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{{Short description|American guitarist, singer and songwriter (born 1957)}}
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'''James Armstrong''' (born April 22, 1957
==Biography==
Armstrong's father was a [[jazz]] guitarist and his mother a blues singer. Having learned the guitar at a young age, Armstrong formed his first band at school, and was touring the United States in his late teens. Inspired by [[Albert King]] and [[Robert Cray]], his musical education included backing musicians such as [[Albert Collins]], [[Big Joe Turner]] and [[Smokey Wilson]]. Armstrong relocated to the [[San Francisco Bay Area]] and, in 1995, released his debut album, ''Sleeping with a Stranger'', on HighTone.<ref name="AMG"/>
However, in April 1997, Armstrong was almost stabbed to death by an intruder at his home. The shoulder injury necessitated months of rehabilitation, which still left Armstrong with limited guitar playing ability in his left hand. He adjusted his playing style, hired a lead guitar player, and realised that playing [[slide guitar]] helped to slowly recover his dexterity. His second, introspective, album, ''[[Dark Night (album)|Dark Night]]'', was issued in 1998.<ref name="The Sun">{{cite news |url=http://mytown.mercurynews.com/archives/sunnyvalesun/03.07.01/armstrong-0110.html |title=The 'Dark Night' returns: Bluesman James Armstrong performs in Sunnyvale nearly four years after he and his son were almost killed |author=
Armstrong recommenced live performances on the blues festival circuit, with a noteworthy appearance at the 1999 Pocono Blues Festival in [[Pennsylvania]]. In early 2000, Armstrong returned to the [[recording studio]] to work on his next album, ''Got It Goin' On''. He was aided in the project by utilising Walker's [[rhythm section]], plus a guest appearance from the keyboardist Jim Pugh.<ref name="AMG"/> In 2001, Armstrong's song "Pennies and Picks" from ''Got It Goin' On'', earned him a [[Blues Music Award|W.C. Handy Award]] nomination for 'Song of the Year'. Armstrong himself was nominated for 'Contemporary Male Blues Guitarist of the Year'.<ref name="Search">{{cite web |url=http://www.bluessearchengine.com/bluesartists/a/jamesarmstrong.html |title=James Armstrong: Got It Goin' On |author= |publisher=Bluessearchengine.com |accessdate=October 29, 2010}}</ref> "2 Sides
Armstrong has worked with Albert Collins, [[Keb' Mo']], [[Coco Montoya]], [[Roy Brown (blues musician)|Roy Brown]], [[Chaka Khan]], [[Ricky Lee Jones]], [[Jan and Dean]], [[Mitch Mitchell]] and [[Tommy Castro]].<ref name="James"/>
Armstrong's 2011 release on Catfood Records, ''Blues At The Border'', was his first recording in 11 years. James released ''Guitar Angels'' on Catfood Records in 2014.
In 2016, Armstrong started his own record label, Guitar Angels Records. The first release on his label, in May 2016, was the self-titled CD '' Mary Jo Curry'' from the [[Springfield, Illinois]] vocalist.
==Critical comments==
''[[Living Blues]]'':
"... With a skintight band and a well-balanced combination of fire, technical proficiency, and taste, Armstrong continues on his way to the
upper echelon of contemporary blues artists."<ref name="James"/>
[[CBC Radio]]:
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Tony Russell:
"If you define 'blues' by the rigid categories of structure rather than the flexible language of feeling allusion, Robert Cray... Larry Garner, Joe Louis Walker and James Armstrong are a new and uncategorizable breed, their music blues-like rather than blues, each of them blending ideas and devices from a variety of sources – soul, rock, jazz, gospel – with a
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==Album discography==
{| class="wikitable sortable"
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!Album title
!Record label
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|1995
|-
|''[[Dark Night (album)|Dark Night]]''
|HighTone Records
|1998
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|2011
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|''Guitar Angels''
|Catfood Records
|2014
|-
|''Bright Day, Blue Shore''
|Catfood Records
|2015
|-
|''Blues Been Good to Me''
|Catfood Records
|2017
|}<ref>{{cite web|author= |url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/james-armstrong-mn0000783716/discography |title=James Armstrong | Album Discography |website=[[AllMusic]] |date=1957-04-22 |accessdate=2015-10-03}}</ref>
==See also==
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==External links==
*[http://www.jarmblues.com/press.html Official website]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110410223753/http://users.rcn.com/leclark/James%20Armstrong.html Armstrong photographs at Users.rcn.com]
▲{{Authority control|VIAF=14170711}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, James}}
[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American blues guitarists]]
[[Category:American male guitarists]]
[[Category:American blues singers]]
[[Category:American male singers]]
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[[Category:Soul-blues musicians]]
[[Category:Electric blues musicians]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Guitarists from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:American male songwriters]]
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