Q&A: Jim Baron discusses Crazy P and solo project JIM
The producer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Jim Baron is best known as one of two co-founding members of Crazy P. Baron and Chris Todd conceived the project in Nottingham in the mid-1990s, initially under the playful handle Crazy Penis. As the name suggests, the pair set out as casual hobbyists pursuing a passion for electronic dance music. Over time, however, they became an act of great appeal in nightclubs across the UK and began to widen their scope.
Crazy P released their first studio album, A Nice Hot Bath With…, in 1998 and maintained a steady output over the subsequent 25 years to bring a further seven LPs to their energetic global audience. In the 2000s, the band expanded to accommodate live performances to accompany their DJ sets. Today, Baron and Todd are joined on stage by lead vocalist Danielle Moore, bassist Tim Davies and drummer Matt Klose to the stage.
Impressively, Crazy P have not only maintained their allure over the past 20 years but seem to gain momentum with each new release. Their diverse and loyal fanbase can rest assured that another Crazy P album is in the pipeline, but today, we focus on Jim Baron (DJ Ron Basejam) and his new solo venture.
During the various Covid-19 lockdowns of 2020-21, Baron sought to remain productive and challenged himself to improve his guitar skills. “Over the years, my musical tastes have grown to include folky guitar players like Nick Drake, Jackson C Frank, Terry Callier, guitar bands from the ’60s and ’70s like Crosby, Stills and Nash, and some soulful West Coast sounds like Ned Doheny,” Baron said of his ever-broadening tastes in a press statement.
To accommodate for an infatuation as such, Baron would have to set his electronic equipment to one side and welcome the primitive, sentimental tones of the acoustic guitar. “My own guitar playing was always on electric and was fairly rudimentary,” he continued. “But, I did a project called White Elephant, which was Chris Todd, me and Ben Smith. And Ben ended up showing me these fingerpicking techniques. Afterwards, I bought myself an acoustic guitar and spent the next 12-18 months playing it every day.”
On May 26th, Baron is scheduled to release Love Makes Magic, the debut album for his new solo project, JIM, via Bella Union. The music, as the acoustic guitar demands, is intently introspective and sentimental, starkly contrasting with Baron’s work with Crazy P. For this project, Baron favoured a less intricate production style allowing appropriate warmth to frame the poignance that permeates most of his lyrics.
So far, Baron has treated us to three singles from the album that already serve a delectable platter of range, both conceptually and musically. As we approach what promises to be one of the highlight albums of the year, I’ve been fortunate enough to have a quick conversation with the man behind the music.
Q&A with Jim Baron of Crazy P:
Far Out: What was your first instrument?
Jim Baron: “I started playing the trombone when I was age seven. My brother, who was six years older than me, was a trumpet player, and I used to get sick of waiting for him to finish his lessons, sat in the car bored – previous to the time of iPads and whatnot. I thought, “If you can’t beat them, join them”.
“So the instrument I chose was one that I thought was the most interesting because you’ve got the big slide on it. I started playing when I was seven and went to join the local brass band and then went through to youth orchestras up until I went to uni.”
What musical artists inspired you in your youth?
“In the early days, it would have been more traditional, in terms of the music I was playing, classical-based. I think the turning point would have been when a friend of mine, Phil, was a resident at a newly-formed club in Liverpool called Cream. He didn’t have a driving licence and I had just passed my test. So I used to drive him up there. I thought the music was really exciting, a lot more exciting than what I’m studying or what I’m playing in the brass band. At that point, I started delving into electronics and finding a way to recreate what I was hearing in the clubs.”
Was your decision to change the original band name Crazy Penis to Crazy P the result of backlash from radio stations and other platforms?
“Oh yeah! There was total backlash everywhere. When we kicked off as Crazy Penis, it was just a hobby. We got the name from – we used to go to this car boot sale every Sunday, me Toddy [Chris Todd] and his mate Nathan. Nathan picked up this seven-inch single. My memory is hazy, but I think it was a bad called Loco Pinga, which is a colloquial translation for “crazy penis”. At that age, it seemed like, for hobbyists, a fun name to make an impression. We didn’t think at that point we’d have any more than one single. So we were originally called Loco Pinga.
