Brian James, born Brian Graham Robertson on February 18, 1951, in Hammersmith, London, was an English punk rock guitarist best known as a founding member of The Damned and The Lords of the New Church. After forming the garage rock band Bastard in 1973 and playing in London SS with Mick Jones, he co-founded The Damned and wrote nearly all the material for their first two albums, Damned Damned Damned (1977) and Music for Pleasure (1977), before leaving the group in late 1977. He subsequently formed Tanz Der Youth, toured with Black Sabbath, and joined Iggy Pop's touring band in 1979. In 1982, he co-founded The Lords of the New Church with Stiv Bators, recording three studio albums before the band disbanded in 1989. James released his self-titled debut solo album, Brian James, in 1990 and recorded Mad for the Racket (2000) with the supergroup Racketeers. In October 2022, he reunited with the original lineup of The Damned for five concerts in the United Kingdom. James died on March 6, 2025.
