No sit down for touring James

BEATS: MANCHESTER indie stars James will stage a spectacular homecoming gig at the Arena on Saturday.

Over the years the band have sold 12 million albums and scored 20 Top 40 singles including their most famous hits “Sit Down”, “She’s a Star”, “Laid” and “Come Home”.

The starting line-up consisted of guitarist Paul Gilbertson, bassist Jim Glennie, drummer Gavan Whelan and singer Tim Booth.

An early gig at The Hacienda caught the eye of music mogul Tony Wilson who offered the band a deal with Factory Records. The resulting three track EP led to a support slot on a Smiths tour.

James released “Gold Mother” just as the Madchester scene was taking off in the early 1990s, with single “Sit Down” becoming one of the biggest selling hits of the year.

The band split in 2000 following a farewell gig at the Manchester Arena.

They reunited for a tour in 2007 and tickets sold out within a day. New album “Hey Ma” followed the year after. James released two mini albums in 2010 — “The Night Before” and “The Morning After” — to coincide with their December tour.