Jim James To Release George Harrison Tribute EP

Just because My Morning Jacket is kicking it low-key this summer doesn’t mean Jim James has to stand still. Already part of the new super-group Monsters of Folk with Conor Oberst, M. Ward, and Mike Mogis, Jim James is also preparing to release Tribue To, an homage EP to George Harrison, on Aug. 4.

To make things interesting James will go by the name Yim Yames for the Harrison tribute. Tribute To, coming from ATO Records, is also James’ first solo effort. He is currently working on a full-length debut.

Fans will be able to sample all of Tribute To on July 7 when the set becomes available via Yimyames.com for purchase. One track, “Behind That Locked Door,” is available now as a free download on the website.

“I felt like I was in the weirdest head space when I did that EP,” James tells Billbaord.com of the 2001 recording session that took place just days after Harrison’s death. “I felt really confused a lot of the time. I wanted to just do it and let it come out even if I messed stuff up. It’s definitely not the tightest or most professional recording you’re ever going to hear in your life but I like that. I think it lends it a more childish atmosphere.”

The tracks are made up of four tunes from Harrison’s iconic album All Things Must Pass and two songs he wrote with the Beatles: “Long, Long, Long” and “Love You To.”

The EP will be a mostly minimalist, vocals and acoustic guitar affair.

“It doesn’t have any drums or anything like that, but it’s a bit slower,” he says. “I’m just playing the acoustic and singing; I just went in to overdub some backing vocals to create the all important backing vocals within that song.”

A portion of the proceeds from the EP will go to the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary, an organization that provides shelter to farm animals that have been rescued from cases of abuse, neglect and abandonment.

The self-titled album from Monsters of Folk is due September 22.

The Tribute To tracklisting:

• ‘Long, Long, Long’
• ‘Behind That Locked Door’
• ‘Love You To’
• ‘My Sweet Lord’
• ‘Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)’
• ‘All Things Must Pass’