James Black was born on August 31, 1975 at 6:54 am, somewhere in Ontario, Canada.
He grew up to be one of the best guitarists and visionaries of the 20th century.
    The first albums James ever got were albums by U2, Public Enemy, INXS, and Led Zeppelin. These, along with fellow Canadian bands like I Mother Earth, Tea Party, and Our Lady Peace, have some
very obvious yet interesting influenceson his playing style.
    James attended school in Burlington, Ontario, which is located about 45 minutes west of the Toronto
metropolis.
    He first started working with the members of finger eleven when he and singer Scott
Anderson started the band Stone Soul Picnic. The band was James on guitar and Scott playing
drums. When the two met Rob Gommerman things changed. Rob and James recognized Scott's singing ability and decided to move him to lead vocals. This left Rob to be the drummer. When Scott's
brother Sean Anderson and a friend named Rick Jackett joined the band, they changed their name.
    The new band was called the Rainbow Butt Monkeys, after James' funny name for the mandril monkeys. Under this name the band released Letters From Chutney on Murcury Records Canada. The
album was successful, but not the direction the band was headed.
   Along the way, James has discovered himself over and over in new ways. His guitars have seen the most incredible things passing over their strings. He has also brought along his visual
art. He created all of the creatures in the "Above" video and his drawings are showcased at the official finger eleven site, quicksand.
    James Black's ideal setlist features finger eleven opening for Tool and Faith No
More.