You won't ever find James Chance out of his suit, neckwear or pompadour. And what may read a bit antsy on the outside is the opposite on the inside, for James is focused within the realm of his radical energy. Attracted to film noir, James is as retro as any movie from the 30s and 40s. But Chance was and is progressive. He has been around the block a few times, starting his musical career in the early 70s playing free-style jazz, and then moving on to Ethiopian jazz, funk, punk, disco, but James always did his music differently. While most musicians concentrated on building up chords, Chance was known to construct and interlock melodies.
Originally from Milwaukee then settling in New York City, he was known to have his thumbs in two pies: the black soul of jazz/funk and the white soul of rock/punk. But more importantly, James was not in need of an audience to like his music so long as they reacted to it. Earlier in his career, passive audiences would make him mad enough to start a fight with whoever listened flaccidly.
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