James Fitzgerald

James, the youngest of three sons was born in the Lancashire cotton town of Darwen on April 7th 1944. His natural voice was recognised at an early age and he frequently had to stand up and 'do his bit' in front of an assembled school. He joined the church choir at St. Joseph's where his first public solo performance was Gounoud's 'Ave Maria'.

On entering secondary education at Darwen Technical School the music master sent a note home to James's parents suggesting that 'his natural voice would benefit from some training'. This was duly undertaken by the same gentleman privately at some cost to the tight family budget and with subsequent bruising to the ego of the pupil who thought he could sing already.

At the age of fifteen the soprano voice broke, and James spent some months in a musical wilderness until making his tenor debut in the wider world of Darwen Central Working Men's Club for which he received £2.0s 0d and as much free smoke as he could inhale.

Over the past 37 years he has sung in venues of all kinds throughout the North of England with an occasional foray South, West, and further North.