Originally from California, Jim came to Seattle in 1971 with an old Epiphone guitar and a whole bunch of songs.  In what he often cites as one of the best things that ever happened to him, the last folk club closed few months after his arrival and he was faced with becoming inventive or leaving town.  He chose the first option and began creating his own stages all over the place.  For six years Jim played between sets of the rock and roll bands that played Seattle’s many live music clubs.  He also established himself as a regular performer at the University Of Washington, giving outdoor concerts two or three days a week.He played the sidewalks of downtown, Fremont, the University District and Capitol Hill.He played the cocktail bars, the bus station, cafes, the zoo, the Seattle Center -  all of this for hat money and all of this in whatever weather there was - rain, sun, wind, and even snow.  In 1974 Jim successfully lobbied City Hall to legalize street performing (now called busking). Up until that time it was subject to a Catch-22 situation where permits were only available to “blind and disabled people” but it was illegal to perform without them. 

In the summer of 1977 Jim performed in Europe for the first time at the Cambridge Folk Festival and everything began to change.  He spent the next several years touring extensively and even living in Dublin, Ireland.  He came back to Seattle in the middle of the Reagan 80’s and things looked bleak.  Stubbornness never having been the measure of intellect, Jim persisted in his musical career and in the late 80’s began to play at the Pike Street Market.  It was there that he formed a loose partnership with Artis the Spoonman, playing several times a week in front of the Nameless Corporate Coffee Company. 

More touring, more recording, an electric rock and roll band, duos, trios, and a lot of song writing and the 90’s have come and gone in a maze of travel and music.  His 2000 album “Music From Big Red” was awarded the prestigious SAMIE Award for Seattle Area Musical Innovation and Excellence. After 9-11 his “Collateral Damage” CD received almost endless airplay on Democracy Now! and other venues.  A retrospective followed in 2003, and two new CDs in 2004.  As of this writing Jim shows no signs of slowing down or even taking a breath.

If you were to ask him what his goals were he would answer something like this: “My goal has always been to do whatever I could to help to re-establish the song as a viable and respected tool in our human cultural toolbox.”Damn, that’s a mouthful!  Time will tell how successful he has been.