James R. Hunter – RIP

My good friend James Hunter sadly took his own life just before Christmas. Here’s a video of his last recording.

He had sent me a rough track of a beautiful song “Heaven is a Dream in Song” that he had recorded with Kathryn Williams some time ago. It was very different from his usual work.   I  really liked  it and loved it even more after he spend a weekend re-mixing it.

He left a huge pile of video tapes after he died. So as I was sorting through his videos tapes, I put in a tape just labelled Kathryn Williams , which I was amazed to discover was almost a complete fly on the wall recording of his studio session with Kathryn, including them improvising the live recording of  Heaven is a Dream in Song.  I don’t know when it was filmed or who the cameraman was, but it showed James in an amazing creative session as he sang “improv”  or very quickly jotting down words in his notebook on the boot of a old car outside the studio.   He was enjoying himself, producing good stuff. I think the session was important to him. He was even wearing a tie!  Good to see him happy   …though sad that it was not to last.

So I synched up the video with the final mix track and mixed in other shots of James in happier times.  

The shots at the beginning are of sunlit clouds  ..filmed on the day he died. 

I was flying out of Southampton that day. His house is under the flightpath. Though it was murky in Southampton it was the most beautiful day up above the clouds. Quite extraordinarily beautiful.  It seemed to fit James’s music   …  and my hope that he now in a more peaceful, beautiful sunny place.

I’ll miss him..

Phil