“I think the real straw that broke the camel’s back was when we were on our way to San Francisco. We were going through customs there, and they said, ‘Oh, you’re in a band! What’s your band name?’ And we said, ‘Crazy Penis’. And he was like, ‘OK’, and he sort of thought a little bit, and then we got taken out and stuck in this room and questioned on the basis of our band name. I mean, everything turned out fine, but we started thinking at that point that we should have an operation to lose the ‘-enis’ here… There were too many problems!”
At what point did you change the name?
“I think it was early 2000s. But also, at that point, we’d started writing with Danielle, who’s the singer, and so the goalposts had moved. It wasn’t just two lads messing about anymore. We were taking it more seriously, and the sound had developed.”
What’s your favourite song to perform live with Crazy P?
“I’m gonna go with ‘Heartbreaker’. And the reason for that is it’s my little rock and roll moment when I come from behind the keyboards and play bass with Tim [Davies] and Chris, and we have this little three-way rock fantasy. I always enjoy that. It’s just a bit, you know, out of my comfort zone, but I love standing up and playing the guitar bass guitar.”
What’s the proudest moment of your career?
“I don’t think I could nail it on one thing. I think my proudest feeling is that we’ve managed to forge a career in quite difficult times for producers and musicians, and we’ve managed to keep true to ourselves and keep a very loyal fan base. And we’re still here over 20 years later. I think it’s unusual for this day and age, and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. I’m proud that we’re still relevant. Well, I hope we are!”
You’ve mentioned before that you are a fan of the more melancholic folk musings of Nick Drake and similar artists. How much of that melancholy is reflected in your upcoming solo album, Love Makes Magic?
“‘Still River Flow’ is pretty much the only beacon of positivity. The rest of it is quite introspective. There’s one particular single tape recording, an acoustic recording, which you would definitely class in the Nick Drake style. Very low-fi. Very bare bones. I think tracks like ‘Still River Flow’ came up because I was thinking about the live show, and I didn’t want to sit on a stool for an hour singing sad songs. I wanted to make something with a bit of oomph.”
What inspired you to branch off for a solo project?
“My guitar playing had always been rudimentary, and I really wanted to improve it. So I bought a guitar for my 40th birthday and really hammered the practice, started playing it every day and became proficient. A lot of the music I listen to at home isn’t dance music, it’s things like Nick Drake, Crosby, Stills and Nash, the West Coast Laurel Canyon vibe. And as I was learning these songs, I thought, “I wonder if I could, as an experiment, write something in that ballpark”.
“So the whole thing started as an experiment, really. I did everything at home. I didn’t do anything in the studio. I just recorded it on one mic – not a particularly good mic either – and I was using my daughter’s toy percussion instruments. I just wanted to narrow the palette that I was using because with Crazy P, the production is big. I played it to a few trusted ears for feedback – people who I know wouldn’t bullshit me and would be straight with me – and they said, “Look, you should really work with this. You’ve got something”.
Who did you work with on the new record?
“Well, I wrote the whole thing in lockdown, and I had the studio to myself because Toddy shifted some of the stuff out into his spare room. I’ve got kids at home, so it wasn’t amenable for me to be working at home, really. So I had the studio to myself, and I wrote everything in there, recorded pretty much all the guitar parts and the bass. And then I was using drum programming, and Matt [Klose] from Crazy P, I played him some of the tracks, and he ended up playing drums on the whole album. Then on percussion, we’ve got Sudha, who people would know from Faithless – amazing percussionist. So, it’s me and those two for the whole album, and then through the course of the tracks, there were a few guest spots”.
Was the guitar your primary songwriting conduit?
“Yeah. I started everything on the guitar, which was very different for me because I usually start on the keyboard. But whatever you bring to a new instrument, I’ve found you can find something unique. So, yes, my playing might technically not be as good as other people’s, but you bring something unique. The fact that I’m not a natural guitar player – or that it wasn’t my first instrument – helped me when starting the writing process because it was a completely new palette for me”.
Did you use your trombone on the new album?
“I didn’t. I’ve basically given it to my son because I realised it’s been sat in the studio doing nothing. He loves it, he won’t put it down. So, I think I’ve passed it on now to a more deserving and excitable trombone player. I did use it in the early days, but I haven’t picked it up in a long time. For the brass on the album, I worked with Huw [Costin, from Torn Sail]”.
