King James: Great Musicians Called James Quiz

Answer: James Hetfield

Mr Hetfield is a heavy metal icon, and even folk who claim Metallica later "sold out" can't help but excited when they hear classics from 1983's "Kill 'Em All", arguably the first bona fide thrash album to be released internationally. It still sends shivers down my spine. The San Francisco thrash scene pumped out a heap of breathtaking thrash albums shortly afterwards, including ex Metallica member Dave Mustaine's new band's Megadeth's storming debut "Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!", but Metallica had already stolen the show as far as shock value was concerned.

Next came "Ride The Lightening", which broached new topics and broadened the scope in terms of song-writing, but was nothing compared to 1986's "Master Of Puppets", an album which still heads many a list as best thrash album ever. It showed Metallica as a technically adept band, able to write complex songs reflecting their huge admiration for bands like Rush, paired with the brute force of punk bands, with both influences worn on their sleeves.

During the tour to promote the album in Europe bassist Cliff Burton died in a coach crash in Sweden, bringing to a close an era. The band replaced him with Flotsam and Jetsam bassist Jason Newstead, but for many a fan (myself included), things have never been the same.

Hetfield has had a rather troubled life, growing up in a family of religious fanatics, and later struggling with drink problems. Many of his lyrics take on board these themes, but he has always managed to avoid self-indulgent self-analysis or melancholy, guaranteeing a metal delight every time he puts pen to paper.

Answer: Elmore James

Elmore James is often refered to as "King of the slide guitar", but his premature death (1963, aged 45) meant that he missed out of the blues renaissance of the 1960s, which brought on the accolades and flattery of many a rising star, something many a long-forgotten bluesman got the well-deserved chance to bask in.

However, his influence on the blues, and then rock, is enormous, not just because of his prowess on the slide, but also the sound and tone he achieved. It was no fluke that he hit upon the sound as he used the knowledge from his trade (radio repairman) to customise his amps in a way unheard of at the time.

His firsthand experience of blues legend sui generis Robert Johnson stood him in good stead, not just as far as songwriting goes, but also in terms of emotional punch. Having said that, his backing band (which included his cousin and red herring in this quiz, Homesick James Williamson, on rhythm guitar) were a tour de force worthy of note.

As for the other choices, Brian James was guitarist in British punk band The Damned, and David "calamity" James (MBE) was England's national football team's goalkeeper from 1997 to 2010. They didn't win anything.

Answer: Black Oak, Arkansas

Black Oak's most famous citizen James Mangrum should have become a household name, but he and the band Black Oak Arkansas have never managed to really break through into the mainstream, despite big names (occasionally) recognizing their contribution to rock history. There's no doubt that Guns N' Roses star Axl Rose, and Van Halen front-man David Lee Roth built on Jim Dandy's antics /stage presence/ delivery when honing their style.

Our James sometimes went a bit far however, and was known for his rather inappropriate use of a wash-board, leading to the band getting the reputation as a novelty act, a tag which is proven unfounded if one takes the trouble to have a listen to any of the albums from their heyday. My personal favourite is 1973's "Raunch 'N' Roll Live".

Answer: 20th Century Boy

20th Century Boy was a 1973 hit for T Rex. In 1983, Jim Lea co-produced (with Slade's front-man Noddy Holder) a cover version of the song by British all-girl heavy metal band Girlschool.

"Cum On Feel The Noize" (written by Jim Lea and Noddy Holder) was a hit for Slade in 1973, going straight to number one in the UK charts, their first single to do so. Although it didn't do much for Slade in the US on its first release, spandex-clad heavy metal band Quiet Riot's version in 1983 was a hit.

Slade's penchant for releasing singles with misspelt titles started with "Coz I Luv You" in 1971, but by 1972 it had reached its zenith (or nadir, depending on how you feel about it) with "Look Wot You Dun", "Take Me Bak 'Ome", "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" (also covered by Quiet Riot), and "Gudbuy T'Jane" all coming out that year.

Jim Lea was a founder member of Slade in 1966, and stuck with the band through thick and thin (the band have peaked and troughed so many times it's hard to follow) until 1992 when front-man Noddy Holder had had enough and chucked in the towel, prompting Jim to do the same as Slade without Noddy seemed unthinkable. Other members of the band disagreed and decided to carry on.

The band's influence on other artists is enormous, artists as diverse as The Ramones, Kiss, Oasis and Dead Boys applauding them.

Answer: Steely Dan

All the choices are bands formed in 1972.

When two disgruntled song-writers / session musicians, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker, decided to start a band of their own, Jim Hodder was recommended to them along with Denny Dias and Jeff Baxter (guitars) and singer David Palmer. They chose the name Steely Dan and got a deal with ABC records. By the time "Can't Buy A Thrill" was recorded, lead vocal duties were being shared between Donald Fagen, Walter Becker (on one track), David Palmer (on two tracks), and even our Jim on "Midnite Cruiser". In fact, Palmer was only really in the band because Fagen suffered from stage fright, but by the second album he'd been dropped, and Fagen and Becker began to show reluctance towards performing live (although they still did), something that later caused trouble within the ranks.

"Countdown to Ecstasy" (1973) was the second album, and although it was said to be a rush job, it had some great songs, "Bodhisattva" being the stand-out track. At that time Steely Dan were still a proper band, although the use of extra personnel was already becoming a habit.

By third album, "Pretzel Logic" (1974), our man Jim Hodder had been replaced by Jim Gordon and Jeff Porcaro on drums, and is credited with backing vocals. It was the last album to feature him. Steely Dan begrudgingly toured the album, the last time they would perform live for many a year.

