(Haag), popular American jazz trumpeter and bandleader; b. Albany, Ga., March 15, 1916; d. Las Vegas, July 5, 1983. James's father was a trumpeter and his mother a trapeze artist with the Mighty Haag Circus. He took up drums at the age of 4 and trumpet at 8, and became leader of a circus band at 12. He worked as a contortionist until going with his family to Texas, where he played trumpet in local dance bands.

James's break came when he was hired by jazz band leader BEN POLLACK. He played with Pollack's band from 1935 to 1937, and then became a featured member of BENNY GOODMAN'S orchestra from 1937 to 1939. He was a soloist on such famous Goodman recordings as 1 O'Clock Jump, Sing, Sing, Sing, and Life Goes to a Party.

James struck out on his own as a bandleader in 1939, producing a sensation with his trumpet version of You Made Me Love You in 1941. He subsequently was a leading figure of the BIG-BAND era, bringing out many hit recordings and touring extensively. One of his hit songs, Ciribiribin, became his theme song. Several of his albums, including Wild about Harry, sold into the millions, even in wartime, when shellac, from which disks were manufactured, was rationed.

In 1943 he married Betty Grable, the pinup girl of the GIs in World War II. She was his second wife out of a total of four, and they were divorced in 1965. Meanwhile, the band continued to record and perform through the '40s and early '50s, with the spotlight always on James's virtuoso trumpet playing.

Although the big-band era was over, James continued to work through the '60s and '70s. Alternating between road jobs and engagements in Las Vegas, the band became one of the most polished of all jazz ensembles, with less emphasis on flashy soloing as James became older. Faithful to the slogan "the show must go on," James, wracked with the pain of terminal cancer, continued to perform in the early '80s. He played his last gig in Los Angeles on June 26, 1983, nine days before his death. He observed, as he was dying, "Let it just be said that I went up to do a one-nighter with Archangel Gabriel."