James D-Train Williams

Biography Early life James Nelson Williams was born in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York. He began singing at age 6 in the Washington Temple COGIC choir under the direction of Professors Henry and Irene Coston. He would later come under the direction of gospel singer Rev. Timothy Wright. after the well-known MTA Brooklyn subway line because, according to the team's captain, "When he hits you, it’s like being hit by a train".

While working on a project with his classmate, R&B singer Will Downing, D Train was introduced to musician/producer Hubert Eaves III. The duo broke out as an R&B/Dance group under the D Train name.

D Train's self-titled debut album was released in early 1982, but with the popularity of their first single, "You’re the One for Me" was adopted as the album's new title. The album produced their next hit single "Keep On", mixed by record producer François Kevorkian, which peaked at No. 2 on Billboards Dance chart and No. 15 on Billboards R&B chart. The album's third single, the much covered Burt Bacharach single "Walk on By", also charted in both the US and the album reached No. 16 on the Billboard R&B Album chart, No. 128 on the Pop Album chart and No. 72 on the UK Album chart. This remixed version peaked at No. 15 on the UK's Top 100.

D Train as a solo artist In 1986, Williams was signed by Columbia Records and released Miracles of the Heart. Although he was still collaborating with Eaves at this time, this first album for Columbia was viewed as more of a "solo" effort for Williams. The album produced several hits, including the single "Misunderstanding", which rose to No. 10 on the Billboard R&B/Hip Hop chart. The follow-up single, "Oh How I Love You (Girl)" went to No. 22 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart.

D Train's next album, In Your Eyes was released in 1988. The title track from the album made it to No. 11 on the R&B/Hip Hop chart, while the follow-up single "Runner" failed to chart. That same year, he provided backing vocals on the song "Eyes of a Child", written by Trey Parker and performed by Michael McDonald for the film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.

In 2004, "You're the One for Me" appeared on the soundtrack of the British film the Football Factory (2004).

D Train appeared on camera and performed on the soundtrack of the Amy Sedaris/Stephen Colbert film Strangers with Candy (2005).

D Train's performances of "My Funny Valentine" and Hot Chocolate's "You Sexy Thing" appeared in the Halle Berry/Bruce Willis film Perfect Stranger (2007).

Other ventures D Train has recorded jingle vocals for commercial spots.

In 2001, SiriusXM satellite radio signed D Train to host "The D Train Show" on the Heart & Soul Channel 51 on the dial. The show was a blend of R&B music and guest interviews. Some notable guests included Lionel Richie, Roberta Flack, Jet Li, John Legend, Chaka Khan and Alicia Keys. The show ran until 2008.

In 2008, he co-narrated the audiobook adaption of Walter Dean Myers's picture book Jazz alongside Vaneese Thomas, which won the 2008 Odyssey Award.

He performed at the INDUSTRIAL Event Space for SOULFUL Sundays with Elisa Fiorillo every Sunday from July 17, 2022 to August 21. Each Sunday night supported a local nonprofits, such as Opportunity Village, Nathan Adelson Hospice, Three Square Food Bank, and Pawtastic Friends.

On September 14, 2022, D Train was honored and rewarded a spot in the Legends of Vinyl Music Hall of Fame. He, alongside Lou Gramm and others, received recognition for their career work in the music industry.

In the 13th Issue of Chic Compass Magazine, D Train appeared in an interview. Later on, in December 2022, he was in a live interview alongside his long time friend Hubert Eaves III with producers from the YouTube channel Meet and Funk.

Legacy D Train's first three albums were re-released on CD in the 1990s when Unidisc Music acquired Prelude Records and several other New York dance-music labels.

In 1997, the Notorious B.I.G.'s "Sky's the Limit" sampled part of D Train's song "Keep On".

Rapper Yo-Yo's "Iz It Still All Good" sampled D-Train's "Something's on Your Mind," which featured Gerald LeVert, in 1998.

"You're the One for Me" has been remixed by Larry Levan and Shep Pettibone and most recently was sampled by DJ Kue in his 2006 hit "I Got Love". "You're the One for Me" has also been sampled in the song "Girls" by the Prodigy from their album Always Outnumbered Never Outgunned.

In 2011, Prince performed a cover of "You're the One for Me" in a live performance on George Lopez's show Lopez Tonight.

In 2013, "You're the One for Me" was featured in the release of the Rockstar Games video game Grand Theft Auto V. The game was re-released in 2014 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Williams is the voice behind the famous "Aaaah! (169)" sound, one of over 250 made for the Roland M-DC1 sound module. His voice was taken from his song, "Misunderstanding" from his 1986 album, Miracles of the Heart. The sample is most prominently used on the song "Dilemma" by Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland, as well as Travis Scott's 3500.

Discography

Solo albums Year Album Label FormatUS R&B US R&B 1986 "You Are Everything" 16 53 ― "Misunderstanding" 5 10 ― "Oh How I Love You (Girl)" ― 22 ― 1988 "In Your Eyes" ― 11 ― "Runner" ― ― 97 "—" denotes releases that did not chart.