Most of Al’s life P.M. (Pre-Mutt) revolved around writing songs, developing his wine palate (focus on Burgundy, the Loire Valley and Champagne) and touring the U.S. and Europe with his band Dolorean. He has released five full–length albums and a handful of singles through various record labels in both North America and Europe. His albums have been glowingly reviewed in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, The Onion, Paste, No Depression and on NPR’s Fresh Air. His worst / best review came from Time Out New York, who called his music, “…softhearted ballad after softhearted ballad — the musical equivalent of a ponytailed man sipping tea and discussing PBS documentaries.” This brilliant insight continues to guide his songwriting and copywriting work to this day.

In addition to his own music and writing, Al plays rhythm guitar for blind loner folk legend Bob Desper and helped extensively in the re-issue of Desper’s 1973 folk masterpiece New Sounds. He is also a contributing writer for Mike Stax’s legendary Punk/Blues/Garage bi-annual magazine Ugly Things. Although he has had a hand in much of the work at Mutt during the 2010-2011 season, his greatest hits would have to include music supervision and writing work for Mello Yello, Adidas, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Gerber Legendary Blades, GAP and World Bank.
Al James
(1977 –      )
Beloved Brother
Diligent Writer
Supervisor of Music
Singer of Songs