| Manny James Photo. |
The riff is old school, a burst of instruments that roll out a jammy, jazzy carpet with a hint of woodwind swing. There’s a suggestion of piano, lush guitar, then someone gets a snap going. By the time vocals come in, they are all slow jam all the time.
It’s the beginning of Manny James’ new single, “The Mirror,” released on YouTube and Spotify last month. For the New Haven musician, it marks a new direction in his writing, recording and releasing music two years after his second album explored a complex relationship with the city that raised him. A direction where he's taking it one single at a time.
“I think we're pushing to be as creative as possible,” he said in a recent interview. “That's the goal. To write the best songs we can write, to produce the best music we can produce.”
James—whose full name is Emmanuel James Sorrells—has been making music in New Haven steadily for over a decade. In 2017 he released Church Street South, a follow-up to his 2014 Just Be Honest.
At the time, the album was a testament to the different music sources that had long populated his life: soft and belted gospel at Ebenezer Chapel on Columbus Avenue, his own foray into the Star-Spangled Banner in elementary school, R&B that his parents forbid, making it infinitely more interesting.
But when James released Church Street South two years ago, he said he struggled with the fact that some songs seemed to get buried while others stuck with listeners. As he continued writing and performing last year, he began to think about what it would look—and sound—like for him to release songs exclusively as singles, instead of in album or EP form.
“I felt like all of those songs could have stood alone,” he said of pieces on Church Street South. “And because we put them together on one project, it was hard for them to get the support and respect that they needed. It was almost like you cut the legs off the album.”
So when he got back in the studio this year, James sketched out a different plan with longtime collaborators Fred Sargolini and George Clomon. He saw “The Mirror” as a logical first choice to release: he had first written it for Church Street South, but found it didn’t fit the tenor of the album.
The song comes as a response to several conversations he had with female friends, in which they expressed their distrust of men, and fatigue with the dating scene. As he recorded, he said that he wanted to both honor their feelings, and show that there were good men out there.
“You often hear women say, ‘there aren't any good guys out there,’” he said. “ I appreciate that … but I think sometimes that causes you to put up a wall, and not see someone who has been standing there the whole time.”
In the song, he lays that argument out in crooning style, sliding up and down his range with a kind of chill that stops just short of swagger. After a jazzy intro, he comes in on vocals that ease listeners right into the song, like he’s right there with a red rose and something important to say. It’s hard not to snap and start nodding along.
You’ve got your reasons
Being cautious is fine
But you’ve got to understand/I’m not a waste of your time
I’m gonna make you see
That I’ll be your hero
Put your worries away
Whenever you need me/I’ll be there to brighten your day
If any condescension is there, James keeps it at bay with his earnestness. He is soulful with a side of serious puppy love, coasting through the hook with a sweet, pleading smoothness before he comes back down.
Now that he has dropped the single, James said he plans to wait for a few months before releasing any more music. During that time, he’ll be back in the studio recording, trying for a different feel on each song he churns out. Creatively, that new working format has left him “in the best place I’ve ever been.”
“I feel like it's an appetizer for what's coming next,” he said. “For me, I like to stay outside the box. ‘The Mirror’ was very soulful. The next one is going to be completely different. I don't want anyone to say 'I know what he's gonna do next.'”
“My music is a snapshot of where I am in life,” he added. “Even probably where I’m going next.”