James Dean Bradfield

James Dean Bradfield
Bradfield performing with Manic Street Preachers in 2014
Background information
Born	21 February 1969 Pontypool, Wales
Genres	Alternative rock, hard rock, post-punk, punk rock, glam punk
Occupation(s)	Musician, singer-songwriter, producer
Instruments	Vocals, guitar, bass, drums, percussion, keyboards, piano, sitar, mandola, omnichord
Years active	1986–present
Labels	Columbia
Associated acts	Manic Street Preachers
Notable instruments
Gibson Les Paul Custom

James Dean Bradfield (born 21 February 1969) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. He is known for being the lead guitarist and lead vocalist for the Welsh alternative rock band Manic Street Preachers.

Biography

Early life

Born in Tredegar, Gwent, Bradfield attended the local Oakdale Comprehensive School where he suffered years of cruelty and bullying (he claims he was "a Woody Allen-esque little nerd") for his name (nicknamed Crossfire), lazy eye, musical bent and small size. James formed a close relationship with three friends: his cousin Sean Moore, who lived with James and his family throughout their childhood after his own parents' divorce, and future bandmates Nicky Wire and Richey Edwards.

Bradfield loved to run and was a steeplechaser, and soon grew fond of punk rock band The Clash, although his earliest musical love was ELO.^[1] He gave up his dream of "being like Napoleon" and decided that he wanted to be a rock star. He learnt to play guitar by learning how to play Guns N' Roses's Appetite for Destruction^[2] with the curtains drawn in his parents' front room.

Manic Street Preachers

Solo career

Bradfield in De Montfort Hall in 2010

In late April 2006, a track from Bradfield's debut solo single entitled "That's No Way to Tell a Lie" premiered on Janice Long's show on Radio 2. It became the first single from the album and was released on 10 July while the album, entitled "The Great Western", was released on 24 July. The single debuted at #18 in the UK single charts while the album debuted at #22 on the album charts. The positions were considered relatively successful considering the lack of promotion.

In support of the album, Bradfield played a series of solo gigs in May 2006 in Manchester, Glasgow, Dundee, Birmingham and London. The setlists consisted of tracks from the "The Great Western" as well as several Manics tracks including "This Is Yesterday" and "Ocean Spray". He also played one further date at London ULU in June 2006, featuring a similar setlist to the other gigs. Bradfield also performed at the 2006 V Festival in late August. He embarked on his first full UK tour – consisting of 15 dates – in October. A second single, 'An English Gentleman' was lifted from "The Great Western" prior to the tour and entered the UK chart at #31 on 1 October 2006.

Personal life

He currently lives in Chiswick, London, but also has a house in the dock area of Cardiff. Despite having said “I always get bored of the company of women really quickly,”^[3] he married the band's PR agent Mylène Halsall in a ceremony in Florence, Italy on 11 July 2004. The couple have one child, a daughter, who was born in 2011. He is a supporter of Cardiff Blues and Nottingham Forest.^[4] In 2015, Bradfield and fellow manic Sean Moore went to Patagonia in aid of the Velindre charity.

Musical equipment

Guitars

Gibson Les Paul Custom[5] Gibson Les Paul Junior Gibson Flying V Gibson ES-330 Gibson ES-335 Gibson Explorer Gibson J-45[6]

Fender Telecaster Fender Thinline Telecaster Fender Jazzmaster Fender Stratocaster Fender Starcaster[7]

Gretsch 6120 Chet Atkins model Gretsch White Falcon Guild Black Star Burns 12 string model Rickenbacker 330 Rickenbacker 360[8] Gordon Smith GS-1 double cutaway Fret-King Ventura 60SSH

Amplifiers

Fender Twin Fender Hot Rod DeVille Trace Elliot Speed Twin

Blackstar Artisan 30 Orange Amp head Orange cabinet

Marshall JCM 900 Vox AC30 Mesa\Boogie Lone star Special

Discography

James Dean Bradfield live in London in 2005

With Manic Street Preachers

Solo discography

Studio albums

• The Great Western (24 July 2006) – #22

Singles

• "That's No Way to Tell a Lie" (10 July 2006) – #18
• "An English Gentleman" (25 September 2006) – #31

Collaborations

• "Lopez" (1996) with 808 State on album Don Solaris
• "Inertia Creeps" (1998) with Massive Attack, remix for Inertia Creeps single
• "I'm Left, You're Right, She's Gone" (1999) with Tom Jones on album Reload
• "Commemoration And Amnesia" (1999) with Patrick Jones, 2 tracks
• "Tongues for a Stammering Time" (2009) with Patrick Jones, 4 tracks

Production discography

• 1996: Northern Uproar – Northern Uproar (studio album)
• 1997: Kylie Minogue – Impossible Princess (studio album, co-producer on 2 tracks)
• 1999: Tom Jones – Reload (studio album, co-producer on 1 track)
• 2004: Johnny Boy – "You Are The Generation That Bought More Shoes And You Get What You Deserve" (single)

References

1. http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/interviews/manic_street_preachers_james_dean_bradfield_sometimes_you_need_some_creative_failure_to_spur_you_on.html
2. http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/interviews/manic_street_preachers_james_dean_bradfield_sometimes_you_need_some_creative_failure_to_spur_you_on.html
3. "BBC Wales - Music - Manic Street Preachers - James Dean Bradfield". Bbc.co.uk. 3 December 2008. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
4. http://web.archive.org/web/20100301044008/http://www.cardiffblues.com:80/707_400.php. Archived from the original on 1 March 2010. Retrieved 10 March 2010. Missing or empty |title= (help)
5. The Manic Street Preachers Gear Guide dolphinmusic.com Retrieved: 2009-12-23
6. http://www.manicstreetpreachers.com/uk/james-dean-bradfield
7. http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/james-dean-bradfields-guitar-collection-606679/2#!7
8. http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/james-dean-bradfields-guitar-collection-606679/2#!6

Bibliography

• Price, Simon (1999). Everything (A Book About Manic Street Preachers) (first ed.). Virgin Publishing. ISBN 0-7535-0139-2.
• Clarke, Martin (1997). Manic Street Preachers: Sweet Venom (first ed.). Plexus Publishing. ISBN 0-85965-259-9.

External links

• Official Manic Street Preachers Site
• James Dean Bradfield biography from BBC Wales