Here's the skinny from Boney James

For more than 25 years. James Oppenheim, aka Boney James, has been tooting his own horn. But he's not arrogant. James has earned a reputation as one of the most prolific saxophonists of the past three decades, recording funk, R&B and jazz-influenced hits from Backbone, Seduction and Sweet Thing and performing with the likes of Sheena Easton, Bobby Caldwell and the Isley Brothers. James recently released Shine, the current bestselling jazz album in the country, and featuring collaborations with George Duke, Faith Evans and Ann Nesby. The man who earned his nickname after joking with another artist that he was too broke to eat was recently in Miami Gardens to perform at Jazz in the Gardens at Dolphin Stadium. Boney James gets Unbuttoned with not-so-boney James H. Burnett III.

JB:Tell me about your start as a musician.

BJ: I started playing clarinet when I was 8 and sax when I was 10. But when I was 13 a school music teacher played for me Grover Washington's Mr. Magic, and right away I just got into it! It was that quick. His music really sparked my interest, and it's the tradition of that kind of music I'm trying to carry on today.

JB:You don't necessarily consider yourself a jazz artist. So who are some of your other influences?

BJ: I was always into Motown; Stevie Wonder; Earth, Wind and Fire. Today I enjoy the whole neo-soul thing. I mean India.Arie and Maxwell, too. I've always liked his material -- very strong music.

JB:What do you think of American Idol and organized groups' plotting to get the most votes for the least talented contestants on the show?

BJ: You just don't find artists built from the ground up anymore. I wonder if shows like that convince people that you have to make it instantly. If you're not a hit now, you won't be. If people like Springsteen and bands like U2 had been required to make it on their first album they might have been dropped by their record labels today. So American Idol is somewhat of an offshoot of what the music industry has been facing in recent years -- large corporations buying up all the record companies, and they're not making as much money as they used to. So they're creating things like American Idol to generate income.

JB:What would you like to see change about the music industry?

BJ: I actually hope that schools teach music more in the future. That would be a good thing for the industry. Sometimes you hear that someone's song was a sample. I think some folks sample so much, because they never learned to play an instrument or write music. If more artists and producers knew how to write music and play instruments they would be more creative and more original. That's a concern I have.

JB:What kind of movies do you watch?

BJ: I'm not so restrictive as in only dramas or only comedies. I just like quality. You can see a great comedy, drama, etc. One person's art is another person's schlock. I will respond to many different styles. The last good film I saw was The Lives of Others.

JB:Books?

BJ: I read a lot. I spend a lot of time sitting on airplanes. And I was a history major in college, so I love reading about the past. Right now I'm reading a book called Under the Banner of Heaven, about a true-crime story and a Mormon sect. I recently read a history of the Old West.

JB:What's your creative process like? Is it influenced by the things you watch or read or listen to for entertainment?

BJ: I just always try and be ready for ideas. I don't have a specific process or habit. My brain does fill up with musical thoughts, though. I'm thankful for that. And when an idea hits, it's that little teeny bit, that spark of inspiration. I just sort of hear something in my head. I get a shred of a melody or an idea for a groove. And I just sort of run with it. After that, it's just a lot of hard work, patience and perseverance as I put stuff together and go back to the drawing board.

JB:If you weren't creating music for a living, you'd be. . . .

BJ: Hopefully I'll never have to answer that question.

JB:Do you have a guilty pleasure?

BJ: French fries, but I try to avoid them, because I could become Pudgy James really quickly.

Source: miamiherald.com

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