(June 23, 2022) Occasionally, you hear stories about how young children must survive in whatever way they can. For Stanley James, crafting music kept him afloat living in a hard knocks Chicago, Illinois neighborhood as a foster child. In his mid-teens, he found an apartment and eventually served in the military while furthering his music dreams.
After recording his 2007 debut, Full Circle, James changed his name to Saint Jaimz, and became an extremely busy talent in the independent soul market whose mission is giving LIFE songs. The singer/songwriter/producer was introduced to SoulTracks’ First Listen pages with “AWOL (Absent Without Love)” about a lover wrestling with his emotions. But the career breakthrough finally arrived in 2020 as the Best New Artist on the Indie Soul Charts for a cover of Frederick’s “Being Gentle (Calling Your Name)” featuring Sene from Throwback the Covers Vol. 1.
In his return to First Listen, Jaimz presents another “LIFE” track in “You Shoulda Told Me,” illustrating the broken trust between two lovers doomed from the start. The 90’s throwback soundtrack pulsates with deep bass and shimmering keyboards. And the piercing storyline breaks down the unfathomable pain of being lied to by a lover full of issues: “You didn’t know which way to/You had no self-control/Your family was not cool/And you were sleeping all alone.” Amid relationship songs that sometimes barely scratch the emotional surface, Jaimz cuts to the core of real-life scenarios with “You Shoulda Told Me.” Take a real good listen.
By Peggy Oliver
Saint Jaimz – “You Shoulda Told Me”
