Drum Major "Jessie" James RM

Drum Major “Jessie” James joined the Royal Marines School of Music on September 7th 1987 and has not looked back since. He has enjoyed a wide and varied career, having served in all of the five current Bands in the Royal Marines Band Service and also the Band at BRNC Dartmouth and the Royal Yacht.

His first Band on completing training was the Commando Training Centre Band where the constant parade work and unit bugle calls gave him an excellent foundation for his career to come. Whilst in Commando Training Centre Band a chance meeting with a Portsmouth Bugler in Normandy lured him away from the west country, with the promise of serving on HMY Britannia, the Royal Yacht. In 1994 he was selected as a Royal Yachtsman and remained part of the ship's company till the ship was decommissioned in 1998. During his tenure on HMY Britannia he travelled to many destinations worldwide including Russia, South Africa, India, Thailand, The Philippines, Japan and Hong Kong.

In 1999, after returning to the Commando Training Centre Band, Jessie was tasked as the Field Gun Bugler at “The Last Run”, the very last Royal Tournament; one of many major highlights in his Bugling Career. In January 2000 he was selected to attend the Drum Majors' Course, achieving the top mark. Ready for a new challenge he soon took up his first appointment as Assistant Drum Major of the Scotland Band.

Between 2003 and 2009 he then served back in Portsmouth, then Dartmouth, Commando Training Centre again, Plymouth and then became a founder member of the newly-formed Collingwood Band. It was here where Jessie enjoyed leading the Band on many high profile engagements in the UK and abroad, the highlight being the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2011.

Jessie Joined the Scotland Band in January 2012 as the Drum Major. He is married to Sandra who is also in the Scotland Band and they live in Rosyth with their two Rhodesian Ridgebacks “Ozzie” & "Elvis". He is an accomplished Martial Artist having achieved a 6th degree black belt in Ninjutsu and a 3rd degree black belt in Goshin Jujitsu. He also holds a Japanese Martial Arts Teaching Diploma.

Last updated 24 January 2012