Welcome to my area of the Caminos website! I’m glad you decided to stop by! Like Jason and Jeff, I also grew up in Waukon, IA and I still live in Waukon with my wife, Kelly, and my two children, Reid and Ava!! I went to school with both of those boys and we started playing music together way back in our younger days! When we talked about starting our first band I was going to be the keyboard player! What happened?!! I was talked into being the singer and the rest is history! The guys let me play some guitar these days so I’ve graduated back to playing an instrument! I love it!
Q & A:
How long have you been playing and what got you started?
I’ve been singing for almost 20 years now. Jeff and I always dreamed of starting a band, most of the credit for getting me started as a singer goes to Jeff. When we were kids we used to get together in the summertime after school was out and play drums and keyboards together and talk about starting a band. Jason showed up in the picture and asked Jeff about playing drums in the band and Jeff suggested that I join the band as a keyboard player. During our first get-together they talked me into being the singer. I guess I could sing and we really needed a singer more than a keyboard player!! So that’s how I got started.
Who are your favorite bands and influences?
I’ve never stopped listening to Ozzy(Black Sabbath), Alice in Chains, Slaughter, Skid Row (all the 80′s hair bands), Virgos/Virgos Merlot. My vocal influences would be Layne Staley, Ozzy, Seal(not kidding), Brett Hestla from Virgos and anyone with a great voice!
What do you like about playing with The El Caminos?
The thing I love is that I get to play music, hang out, and have fun with my best buds of many many years, Also I like to put smiles on peoples faces and make them forget about the “rough and tough” of the real world for a while! That’s a great feeling!!
Any random thoughts you’d like to share?
This isn’t really a random thought but I would just like to say, thank you to all of you who come to our shows to have a good time, and be a part of something that I feel is pretty special. The compliments and smiles on your faces makes it all worth it. If it wasn’t for all of you, I wouldn’t be singing right now. I love you all:)
James’s Favorite Websites
The Caminos
If there is a common “happiness” thread through all people; rich or poor; young or old; every walk of life; it would me music. Right? Who doesn’t like music? And along with music goes entertainment! Who doesn’t like to be entertained? Put those two items together and you have The El Caminos. The band was put here to do just that: Play music and entertain people! They feel it’s their mission to make people smile, forget their cares for a little while, help people let loose, enjoy themselves, sing along like no one’s listening, dance a little (or a lot) and just have a great time in general!
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