Halo James was a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 pop

Pop music

Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...

 group

Musical ensemble

A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...

 active from 1988 to 1991.

Biography

Named after the main character from the comic strip

Comic strip

A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....

 The Ballad of Halo Jones

The Ballad of Halo Jones

The Ballad of Halo Jones is a science fiction comic strip written by Alan Moore and drawn by Ian Gibson, with lettering by Steve Potter and Richard Starkings ....

, the band was fronted by session musician

Session musician

Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...

/vocalist

Singing

Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...

 Christian James (born 21 December 1964) and included Ray St. John

Ray St. John

Raymond St. John is a British songwriter, record producer, electric/acoustic guitarist and bassist. He is a former member of the soul band Pride, active from 1979 to 1983. Sade Adu was also a member of Pride in the early 1980s, and St. John is perhaps best known for co-writing her song "Smooth...

 (guitar

Guitar

The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

, bass

Bass guitar

The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

, songwriting

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

; formerly of Latin soul band Pride) and Neil Palmer (keyboards

Keyboard instrument

A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

; formerly of short-lived synth-rock act Atomage and dance duo Two People) among its members. Their sound incorporated elements of soft rock, soul and synth-pop.

Formed in November 1988 as a side-project to Ray St. John's songwriting career, the band became best-known for their UK Top 10 hit single

Hit single

A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...

 "Could Have Told You So". Released at Christmas 1989 as their second single, "Could Have Told You So" peaked at #6 for two weeks in February 1990, spent nearly three months in the Top 75 and became a major success all over Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

; at the time of its release, the song drew a fair deal of comment from reviewers due to its similarity to The Walker Brothers

The Walker Brothers

The Walker Brothers were an American 1960s and 1970s pop group, comprising Scott Engel , John Walker , and Gary Leeds...

' 1966 hit "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore

The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore

"The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine " is the name of a song written by Bob Crewe and Bob Gaudio. It was originally released as a single by Frankie Valli in 1965 on the Smash label and has been recorded by numerous artists since, including The Walker Brothers, Cher, and Keane.- Frankie Valli original :The...

", with its mid-tempo, wistful tune, and themes of lost and unrequited love. Halo James also received critical acclaim for their Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

 album

Album

An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...

, Witness, which peaked at #18 on the UK Albums Chart

UK Albums Chart

The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...

, and went on to sell over 100,000 copies in its first year of release. Subsequently, "Could Have Told You So" regularly appeared on compilation albums for both the 1980s and 1990s.

They also had four other minor hit

Hit record

A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...

 singles

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

, but never hit the Top 40 again and disbanded in April 1991 due to disputes between James and St. John about the band's long-term musical direction. Halo James had been working on a second album for several months prior to the break-up. This album was scrapped, and the group have never reformed since.

Following the demise of the band, James continued as a session vocalist for a couple of years before eventually abandoning his singing career to become a freelance writer. St. John, who had previously co-written Sade

Sade (band)

Sade is a British smooth jazz band that formed in 1983, named for Nigerian lead singer Sade Adu. Their music features elements of R&B, soul, jazz, and soft rock....

's 1984 hit "Smooth Operator

Smooth Operator

"Smooth Operator" is a song by the English group Sade, released as the fourth and final single from their debut album Diamond Life . It was released as a 7" single with "Spirit" as its B-side, and as a 12" maxi single with "Smooth Operator" and "Red Eye" on side A and "Spirit" on side B...

" prior to forming Halo James, remained active as a songwriter

Songwriter

A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...

, and has written hit songs for several other artists

Musician

A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....

, including Snoop Dogg

Snoop Dogg

Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...

 and Gabrielle

Gabrielle (singer)

Louisa Gabrielle Bobb is a multi-platinum selling, BRIT Award winning English singer, who records under the name Gabrielle. Gabrielle began her career temping during the day and singing for free in London clubs at night...

, and is now also a songwriter and record producer

Record producer

A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...

 in the Christian rock

Christian rock

Christian rock is a form of rock music played by individuals and bands whose members are Christians and who often focus the lyrics on matters concerned with the Christian faith. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies between bands...

 and country music

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 genres. Palmer worked with Melanie

Melanie Safka

Melanie Anne Safka-Schekeryk is an American singer-songwriter. Known professionally as simply Melanie, she is best known for her hits "Brand New Key", "Ruby Tuesday" and "Lay Down ".-Early career:...

 between 1996 and 2001, and with Haddaway

Haddaway

Nestor Alexander Haddaway , better known by his stage name Haddaway, is a Trinidadian-German singer. He is most famous for his worldwide 1993 hit, "What Is Love".- Early life :...

 between 2002 and 2003.

Singles

• "Wanted" - Epic
  Epic Records
  Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
  
   HALO 1 - UK
  UK Singles Chart
  The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
  
  - #45 - 1989
• "Could Have Told You So" - Epic HALO 2 - UK #6 - 1989

• "Baby" - Epic HALO 3 - UK #43 - 1990
• "Magic Hour" - Epic HALO 4 - UK # 59 - 1990
• "I Think I Love You Too Much" - Epic HALO 5 - UK # 98 - 1990