Snowfall is a heartfelt Christmas song that yearns for just one more winter with those we've lost. 

James’ extraordinary grandma was an actress, salon owner, and poet. When she passed away, countless boxes of poems and prose were left behind. 

One of which - entitled “Snowfall” - is the second verse of this song. 

This is a new Christmas song, for Christmas 2022, that is dedicated to those we've lost, those we're losing, and those we're still luck enough to have around. 

Snowfall, by James Walker.

--------

Lyrics: 

I've not seen you much this year
Funny how time disappears
To every precious moment we're desperate to hold on
The more you try, the more they're gone
I know

'Cause all my life
I've been searching for home
When I had nowhere I needed to go

I'm coming home for winter
Let the snow pile high
We'll gather all together
Even if just for tonight
Leave our yesterdays at the door
These are the moments we're here for
I wouldn't miss it
I'll be home for Christmas
I'll be home for Christmas

Someone living in the sky last night
Had the most brilliant pillow fight
All through the night
'Cause when I woke up this holy morning
I saw the streets piled high
With feathers of white

All my life
I've been running away
When I had somewhere I could stay

I'm coming home for winter
Let the snow pile high
We'll gather all together
Even if just for tonight
Leave our yesterdays at the door
These are the moments we're here for
I wouldn't miss it
I'll be home for Christmas

'Cause I'm coming home for winter
As the snow piles high
Wish we could gather together
Even if just for a night
Leave our yesterdays at the door
These are the moments we're here for
I really miss you
Wish you were coming home for Christmas
I promise this time I won't miss it
Oh, what I'd give for one more Christmas

---------

Christmas songs 2022, lonely at christmas, snowfall, james walker, christmas poetry.

Snowfall

We keep ourselves calm by pretending we know the future. Like clairvoyants, palmists or seers, we claim that everything is within our vision; the future is something malleable, controllable, subservient to our manifestations. It's a beautifully human thing that brings me great joy. But I believe that deep down we know that we don't know; we feel the emptiness of uncertainty on a deeper level than we share. That's what Voyant is an acknowledgement of. 

Written as an adaptation of my good friend Marinus de Goederen, aka A Balladeer's song 'Fortune Teller', voyant is the first release of lots you'll be hearing from me this year. 

An exercise in being honest, open, and transparent, I'm releasing this in the knowledge that it isn't finished. But deadlines are ever-present, more songs are scheduled, and life moves on. Irrespective of its glaring imperfections, I hope the character of this recording brings you the feeling that I hoped to share with creating it. Something human, something reassuring, something warm.

As with all of the upcoming songs, this was funded by Arts Council England.

----------

Look at you now
Petrified of pages left unread
I wish I knew how 
To delicately write the words instead
For you

But give me your hand
I'll do what I can
To get you calm
By making up 
The meaning of
The lines in your palm

Look at you now
Wishing you were anybody else
Drowned by the city sounds
Living for the feeling that you felt
So long ago

But give me your hand
I'll do what I can 
To get you calm
By making up 
The meaning of
The lines in your palm

Just give me your hand 
I'll do what I can
To get you calm
By making up
The meaning of 
The lines in your palm

Voyant

I grew up alongside the ghosts of my parents' trauma, and eventually turned to unhealthy coping mechanisms and addiction to cope. 

'Somewhere Between' delves into these struggles and my personal experience of dependency. I chose to record the song in my family home, where I faced many of these challenges. 

-------

To a town I once loved
Whatever has become?
You dragged me down
And drugged me up
Took my money
Threw me out
And run

Wade in the water
Parents' house
Out so late 
The sun's rising now
Big time drama
Small time town
People watching people watch the world go round

You're not so big
When you step out of here
If home is where the heart is
I've been evicted by the fear that I

I'm somewhere between who I am
Who I want to be
I'm somewhere between two paths in front of me
Somewhere between loving you and hating me
Somewhere between, somewhere between
Who I am and who you see
Who you see

A tourniquet 'round your arm
You were my nicotine napalm bomb
You shook me up like a car alarm
Going off inside the dark
I saw you sprawled out on my bed
Back when we were more than friends
Picking payday loans to mend
Our heavy habits and hollow heads
Watching the world disappear
I lost all of my formative years

I'm somewhere between who I am
Who I want to be
(I don't know who I want to be)
Somewhere between two paths in front of me
(Two paths)
Somewhere between loving you and hating me
(Won't someone show me which way to go?)
Somewhere between, somewhere between
(Someone show me)
Who I am and who you see
(Tell me who I am)
Who I am and who you see

I'm somewhere between who I am
Who I want to be
(I don't know who I want to be)
Somewhere between two paths in front of me 
Two paths
Somewhere between loving you and hating me
(Won't someone show which way to go)
I'm somewhere between, somewhere between

But I am who I am
But I am who I am
Who I am 
Who I am
I 
I'm not who I want to be
Won't you show me the way back to myself?

