Biography - Alex James

Who is Alex James?

Alex James is a multi-talented persona. He is an English musician, songwriter, journalist, and cheesemaker.

Alex James – Age, Parents, Siblings

Alex James, whose birth name is Steven Alexander James was born on 21 November 1968 in Boscombe, Bournemouth, England. He was raised by his parents Jason James and Kelly James along with his sibling, a sister named Deborah James who is two years younger.

Growing up, his mother begged him to take violin lessons but the instrument was too difficult for him. At the age of 13, his father bought a piano which immediately brought his interest in music.

Education, Ethnicity

For education, he attended the state grammar school Bournemouth School for boys. He later went on to enroll at Goldsmiths College to study French. 

His ethnicity is English.

Alex James – Girlfriend, Wife, Children, Divorce

James was in a relationship with his girlfriend Justine Andrew. But in 2002, the couple broke up, ending their long-term relationship.

He went on to date Claire Neat, a music video producer. The couple married in April 2003 in Cheltenham. Together they have welcomed five children. Their eldest son, Geronimo was born on February 16th, 2004 followed by the birth of twin boys Artemis and Galileo in April 2006.

Neat and James became parents for the fourth time in August 2008 as their daughter Sable was born. They also welcomed daughter Beatrix in December 2009. 

The family currently resides in Kingham, Oxfordshire without rumors of extramarital affairs and divorce.

Also read: Toby Sebastian - Actor, Musician 

Alex James – Career

James was just in his mid-teens when he started a band, The Age Of Consent, with Jay Burt-Smale. A few years later, he formed another band called Mr. Pangs Bang Bangs which was named after his landlord.

Before fame

While at Goldsmiths College, Alex James met Graham Coxon and formed a group, Nichtkunst. Coxon then introduced James to his Circus bandmates, Damon Albarn and Dave Rowntree. Albarn was not impressed by Alex James’ attitude saying, "He completely pisses me off". James had replied Circus’ music is sh**.

Overcoming the differences, James joined the Circus band as per Coxon’s request in 1989. It had just lost two members Eddie Deedigan and Dave Brolan. Soon they changed their name to Seymour. James soon left Goldsmiths College.

Seymour’s name was later finalized to Blur and James was its bass player.

Also read: Kevin Selleck - Musician of the band Tonic

Albums, Songs, Book

The band released albums namely, Leisure, Modern Life Is Rubbish, etc. He left the band in 2002 and the band soon dissolved. Unlike his bandmates, he has not pursued a solo career.

In addition, James is also a food writer for The Sun. He writes for the weekly column Alex James on All Things Food and is a regular columnist on The Sunday Telegraph called Mucking In. He has also written for newspapers including The Independent, The Observer, The Times, The Sunday Times, Q magazine, The Spectator, and The Idler.

He published an autobiography titled Bit of a Blur in June 2007 and All Cheeses Great and Small: A Life Less Blurry in September 2011.

Worked with

James has worked with actor Keith Allen, artist Damien Hirst, Stephen Duffy, Marianne Faithfull, Jane McDonald, Florence and the Machine and Gene Loves Jezebel.

Also read: Scott Stapp - Singer, Songwriter, Musician of Creed 

Cheesemaking

Along with his association with the band Blur, Alex James is well known for his cheese production. He had moved to the Cotswolds, purchased a 200-acre farmhouse, and renovated it into a cheese farm.

He now produces award-winning cheese called Alex James Presents, Good Queen Maude, Blue Monday, Little Wallop, Farleigh Wallop, Goddess

Alex James – Net Worth, Salary

The net worth of James is estimated to be more than $25 million while the figure on his annual salary/income is unknown.

Alex James – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook

On social media sites Instagram and Twitter, Alex James has thousands of followers. However, he seems to be absent from Facebook.

Also read: Gary Clark Jr. - Musician