Ceri James was born in London but was raised in Swansea, Wales and he is a fluent Welsh speaker. He featured on the London circuit and beyond, to as far as West Hollywood, California, for more than 25 years. He was part of the well-publicised New Cross scene during the 90’s and 00’s, starting out in bands such as Atomic Central, Zen and Tuesday Heartbreak.
Ceri is now an established singer-songwriter and has released 10 studio albums, three EPs and 20 singles.
In the past he has supported artists including Glenn Tilbrook, Art Brut, Songdog, Rattlesnake Annie and Tom Hingley (Inspirals) to name a few. He has worked with producers including Gordon Raphael (Strokes), Pat Collier (Primal Scream, Wonderstuff, Robyn Hitchcock) but he also enjoys self-producing and recording other artists from time to time.
Ceri’s primary influences are blues, alt country, folk and rock and he usually performs with a backing band called The Red Flames. You might have seen him performing on top of Anthony Gormley’s Plinth in Trafalgar Square, upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s or at LA’s famous Rainbow bar and grill.
Ceri has received radio play on Frank Hennessy’s Celtic Heartbeat on BBC Radio Wales, Recordiau Rhys Mwyn on BBC Radio Cymru, BBC 6 Music and Blues & Roots Radio plus many more to boot.
In June 2026, Ceri released his 10th studio album For Those Who Don’t Make It.
The album includes Soho Ghosts. The song has a rockabilly country feel and pays homage to the golden era of music that is forever connected to Soho central London.
“Still grafting and producing disarmingly well-crafted paeans and minor anthems, James has honed his talent on every release.” – Monolith Cocktail
