A prodigiously talented musician, he was involved with the formation of a succession of bands that either went on to fame without him, or whose members have achieved success and stardom while he remains best known in Birmingham. Born Michael Clifford Nicholls in Birmingham, he was awakened to rock & roll in 1955 with the British release of "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets. By 1960, thoroughly under the influence of Elvis Presley, Gene Vincent, Eddie Cochran, and other American artists, he was singing rock & roll himself and had taken the stage name Nicky James. He was part of Birmingham's burgeoning rock & roll scene, first as a member of the Lawmen and in an outfit known as the Diplomats, aka Denny & the Diplomats, whose ranks included a singer/guitarist named Denny Laine -- at that point in his career, James was best known for doing spot-on Elvis Presley-style vocals. When the Diplomats fell apart, Laine and James looked around at some of the opportunities, and the former ended up going with an outfit -- comprised of the best refugees of a handful of top Birmingham bands -- that eventually called themselves the Moody Blues. (Some accounts also say that James was briefly part of an early lineup of the group, but elected not to stay.) James chose another path, and so wasn't a part of the act that enjoyed its first hit single a scant two months later with "Go Now." He subsequently formed the Nicky James Movement, which for a time included future Move/ELO drummer Bev Bevan and, succeeding him, future Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, as well as future World of Oz bassist Tony Clarkson. James also crossed paths professionally with both Roy Wood and Mike Pinder, later of the Move and the Moody Blues, respectively.

Across the years, James saw ex-bandmates rise to careers in arena rock and work in bands that created genres. Meanwhile, he remained active in a multitude of areas, collaborating with Graham Nash (and writing songs with Allan Clarke of the Hollies) and also with a young, pre-stardom Elton John. He also worked for a time in a mod act called the Jamesons, alongside John Walker (aka John Maus), formerly of the Walker Brothers. James recorded a handful of albums and singles of his own across the years, initially with Philips Records in the late '60s -- yielding a self-titled debut LP -- and later with Threshold Records, the Moody Blues' own label, for which he recorded the albums Every Home Should Have One (1972) and Thunderthroat (1976), along with a handful of singles. "Black Dream," released in 1972 on a single paired with "She Came to Me," is the song that James is best known for, even over three decades later -- it also appeared on his Threshold album Every Home Should Have One. He subsequently signed a contract with Polydor, but he also kept busy with his old friends from Birmingham. Following the Moodies' split in 1973, James contributed to several of the resulting solo albums by the individual members, most notably Ray Thomas -- with whom he also wrote a large number of songs, in what was supposed to be a three-album deal (but only came to two) -- and Graeme Edge. He remained an active presence in the music business in the 21st century, and was seen in the 2006 documentary Classic Artists: The Moody Blues. By that time, however, James was seriously ill, and he died of complications from a brain tumor in October of 2007. ~ Bruce Eder