'cause if you asked me to go back 
I would say that I just can't 
Then I probably would laugh
Before crying
'cause home is really what I lack

--------

#sadsongs  #indiefolk #singersongwriter #falsetto #boniver #winterymusic

Somewhere Between

Power (You Ain’t Got None)

Shadebathing

I Haven't Really Laughed Like That In Months Now

Somewhere Between (Slowed & Reverbed)

a song about sabotaging your own relationships, because you were never really taught how to love properly and you feel unworthy. an anthem for the stage 3 clingers (that's me). if you can relate, ily (a little too much).

For the past ten years, the longest time James Walker has spent in any one place has been four months.
A decade spent seeking home, stability and self-understanding are all themes that persist throughout James’ introspective and evocative music.

Unafraid to shine a light on his own shortcomings and red flags, "As Close As I Can Get" is a reflection on codependence, limerence, and the sounds of an un-had summer. 

--

Quite like our old life  
To waltz through my doorway
Re-meet all your sides 
With smoke circling the ashtray 

I stay up late at night 
Thinking of what I'd say
If you said I'd crossed your mind 
Why do I focus on the fake?

'cause "you're gone and I'm free"
That's what I tell them
When they ask me, 
But I'm alone, so empty 
Holding on to memories 
Like they're everything 
They're as close as I can get to us
As close as I can get

There was a warm light
That had slowly fled the scene
While we were laying spine to spine
Looking at the darkness outside the sheets

When we stared close enough
Honest for once 
We were just fools
Falling in love
It was always gonna be 
messy with me

But I'm gone
Do you feel free now?
Bet it's peaceful without me around
And are you dating?
Actually don't tell me
'cause I'm still holding on to memories   
Like they're everything 
They're as close as I can get to us
As close as I can get

Still not quite enough

Never truly thought I deserved happiness
Brought up to see myself a second best
A constant self-desertion 
I'm always seeking something 
Endlessly
Looking for the little missing part of me
So loving you became my whole identity
Now you're gone, all I will keep's this age old grief
While you're happier than I've ever seen you be

So I'll hold on, that's as close as I'll get

As Close As I Can Get

a song about sabotaging your own relationships, because you were never really taught how to love properly and you feel unworthy. an anthem for the stage 3 clingers (that's me). if you can relate, ily (a little too much).

--

Quite like our old life
To waltz through my doorway
Re-meet all your sides
With smoke circling the ashtray

I stay up late at night
Thinking of what I'd say
If you said I'd crossed your mind
Why do I focus on the fake?

'cause "you're gone and I'm free"
That's what I tell them
When they ask me,
But I'm alone, so empty
Holding on to memories
Like they're everything
They're as close as I can get to us
As close as I can get

There was a warm light
That had slowly fled the scene
While we were laying spine to spine
Looking at the darkness outside the sheets

When we stared close enough
Honest for once
We were just fools
Falling in love
It was always gonna be
messy with me

But I'm gone
Do you feel free now?
Bet it's peaceful without me around
And are you dating?
Actually don't tell me
'cause I'm still holding on to memories
Like they're everything
They're as close as I can get to us
As close as I can get

Still not quite enough

Never truly thought I deserved happiness
Brought up to see myself a second best
A constant self-desertion
I'm always seeking something
Endlessly
Looking for the little missing part of me
So loving you became my whole identity
Now you're gone, all I will keep's this age old grief
While you're happier than I've ever seen you be

So I'll hold on, that's as close as I'll get

--

Written, produced, mixed and mastered by James Walker.
Bass Guitar performed (incredibly) by Isaac Wriston (Usher, Jasmine Sullivan).

As Close As I Can Get (Stripped)

As Long As I Live is a song about holding on too long, ruminating over a chapter that never fully felt finished. 

Co-written with Adam Lee (Emeli Sandé, Lizzy McAlpine).

