living, who is very real, and it is very important to me that I am making audiences feel good whenever they come along to see me. I am as good as I can be, but I have to say that it is impossible for anyone to be completely hunky dory at all times. I feel extremely lucky for the life that I have. I have got a beautiful, brilliant family, and a healthy young daughter who is loving life so yes, I am alright. I’m as alright as I can be.
You mentioned the family. Has becoming a father changed the way in which you approach writing?
To be totally honest with you, I’m not really sure. I think that it helps me strive and reach higher, reach further, in my song writing and really work towards being better, but I have to say that its subjective isn’t it. What I am trying to do and who I am trying to be as an artist, I check myself and then I check myself again, as a songwriter to see if I have made the best piece of music that I can every time that I sit down to write.
I am an old school record collector so I have to ask, will the album be released on vinyl?
You had better believe it. I have actually got one of the first two printed vinyl copies of the album here with me in this room. I am very excited for people to be able to hold the album in its vinyl format. It’s fascinating to me because I only know so much, but I am being told constantly that vinyl is so popular once again and it is still climbing as an extremely popular way to consume music.
You are going to be playing two acoustic shows here in Nottingham at The Metronome, are you looking forward to that?
Yes, I really am. I love to play that way. I love to play in that intimate way like I did when I first started out. As a teenager I was in bands playing the electric guitar and making loads of racket, having a brilliant time, but when I was around 17 years old, I decided that I wanted to give it a go as a solo artist. I started out and I have to say that I loved it. I started off by playing open mic nights and very small rooms, playing to small groups of people, and it was all very intimate. In a very healthy way it was a very frightening atmosphere and environment, and I still feel that, but I get a thrill out of that as well. So yes, I am really excited to be back in Nottingham for one and playing in that intimate way, because ultimately anything could happen (laughter). It really is a raw experience being up there with just an acoustic guitar.
Will you be playing the new album in full?
(Laughter) I will be playing as much of it as I can manage. There are a couple of songs on the new album that I haven’t fully worked out how to play acoustically as yet (laughter). I will be playing as many of the songs off the new album as I can manage. I recently played a few solos shows in London with just me and a small audience and I really have started to work out just how to play these songs in that way. But in answer to your question, I will definitely be playing most of the new album.
You have recently opened for two of the biggest names in the rock world, Bruce Springsteen and The Rolling Stones. Did they impart any words of wisdom?
You know what, words of wisdom yes, but really, it’s the example, it’s the way that they play. With me doing what I do, when you witness those guys live, and to be in a position to spend some time intimately with them, the proof is in just how they get up and do it. I accept and appreciate the fact that they said some really nice things and that they were grateful that I was there to play at those shows, but it’s all down to that proof is in the pudding thing. After that, they got up on stage, in front of ninety thousand people, and they let the music do the talking, they let the show do the talking.
I think that we can all say so much but that’s what I love. It is a completely different atmosphere and that is what I like about the more intimate shows. Both of those artists have been fantastic at playing more intimate performances throughout their careers. It is the intimate shows that really do the music and do the talking as well. They really do show if you can do it so to speak. Those artists in their legendary ways and legendary statuses after decades of careers they got up on stage and showed me and everybody there that, ‘this is how you do it’. It was right there, right there in front of us.
Did it give you the confidence that you could go on performing for the next 60 years?
Absolutely, I have got every intention and desire to be a 94-year-old man on stage in front of fifty thousand people at Hyde Park (laughter). As a performer myself, there are details and things that I am picking up on and watching that I take home with me, that I take to the next band practice, onto the next tour, so yes, it really did give me confidence in myself to most definitely have a go.
Is there anyone that you would like to work with who you haven’t worked with so far?
I will be totally honest with you; it is the likes of Bruce (Springsteen) and The (Rolling) Stones who I would like to work with more. That is a bloody good question. Again, I would love to work more with Noah; there are a lot of wonderful artists out there. I think that we live in an age where collaborations are more welcome and well received more than ever. I am open to invites (laughter). As you most probably know, I am a big Beyoncé fan, in fact I think that she is fucking brilliant, and I have really enjoyed doing all of the acoustic shows so far and I often think just how wonderful it would be to sit down with Beyoncé and my acoustic guitar and just sing something with her, all acoustic. So yes, there are still artists out there who I really would love to work with at some time in the future.
What would you say has been the highlight of your career so far?
Wow, honestly, I feel fortunate that I have a lot to pick from, but the biggest highlight has to be the fact that I am still here. I have got myself to album number four and it is coming out and I got to do a fancy collaboration with Noah and The Lumineers. The highlight of my career is still to come. I don’t want that to sound like I am fobbing you off because boy, do I mean it. I am really glad that I still have a career after doing this for ten years. That really is the greatest privilege and that in itself is a huge highlight. Alongside that, in 2023 I got to headline at The Royal Albert Hall and that really was a huge privilege as well.
Were there nerves when you played The Royal Albert Hall?
I was actually quite surprised at how much more nervous I was playing at the Royal Albert Hall than I thought that I would be. There were lots of family and friends in there that night and it really is such a special venue and in truth I really was nervous. The place is stunning; it truly is unbelievable.
What was the first record that you bought?
That was Appetite For Destruction by Guns N’ Roses. It was a gift for my 12th birthday.
Who did you first see performing live?
The first live gig that I saw was Paolo Nutini at Shepherd’s Bush Empire when I was 15 years old.
What is the last song or piece of music that made you cry?
That would have to be Adagio for Strings by Samuel Osmond Barber II which is a stunning piece of classical music which I have known since I was 11 years old. I listened to it once again when I was over in Australia, and it most definitely bought me to tears. It is one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever.
Leaving music to one side for a moment, being a member of the ‘Toon Army’, how do you think that Newcastle are going to fare this season?
To be honest at this moment in time I am feeling alright. I am going to see them play Fulham on Saturday and I have just heard that Alexander Isak might be out injured which is a bit sad because to be honest out of the corner of my eye, based upon a couple of Match Of The Day’s I feel that Fulham have something going on this season. (Fulham beat Newcastle 3-1). I would love it if we could finish top six, although I feel that is still being a little ambitious because our transfer window really has not been that exciting. Having said that, I have to remain confident because things are happening, and Eddie Howe really is a great manager. However, I really don’t like the look of Callum Hudson-Odoi when we come up against Nottingham Forest; I’m not going to lie.
To be totally honest with you, all of the Forest fans are amazed at just how easily Elliot Anderson has slotted into our style of play. We are amazed that Newcastle were prepared to let him go.
Oh, is that right, is he doing well? I have two trains of thought on that, firstly I am chuffed for you because he is a great young player whilst on the other hand, I don’t think that we really wanted ideally to let him go but at the end of June there were a few select teams that had to sell-off a bunch of players in order to make a bit of profit. Newcastle basically; I don’t want to make excuses but Newcastle was in a situation when we had to sell one of the ones who we could just about afford to let go. I will say this from a neutral perspective, Forest really should benefit, simply because he is a keen fella.
On that note James let me once again thank you for taking the time to speak to me today; it’s been delightful. You take care and good luck with the tour.
Thank you, Kevin, it really is much appreciated. Please do say hello when you get to one of the shows, it would be great to meet you and thanks for your support.
For tour details go to www.jamesbay.com
