GINGER ST. JAMES: PRESS/ REVIEWS

BEST DOUBLE LIFE ~ GINGER ST. JAMES
When she first stepped on local stages, Ginger St. James was not the alt-cabaret chanteuse she is today. That saucy, sassy personality was still very much in evidence, though. Her performance origins trace back to the burlesque circuit – first as a member of Toronto’s Les Coquettes, then as the prime mover of her own troupe, the Steeltown Sirens. Although the burlesque scene never really seemed to catch fire here, it certainly burned hot enough to sear St. James into the public’s imagination. That spirited profile led to TV and film work, and more recently to a second life as a siren of a different sort – a sultry singer with a surprisingly lithe and powerful voice, razor wit and a vaudevillian sense of showmanship. It’s no put-on."

SNAP! MAGAZINE ~ June 2009
Ginger St. James

Chanteuse extraordinaire, Ginger first appeared in 2002 on the Toronto
Burlesque circuit with Les Coquettes as a sultry sassy nightclub singer.
The creation of Ginger was based on a teenager who was
deported to a French boarding school and made her escape to become a
nightclub singer... and the rest as they say... is history. When asked where
her fabulous voice comes from, Ginger explains, ‘I sang my heart out as a
kid, but was pretty shy so it wasn’t until 1998 that I began performing in
front of anybody.’ She continues, I developed
my sound growing up with Broadway musicals and singing along to
my favourite artists.
The Ginger St. James sound is hard to pin down to one specific genre,
incorporating roots music, swing, country, show tunes and good ol’ rock
and roll to showcase her jaw dropping voice. When she’s not playing gigs
in from Hamilton to Toronto, she’s organizing amazing nights of comedy,
music and burlesque, because as she says, “I just love throwing an entertaining
evening whether it is a burlesque show, car show or even just an
evening with friends.”
Ginger’s plans for the summer include the release of a CD which will feature at least 4 tunes, with a full
length CD release planned for next year. She will be playing with some of Canada’s top artists in Toronto,
furthering her mission to turn on as many people as she can to Hamilton music. You can experience the Ginger
St. James sound on her website www.gingerstjames.com , then come out to see her play in Burlington this
summer. Ginger St. James will be performing on Friday, June 19th as part of Burlington Downtown Streetfest
and on Sunday July 12th as part of Performing Arts Burlington’s Downtown Dining Event.
Downtown Streetfest is a unique opportunity to see where music hits the streets...with intimate street-side performance pods running during the Sound of Music Festival, from June 19th to 21st.

St. James steams up the Station

Posted By SAL BOMMARITO

Updated 5 hours ago

The local entertainment scene will heat up this weekend with a double dose of cabaret performance artist Ginger St. James on Valentine's Day.

St. James, whose mother and sister live in Brantford, has performed in the city before, at the Station Coffee House and Gallery in the CNR Station. She'll make a return visit there on Sunday, for a matinee performance, before she takes the stage for an evening show at Two Doors Down on Market Street.

"It will be a mellower show" at the Station, says St. James, who was interviewed earlier this week. "It's the first time I'll be in Brantford with the band. I've played solo there before, but not with my boys."

The sultry songstress, a moniker that she has earned with her steamy solo performances, as well as with her extremely popular and titillating burlesque act, will help mark the Station's one-year anniversary.

However, St. James, voted best female artist and sexiest Hamiltonian by View Magazine last year, is in love with the idea of playing cupid.

"All of my songs lend themselves to performing on Valentine's Day," she laughs. The self-confessed "romantic" says her ideal Valentine's Day would include a "foot rub" from her favourite beau. "Just to be in love all day," she says.

"I don't show that side of myself very often, but I'm a real softie," says the brassy performer.

Apart from working on her new CD, suggestively entitled Spank, Sparkle and Growl, with her band the Grinders, which consists of rockabilly artist Snow-Heel Slim of the Boogie Infection on guitar and vocals, Tyrone Ramsey on upright bass, Andre Arriva on drums and Greg Brisco on keyboard.

She's also been busily pursuing acting roles in indie films, as well as performing in her vaudeville show, Var ietease, which sold out the Corktown Tavern in Hamilton. The show includes magic, comedy and burlesque, St. James says.

"I plan to do more of those shows," the performer, who now lives in Toronto, says. "I have the opportunity to do bigger productions in bigger venues; so that's exciting."

St. James's act, which can best be described as a potent cocktail of vaudeville, cabaret, rock and roll and tease, began on Toronto's burlesque circuit. She performed with Les Coquettes before starting her own troupe, the Steeltown Sirens.

It all started on the burlesque circuit about eight years ago. I was in theatre at the time, but I've always been a bit of a ham."

For someone who grew up in the Hamilton suburbs of Stoney Creek and Binbrook, St. James's sassy and sexy character has left a trail of broken hearts across the club circuit. Her success is certainly attributable to her many talents, but a resurgence in public interest in live shows also has helped propel her into the limelight.

"A live show is totally different than watching TV, which you can do any time. There's a resurgence of live shows in Toronto, where it's huge.

"The hard work is paying off. I really have come a long way. I'm glad that I get to incorporate everything into my performances."

St. James is planning a CD release show on May 15 in Toronto, but she promised there would be a separate launch for Brantford, to give her many local fans their Ginger fix.

Article ID# 2444424

I was bothered a bit about this evening. I felt a little like Dr John's right place wrong time, you can't help the crowd, I get that but I felt like I was in a small town country bar with a university close by.

But every so often I saw that hidden treasure of the show, the original Honky Tonk fan. Honky tony is sexier then country, most of the crowd was country the band was sexy.

From the beginning.. on the other side of the room I see this beautiful dark haired woman with a giant cheetah fur coat she lit up the room. The band started.. backup was 3 guys and she was playing guitar as well as singing. She started with a lot of energy and surprisingly kept it the entire time. None of the songs sounded the same, that's huge for me especially if I'm going to see a band for the first time. She is talented, her bridges did not drag on and her voice did not strain nor did it keep the same tone through each song. I just really believe this girl is better than small town. How do we make this happen? Her lead guitar player played a song for the women that wore heels, the song was pretty good, nice vocals, clear and rather fancy. There was an older woman behind me with a polar bear fur coat, I asked her to dance with me. I mean fuck, how often do you get to dance with a polar bear? I kept rubbing her back, it was so soft she probably thought I wanted her, that my friends was a 50 year old bear, a cougar bear, a bearacouga. HAHA anyways, I'm torn really, the band was wonderful but I wonder if the crowd was dancing because they really enjoyed it and saw the talent or it was just music to dance to. Regardless, I'm an asshole, I come from a small town and I left for a reason. In the end. awesome show, great job. Thanks to the man that takes longer to get ready than his missus, and the girl with the familiar mullet.

Miss D.
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