Memories in the attic,
Patterns in the static,
Loving you's a habit I left behind

You're distant, enigmatic
Oceans, Adriatic 
Taking me for granted all the time

Did you find stillness in your new life?
Cause there's just chaos in mine
Are you alone or you found someone 
to sleep beside? 
Making up for lost time

For as long as I live
In all that I do
Feels like I'm looking for 
The ghost of me I lost in you 
With every promise I give 
Time after time
I know I say I love you 
But my heart knows it's a lie
For as long as I live 

Method acting, 
Auburn light
You held my heart with every line
You know I loved it
More than I dare say 

So did you find stillness in your new life? 
Cause I can't erase you from mine
You're not alone now you've found someone 
to sleep beside
Guess I finally slipped your mind

But for as long as I live
In all that I do
Feels like I'm looking for 
The ghost of me I lost in you 
With every promise I give 
Time after time
I know I say I love you 
But my heart knows it's a lie
For as long as I live 
(For as long as, for as long as I live)
For as long as I live 
(For as long as, for as long as I live)
As long as I live

I'd rather say I love you
Than admit that it's goodbye
For as long as I live

As Long As I Live

Your Laughter, My Song

"Landslide is a little song I wrote early last year. It's about plucking up the courage to finally tell someone that you like them, and to have them shoot you down there and then. I feel like it happens to me way too often; always coming in too strong with the feelings right away. Maybe it works out in the end, just like in the song, but who knows."

Landslide

Lullaby was co-written by Judy Blank & I in a small tea shop in Köln, Germany. 

I think it's so important that people make their own meanings from the lyrics I write, and take it in whichever way they think it appears to them. From my perspective, though, this song is written about a wholly personal event that happened in my life. Five years ago, I underwent life-saving open heart surgery for a very rare condition. There were only a handful of operations in the world that could perform the operation that I needed, a pulmonary thromboendarterectomy, and I had a successful procedure that literally saved my life by the wonderful David Jenkins at Papworth hospital, Cambridge, UK. I went from having a two year prognosis to a now-hypothetically normal life expectancy. So, in other words, an incredibly good result. 

This time was remarkably hard on my family though, as I spent a long time in hospital recovering (and this was the second time I'd been in for open-heart surgery - the first being a similar-though-not-as-complex operation that only really 'bought me time' to get to 21 and have my second, curative, operation). Throughout my recovery, my Mum was the immediate port-of-call for comfort, security, and general wellbeing. She was, and is, a rock to me. 

This song's narrative is, in part, written from the perspective of my Mum looking over my hospital bed whilst I'm recovering in the Intensive Care Ward.

Lullaby (feat. Judy Blank)

'Next to Me' is a song about being with someone out of habit, rather than love. 
This song is the first single from James Walker's upcoming record, 'English Bones', out this November.

Find more on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/08cmuH6uJGH9dQjvvdkTvR

//

[Verse 1]
The cold wind blows
And I already know
That I'm gonna leave you
You pour the champagne
You take off your clothes
But I'm gonna leave you

[Chorus]
Even though we fight and try to make things right
I can't heal the harm
Your temper's like a hurricane & all your blame's
Tucked inside your palm
I'm figuring we can't begin to fix these things
It's such a shame but it seems
That I feel all alone even though
You're sleeping next to me

[Verse 2]
The dawn is coming
And in the cold light I knew
I don't think I love you
Like I used to
Wanna start the fire
But you can't find the fuse
Things are going nowhere
I know

[Chorus]
Even though we fight and try to make things right
I can't heal the harm
Your temper's like a hurricane & all your blame's
Tucked inside your palm
I'm figuring we can't begin to fix these things
It's such a shame but it seems
That I feel all alone even though
You're sleeping next to me

[Bridge]
It's hard for me to do it but I know
We're trying but the truth is we should know
That trying to make love last
While living in the past
Ain't gonna work you know
'cause you can't just start again

[Chorus]
Even though we fight and try to make things right
I can't heal the harm
Your temper's like a hurricane & all your blame's
Tucked inside your palm
I'm figuring we can't begin to fix these things
It's such a shame but it seems
That I feel all alone even though
You're sleeping next to me

Next To Me

Weathered is the second single from my upcoming record, 'English Bones'. 

