13 QUESTION METHOD: JAMES VALENTINE

James Valentine is from Nebraska and he plays guitar in the band Maroon 5. Now he lives in Los Angeles, California. In his spare time, he enjoys tennis, running and writing short bios about himself.

1. Which was the first record you bought with your own money?
It was a cassette tape from a garage sale — INXS’ Kick. Strange, considering I ended up in a band with a good-looking, dark-haired singer, playing soul- and funk-influenced pop-rock.

2. Which was the last record you bought with your own money?
I am looking on my iTunes now to be sure. I’m not going to lie and give you the answer that will make me look cool. Hmmm. Recently added — Gotye’s album Making Mirrors. Don’t really know this guys story, but Adam from my band played me a couple of tracks that were amazing — in a Peter Gabriel sort of way. He rarely gets excited about anything contemporary, so I checked it out. Cool production.

3. What was the first solo you learned from a record — and can you still play it?
It was the solo from Pearl Jam’s “Alive.” I think I still know most of it. It was a great intro to a blues-rock vocabulary, I probably play at least something from that solo every night.

4. Which recording of your own (or as a sideman) are you most proud of, and why?
Maybe this track I did for Rachel Yamagata. She was working with Mike Mogis in Lincoln, Nebraska, while I happened to be back in town for my 10-year high school reunion. I somehow ended up in the studio and played on this track “Pause the Tragic Ending,” from her album Elephants... Teeth Sinking into Heart. They were doing a Tom Waits sort of thing, so I did my best Marc Ribot, and I loved listening back to it, which isn’t always the case. Either that or the acoustic leads I did on Jenny Lewis’ track “Rise Up with Fists.” That was also with Mike Mogis, I guess I like working with him. Some of the stuff I have recorded on my laptop while on tour — that I don’t really know what to do with — I am pretty stoked on too.

5. What's the difference between playing live and playing in a studio?
Oh shit. Where do I start? Depends on the studio environment, I guess. When shit is really happening — either live or in the studio — it’s the same. When it’s not happening, I suppose it’s not happening for different reasons in both of those contexts, but at the root of it it’s the same. There’s some sort of self-consciousness or fear that is holding you back.

6. What's the difference between a good gig and a bad gig?
I think my eyes scanned forward and answered this question in the last question.

7. What's the difference between a good guitar and a bad guitar?
If I’m not feeling it, then I will quickly blame the guitar. If I am not flowing on a certain night, I’ll always look at my guitar tech and ask if the action has crept up or something — when I know that before every show he’s out there with his instruments measuring exactly where everything should be. I’m really inspired by Nels Cline’s project where on a tour he rented guitar amps without specifying what kind of amp, and had to figure out how to make whatever amp work. I think you should find guitars that inspire you, but also you should be able to find inspiration within yourself. That’s not to say you shouldn’t spend a lot of time honing in on your own sound. I’m contradicting myself.

8. You play electric and acoustic. Do you approach the two differently?
In a general sense, the acoustic is more of a percussion sort of situation with harmony, while the electric does that and is melodic.

9. Do you sound more like yourself on acoustic or electric?
I guess I was always more drawn to electric. I have definitely put more hours in on the electric.

10. Do you sound like yourself on other people's guitars?
Yeah, I think so. It’s amazing how much comes from someone’s attack and fingers.

11. Which living artist would you like to collaborate with, and why?
I have always fantasized about playing with Steely Dan.

12. Which dead artist (music, or other arts) would you like to have collaborated with, and why?
Frank Zappa. No one is doing anything near to what he did. I love his records so much.

13. What's your latest project about?
Currently working on the new Maroon 5 record. Also, I have a project going called Jambien, which is music I have recorded under the influence of the prescription sleeping aid Ambien. I also have another band that I have started with some friends — Z Berg of the Like, Jason Boesel formerly of Rilo Kiley, Alex Greenwald formerly of Phantom Planet, and Mike Runion currently of the Chances — called JJAMZ. That record is coming out early next year.