Our Jim went on to work as a session musician, but never worked on any big projects. He drowned in a swimming pool in 1990, aged just 42.

Answer: Blues

James "Blood" Ulmer (aka Damu Mustafa Abdul Musawwir) has an incredible back catalogue, and although not all of it is easily found, once sought out it's to be treasured. However, one should bear in mind that Ulmer's stuff ranges from (very) free jazz (mostly 1970s and 1980s) to the much more accessible later blues stuff.

Ulmer was a cohort of avant-garde jazz saxophonist Ornette Coleman, and he played with other experimental jazz greats such as Archie Shepp and Art Blakey in the 1970s. When he moved towards blues, his critics said that while he excelled at innovative jazz guitar playing, his take on blues standards is lacking in zest. Others defend his choice, saying that what he brings from his background in experimental jazz (as well as funk, rock, and just about everything else) invigorates a rather tired form. I'd side with the latter camp, and encourage anyone with an interest in the genre to check out the stuff he's done with ex Living Colour guitarist-cum-producer, Vernon Reid, posthaste.

Answer: David Bowie

"Raw Power" erupted in 1973 and still refuses to lie dormant after all these years. It's certainly one of the blueprints for punk rock, inspiring many a restless youth (and some oldies) to pick up a guitar, bash some drums, or screech like a beserker.

Having said all that, the album has had a strange life, and wasn't an instant hit. The Stooges had practically split-up at its conception, Iggy was living in London and was working as a solo artist (but still working with Williamson), and struggling with a heroin addiction. Old hands Scott Asheton and Ron Asheton were called back in as Iggy couldn't find any musicians in the UK he was happy with.

They recorded the album in London in late 1972. It was produced in a rather haphazard way by Iggy, so David Bowie was asked to remix it, which he did in an archaic studio in LA in just one day. Years later, Iggy ended up remixing it again, apparently just to stop anybody else getting their hands on it. Every man and his dog has an opinion about which mix is the best.

About the other choices; Johnny Winter produced Muddy Waters' comeback album "Hard Again", released in 1977, and its follow-ups. Todd has produced more albums than I've had hot dinners.

Answer: Sham Pistols

The Sham Pistols were short-lived, as most post punk explosion "supergroups" were in a scene where kudos were easily gained, but just as easily lost. The album isn't all bad, but rather hastily put together and includes a live second half that leaves a lot to be desired. The ex-Pistols went on to various other projects, the best of which (to my ears) were The Professionals, and of course Johnny Thunders' "So Alone".

Our Jimmy was a huge punk hero for a while, and he got producer credits on a fair few albums by young punk upstarts who had held him in high esteem, but his erratic behaviour let him down and as time dragged on, he lost a lot of credibility. In 2008 he almost took part in the UK version of TV show "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!", but realized he would be making a mockery of himself, thank goodness.

At their peak Sham 69 were amongst the sharpest of British punk acts, and left us with punk classics such as "Borstal Breakout", "If the Kids Are United", and "Hurry Up Harry".

Answer: KLF

The KLF (aka The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu) were a breath of fresh air in the pop world, always ready for a prank, although their humour didn't forgo a deep underlying critique of the music business, and later on also the contemporary art world.

Jimmy Cauty's sidekick Bill Drummond had already been part of the rock establishment, having worked as a manager, A&R man and musician when he decided to tear it to pieces from within by teaming up with frustrated musician Jimmy Cauty and releasing a string of blatantly flippant novelty singles under various guises, "Doctorin' The Tardis" as The Timelords being the most successful. They then wrote "The Manual" telling people how to get a number one UK hit, even (especially) if they are bereft of talent.

The next step was to produce what they called "pure dance music", and they managed it with the club anthems "What Time Is Love?", "3 a.m. Eternal", and "Last Train to Trancentral" all hitting the mark. For "Justified & Ancient" they got Tammy Wynette in, and had another hit.

My personal favourite prank was when our dance music heroes invited hardcore crust punk band Extreme Noise Terror to perform "3 a.m. Eternal" with them at the prestigious BRIT awards, broadcast live across the UK. It was gnarly, confrontational performance, during which Drummond fired (blanks) at the crowd from a machine gun. The performance ended with the statement "The KLF have now left the music business".

They later formed The K Foundation where they mocked the loathed, yet highly influential, visual arts Turner Prize, by naming the winner as "worst artist of the year". The K Foundation awarded 1993 Turner Prize winner Rachel Whiteread with £40,000 (twice the official prize amount). She wasn't keen to accept, but did when they threatened to burn the money.

Answer: James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix

So much has been written about Jimi Hendrix that there's not enough room here to even summarize. Let's just say, if any James has earnt the right to be be crowned King James, it has to be Jimi Hendrix, whose influence on popular music is immense and inestimable.

This iconic figure's music has been cannibalised, exploited, misrepresented, bootlegged, and fleeced, which meant that during the 1980s (in the UK at least) it was nigh on impossible to get genuine versions of his stuff, as ridiculous as that sounds. After lengthy legal hassles, all The Jimi Hendrix Experience material became available again, as did the Band Of Gypsies stuff. Parts of the mountain of unfinished recordings have come to light as respectful, albeit posthumous guesswork, versions as well.

Apparently, Hendrix ended up in the army after being given the choice between that and prison. The misdemeanors were to do with stolen cars, although it's not clear what part Jimi had played in the actual thefts. His army career was the antithesis of what his guitar playing was to become: unspectacular. He seems to have been kicked out for being so hopeless. One thing did come out of it though, and that was his meeting bassist Billy Cox, with whom he would later perform and record.