James Ryan first picked up a nylon string guitar at age 13 and began classical lessons. As a kid his influences followed his father’s; early Kiss, Rolling Stones, Muddy Waters, Status Quo, Sabbath, Judas Priest, Van Halen, Deep Purple, Ted Nugent, Clapton and Skynard. By the end of high school, he was playing professionally in bands and also teaching guitar.
After meeting Greg Ham, James was given the opportunity of a lifetime; to go on tour with Aussie icons Men at Work. After a one off packed gig at the legendary Espy hotel in Melbourne, it was off to Brazil. Over the next few years we toured Sth America extensively, including Rio, Sao Paulo, Mexico and Puerto Rico.
Since then James has had the privilege of working with not just amazing artists, but also the incredible talent behind the scenes such as Chong Lim (MD-Dancing With the Stars/John Farnham Band) and Dorian West (MD-Australia’s Got Talent/The X Factor).
James played guitar for Vanessa Amorosi for many years and one of my career highlights was performing at the Grand Prix in Melbourne supporting Kiss! Rocking out in front of thousands of people on the same stage where Gene, Ace and Paul would later stand.
Another side of the industry that James has been involved with for a long time is product/brand promotion and endorsement. He has worked with G&L, Moore, Shadow, Seymour Duncan and Fender guitars, and was guitar product specialist for Roland/Boss for many years
His Youtube channel is a big focus now and currently has more than 340 videos and over 4 million views.
Current fun projects include a Racer X tribute band – “Racer Axe”, and another band learning the entire David Lee Roth album “Eat ’em and Smile”. Artists James regularly works with include two of Australia’s very best; Kate Ceberano and Jon Stevens.