It's a song that comes from a wholly personal place, and I feel as though I would be disingenuous in not divulging the meaning behind the track. I was in a relationship with someone, and just as every good sad song goes, we fell apart. It was a toxic, mean, and truly horrible breakup, with a lot of name-calling, one-upping, and generally feeling like awful people. The dust settled, and about six months later, I (stupidly) decided to meet up with him again. We wanted to reconnect. We'd be chatting again via text, and to me it just felt right. 

When we met back up, it was like our souls had shifted. I couldn't see in him what I felt attracted to in the first place. His laugh sounded different, the colour of his hair seemed off. Was that tattoo there before? It just didn't feel right; he seemed older, more tired, more weathered. But he swore that everything was good, that everything was going well. I couldn't, and still can't, pinpoint what was different, but there was something that made me realise I'd fallen out of love. 

It's been eighteen months since then, but there are occasions where I still think about some of the times we shared. It was nice. Was it worth the fallout, the self-loathing & the soul-searching? Definitely not. But hey, at least I got this song out of it.

Enjoy.

Produced by Sam Winfield at Studio 91 (Amber Run, Dry the River).

Weathered

Next to Me (feat. Josephine Zwaan)

Remixed & arranged by James Walker
Final Mixing and Mastering by Sam Winfield at Studio 91

Thanks to Josephine for such a killer verse/section on this, I'm so stoked with how it's turned out and happy to share it with you all. 

J x

Next to Me (feat. Josephine Zwaan)

Why do they always come back when you need them the least?

---------

[Verse 1]
Take my soul and run
Your white lies are adding up
Fake your faith, your trust
Leave when it gets heavy

[Verse 2]
Memories behind my eyes
They visit me every night
But now you’re outta mind, outta sight
Why am I still so empty?

[Pre-Chorus]
(So now my)
Telephone is ringing but I ain’t picking up
You told me to wait for you
But when you dropped me you lost my love
So now you’re trying twice as hard
But it ain’t half enough
'cause when the best you can give ain’t nothin but a front
Then I guess it’s time to run

[Hook]
But don’t come chasing for me
Don’t come chasing for me now
Yeah, don't come chasing for me
Don't come chasing for me now

[Verse 3]
Rinse me for my love
Fuck me for every drop
Bury me in the mud
But it's where you belong
Where you belong
Where belong

[Pre-Chorus]
(I hear my)
Telephone ringing but I ain’t picking up
You told me to wait for you
But when you dropped me you lost my love
And now you’re trying twice as hard
Regretting what you've done
But when the best you can give ain’t nothin but a front
Then I guess it’s time to run

[Hook]
So don’t come chasing for me
Don’t come chasing for me now
Yeah, don't come chasing for me
Don't come chasing for me now


//


Listen to James Walker: https://linktr.ee/jameswalkerofficial

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----------

Chasing

You won't chain me to the door.

----------

Written and performed by James Walker and Judy Blank. 
Produced by Sam Winfield at Studio 91.
Artwork by Stephane Paul (oui.non)

---------

[Verse 1: James Walker]
Pull me closer, cut me off
You’re playing Jesus, 
but where’s your cross?
You’ll take me for granted 
But you won’t chain me to your door

[Hook]
I’ve seen the wild world honey 
But you ain’t seen nothing more 

[Verse 2: Judy Blank]
I planted flowers 
inside your chest 
that grew to gardens 
and took your breath,
Now bear this burden
You know I’ve been alone before

[Hook]
I’ve seen the wild world honey
But I ain’t keeping score

[Chorus: James Walker & Judy Blank]
You got me lost
In the wildest fields
Got ahold of my heart
Told me how to feel
You longed for a heart-shaped
String of green 
But all I could give you was
Thistles & weeds

[Hook]
I’ve seen wild world honey
It’s right in front of me

[Verse 3: James Walker]
So uproot the roses
Untether ties 
Unlock my handcuffs 
Unfreeze my mind 
You’ve been using my kindness
And you refuse look inside 

[Hook]
I’ve seen the wild world honey
But you can’t open your eyes 
(You got me lost in the wildest fields)
To see the wild world honey
It’s no big surprise 
(You got me lost in the wildest fields)
I’ve seen the wild world honey
It’s not by your side

Wild World (feat. Judy Blank)

This is a song about finally breaking that bad news. About holding on too long, and finally letting go. I think we need to have the conversation...

The Conversation

Expo

frequently found on playlists such as 'i can't get over him', 'feeling blue', and 'songs that remind you of your ex'. tune in and turn that sadness up. x

James Walker

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