James "Jim" Whitaker is an American composer and pianist who is best known as a member of The Delta Nudes, a group which also included future members of The Residents.
Whitaker composed the song "Love Theme from a Major Motion Picture" from the group's 1971 demo tape The W***** B*** Album (on which his younger brother also appears), and performed piano on "Spotted Pinto Bean" from their debut album Meet The Residents.
History with The Residents[]
James Whitaker has been listed as a core member of The Delta Nudes, an informal group of friends who operated under various aliases, some of whom later became The Residents. This alias derives from "Delta Nu", a college "anti-fraternity" founded by the members of the group, and The Delta Nudes was previously used by The Residents as an alias on the track "Explosion", featured on their 1972 debut EP Santa Dog.
Whitaker began working with The Delta Nudes around 1970. The group had no piano in their San Mateo home studio, but knew that Whitaker owned one. Whenever they felt like using piano in their music, they would pack up their tape recording equipment and go to Whitaker's house to have him play. For his part, Whitaker "seemed to like to make noise" with the fledgling group.[1]
Jim's younger brother (whose name Delta Nudes alumni Hardy Fox could not recall in 2017) also played with the group regularly, bringing "wild kid energy" to the proceedings. Fox recalled that Jim was "what I normally think of as intellectual. He was quiet. We didn't always know what was going on in his brain, but whatever it was, it was pretty interesting."[1] Jim and his brother both appear with the Pre-Residents on their 1971 demo tape The W***** B*** Album,[1] with Jim credited as writer of "Love Theme from a Major Motion Picture".
By February 1973, work on Meet The Residents had begun, and the core line-up of the group had changed significantly, with Whitaker no longer played a significant role within it. His last noted work with the group was as pianist on the track "Spotted Pinto Bean", which also featured another Delta Nudes era collaborator, Pamela Zeibak, on vocals.
Whitaker was credited as "assisting" The Residents during their first official live performance at Rather Ripped Records' fifth anniversary party in Berkeley, California in June 1976; this is more than likely referring to the fact that "Spotted Pinto Bean" featured an abridged edit of the album version as its backing tape.
Fox briefly corresponded with Whitaker around 2007 via email, reporting that "he and his family seemed to be doing just fine".[1]
Appearances on Residents projects[]
- The W***** B*** Album (recorded 1971, released 2018) - piano, writer on "Love Theme from a Major Motion Picture"
- Meet The Residents (1974) - piano on "Spotted Pinto Bean"
- Uncle Willie's Highly Opinionated Guide To The Residents (1993)
- The Delta Nudes' Greatest Hiss (2013)
- The Residents Present The Delta Nudes (2016)
See also[]
- The Delta Nudes
- The W***** B*** Album
- "Love Theme from a Major Motion Picture"
- Meet The Residents
- "Spotted Pinto Bean"
External links and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Hardy Fox, "A Survey By Hardy Fox", Hacienda Bridge no. 11, March 1st 2017