from The Grand Rapids Press
Wednesday, May 24, 1995

Ex-Styx guitarist James Young touts strong vocals of new group

by Josh Newman

Styx may not be on top of the music world, as they were in the '70s and '80s, but James "JY" Young is a pretty happy guy these days just the same.
But Young's current glee is not stemming from Styx.
The group's former lead guitarist has a new band, a new album and a new life.
"I'm doing great! My life has been good to me thus far, and so has my career," said Young, who was speaking from his car phone just outside his hometown Chicago.
"I have a great new band, and I am just having a lot of fun," continued Young, a founding member of Styx. The band Young speaks of is the James Young Group - more than just Young and a supporting band, it is truly a group effort.
Besides the notoriety of guitarist Young, the James Young Group features the talents of bassist Hank Horton, keyboardist Lou DePasqua, drummer Ken Harck adn Michael Baran, who was a member of The Urge, along with Nine Inch Nails leader Trent Reznor and Damn Yankees drummer Michael Cartellone.
James Young Group's release "Raised By Wolves" is out on the Chicago-based Whitehouse/Absolute label. The album, released in mid-April, is beginning to get some radio play, too.
And Young feels pretty confident with his band's effort.
"The production and the material selection on (the album) is what I had hoped for, and some of the (radio) stations are starting to play a couple of the tunes. So things are starting to get going."
The nine-song release - in which five tunes were written by band members - features what Young calls "a mix of light and dark."
"So much of today's music is dark - both in tone and in content," said Young, "but I think that this album does a good job of giving some positive messages."
"Don't get me wrong, some of my favorite songs in the world are dark in tone and in content, but I don't think that it all has to be based upon that."
"Young is touting strong vocals of four of the five band members. "I think that the fact that almost all of the guys in the band sing makes us a little different from the rest," said the veteran rocker.
"In the past only a few bands - like the Beatles, Crosby/ Stills/Nash/Young and Styx - have had the luxury of multiple lead singers."
"I think that this (luxury) definitely allows for the music to be much more dynamic and more emotional," he continued.
What's kept Young going, through all these years in the business? It's the emotion and sense of immediacy from a live show, he said.
Even when with Styx, Young admits that he was "more of a player, than a writer."
And now, after two solo efforts - "City Slicker" which he recorded with Jan Hammer, and "Out On A Day Pass" - Young is glad to be back in a group.
"It's really cool that this album was a collaborative effort," said Young "but I think that playing live is where we excel."
"Playing live is the ultimate music experience. That's why I do what I do. That's why I love to play rock 'n' roll," said Young, whose group will perform its new songs plus older material including some Styx tunes.
"The object of rock 'n' roll is to distract from the everyday troubles and stresses that people have, and as long as it keeps working for me, I'll keep doing it."