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James Intveld Biography

james-intveld
  • Born: in Compton, Los Angeles, CA
  • Years Active: 1990s-2000s
  • Member of: The Blasters
  • Genre: Country

James Intveld was a native of Los Angeles who started his career at an early age listening and singing along to his parents' recordings of Hank Williams, Sr., Dean Martin, Lefty Frizzell, and Elvis. During the cow punk movement of the '80s, Intveld was working the same clubs as Dwight Yoakam and Rosie Flores, playing his own brand of rockabilly, and so impressed Town South of Bakersfield producers Pete Anderson and Dusty Wakeman that he was included on the second volume of the compilation series. Initially, Intveld worked with his younger brother Ricky and friend Pat Woodward in a band known as the Rockin' Shadows. The group dissolved when Ricky and Woodward left to work with Rick Nelson's Stone Canyon Band; both later died in the same airplane accident that took the life of Nelson, a tragedy that cut deeply into Intveld's heart and soul. On his own, he worked as a singer/songwriter and concentrated on acting. Continuously cast in movies, TV, and videos, he was the singing voice of Johnny Depp's character in the John Waters film Cry Baby and served as a prominent player and character in videos by such artists as Kathy Mattea. Still, his music remained the centerpiece of his creative life. As a writer, Intveld wrote the Rosie Flores hit "Cryin' Over You" as well as all the material on his own 1996 effort James Intveld. Named the best studio recording project and the best country or roots CD of 1996 by California's Music Connection magazine, Intveld successfully produced, arranged, sang, and played all the parts on this magnificent release, dedicated to his brother and best friend, Ricky. Continuing to write and perform on a continual basis, Intveld also remained in demand for his skills as a player; as adept at the slap bass, slide, steel, and drums as on guitar, he sat in with the Blasters periodically and often held down percussion duties for bluesman Lester Butler. A regular player around L.A., Intveld was also involved on recording projects with Kathy Robertson and the tribute CD Turning the World Blue, honoring Gene Vincent. The solo Somewhere Down the Road followed in mid-2000. ~ Jana Pendragon, Rovi

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