James Byrd

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by John Kindred
Staff Writer

James Byrd first gained notoriety with the band Fifth Angel before forming his solo band in the ‘80s. His neo-classical-virtuoso guitar style was influenced by Ritchie Blackmore, Uli Jon Roth (Scorpions era), Gary Moore, Al DiMeola, Neal Schon and Michael Schenker.

“One of the best European sounding guitarists I have heard in years, he definitely has ‘the vision’ and aims for each note and makes it count,” — Yngwie Malmsteen.

In the ‘80s Guitar for the Practicing Magazine (now known as Guitar One) listed Byrd in their one-off feature, “The 10 best guitarists you have never heard.”

Discography:

Solo:
• James Byrd’s Atlantis Rising – S/T (1990)
• James Byrd – Octoglomerate (1993)
• James Byrd – Son Of Man (1995)
• The James Byrd Group – The Apocalypse Chime (1996)
• James Byrd’s Atlantis Rising – Crimes Of Virtuosity (1998)
• Byrd – Flying Beyond The 9 (2001)
• Byrd – Anthem (2002)
• James Byrd’s Atlantis Rising – Beyond the Pillars (2011)

with Fifth Angel
• Fifth Angel – S/T (1988)

Hardrock Haven: James it’s nice to talk with you again.

James Byrd: Hi, nice to hear from you again as well.

Hardrock Haven: Last time we discussed the re-release of ‘97s Crime of Virtuosity as well Byrd Guitars, Yngwie, Fifth Angel, etc. Today you are back with a new release, Beyond the Pillars on Lion Music, which is yet again another album going back deep into the vaults of unreleased material. What did rediscovery this “lost” material mean to you?

James Byrd: I had truly forgotten the recordings, and I was really surprised at how good the performances were.

Hardrock Haven: Hearing the music must have been like traveling back in time. Was it an emotional high or low transitioning Fifth Angel to your solo band?

James Byrd: It was definitely a high. Although Fifth Angel ended up being a bitter disappointment when people I’d placed my trust in, started breaking agreements and demanding new terms, I realized just how easy it was to move forward artistically when you didn’t have to deal with out of control egos and endless debates before taking a vote on every decision. It felt great and freeing.

Hardrock Haven: What was the inspiration for the music we are going to hear when we put Beyond the Pillars in our CD players?

James Byrd: Just having the freedom to make my own musical decisions without being second guessed by anyone gave me a lot of energy. A lot of my writing makes use of subjects that interest me, and since I was a kid, I have been obsessed with Atlantis and what’s called “forbidden archeology”. But we were very young, so girls were on our minds (and hanging around as we recorded), so there are a lot of love songs.

Hardrock Haven: Are there any memories of this time period that came flooding back when you heard the master tape again that you had forgotten?

James Byrd: Oh yeah. Warm fuzzy, blurry memories of girls from the Deja Vue, the smell of beer which permeated every fiber of The Music Bank, going out to clubs after the sessions. We had a very good time.

Hardrock Haven: If there is new material in the pipe line the why this release it as opposed to new material?

James Byrd: Well as you may have noticed, the music industry (along with the rest of the economy) isn’t what it used to be. I undertook to start my guitar company Byrd Guitars, making instruments for the public in 2001 because the writing was on the wall in terms of money from labels, and aside from these guitars being a passion of mine, I thought it wise not to have all my eggs in one basket. So discovering the tapes, and finding out they were worthy of release, enabled me to give something to fans who hadn’t had anything new in too long.

Hardrock Haven: Final thoughts on the release of Beyond the Pillars?

James Byrd: I’m pretty proud of it actually, it’s hard to believe I was so young and the tracks sound so fresh and high energy after not hearing them for 23 years. I think there’s some great writing.

Hardrock Haven: One of your heroes, Gary Moore passed away this year. How did the news hit you personally?

James Byrd: I was stunned really. It’s a huge loss. I remember playing some of his songs when I was 19, and he was a great musician. And then of course it makes you aware of your own mortality. Very sobering really.

Hardrock Haven: When you look back at your career, what would you do or not do differently?

James Byrd: That’s so hard to answer; even the bad things lead to where I went, and one has no way of knowing where they’d be. There can’t be regrets, but obviously everyone wonders about where they would be if they’d made different decisions. Fifth Angel ended very badly, but I can’t regret the time I put in there because it launched me.

Hardrock Haven: In my mind you are a lot like Michael Schenker, almost a cult guitar hero. Not necessarily main stream enough, like Malmsteen or Satriani, to be known as well as they are. So has social media (facebook,myspace, twitter, etc.) and the web in general helped to garner more notoriety?

James Byrd: Well I just started “face booking” about a year ago, and I am always surprised at the people from my past who find me, and the messages I get from fans. I don’t really know about more notoriety, but it obviously can’t hurt.

Hardrock Haven: Fifth Angel has recently reformed. Were you asked or invited to participate with the band? If you weren’t asked, would you play with them again if they came calling?

James Byrd: How can a band with only one original member (Ed) be viewed as legitimate? I was asked and my answer was absolutely not. There’s only one reason why someone would try to do this using the name, and I’m afraid the answer isn’t pretty. I said no for both artistic and personal reasons and either of those alone would be enough for me not to entertain the idea.

From an artistic perspective, if you call something a “reunion”, you have two choices: Either make a contrived effort to make an album that sounds like people remember the band, or to make an album that sounds different. If you make an album that sounds like people remember, well, you haven’t grown as an artist have you. You are just pandering to people’s sense of nostalgia. And if you make an album that’s different, well then what’s the point of claiming it’s a reunion? You’re going to just alienate the old fans. So it’s a no win in my opinion.

And on a personal level, I had decided when I heard about this so-called reunion that I wouldn’t say anything, but now I will: I was truly offended that Ed had the audacity to think he had a right to exploit a legendary band name for his own purposes, and I wanted nothing to do with it because that guy is the reason the band kept breaking up from the beginning.

I am saying something now, because I guess you hadn’t heard, but their new drummer quit, and their fifth vocalist also quit. I believe he was the 4th vocalist to throw in the towel. And this is actually a part of the reason I felt releasing Beyond The Pillars would be good; Fifth Angel fans have been jerked around since 2003 with repeated promises of a reunion, and when Jeff McCormack and David Fefholt (both friends of mine now) both quit a couple of months ago, I was able to release an album that was not an imitation of the past, but the real deal; a genuine time capsule from 1987. Hopefully it will fill some of that desire for a solid 80’s album, and it’s a good one.

In conclusion about Fifth Angel, all I can say now, is I hope they will show some respect for what the band was during its brief but shining moment in the spot light, by just letting the memory of the band rest in peace.

Hardrock Haven: Touching on your custom guitars, BYRD Guitars, how is the business going?

James Byrd: I’m definitely not getting rich at it in this bad economy, but it has been incredibly satisfying. This isn’t some signature guitar I put my name on that some company halfway around the world makes. I spent years and tens of thousands of dollars developing and patenting it, and each order from customers is a custom build, and I am the builder. It’s creative, and there is tremendous satisfaction in fulfilling someone’s guitar dream and building them the perfect instrument.

Hardrock Haven: Are there any other projects you are working on now?

James Byrd: Aside from guitar builds, I’ve been fabricating a chopper. I’ve been a custom fabricator since I was 20 years old, and a biker most of my life as well. As a rule I never talk about albums until they are finished, I guess I am superstitious.

Hardrock Haven: James thanks for taking time to do this interview.

James Byrd: Thank you!