Mark James: Suspicious Minds and Always On My Mind songwriter dies

Legendary songwriter Mark James, who penned enduring hits like Elvis Presley’s Suspicious Minds, has died at the age of 83.

The Texas-born musician scored a US number one with the song Hooked On A Feeling and also wrote Presley’s Always On My Mind.

Over the course of his career, his compositions were recorded or covered by artists including Willie Nelson, Bill Withers, Brenda Lee, Jay-Z, Pet Shop Boys and Michael Bublé.

In 2000, he was named one of the top songwriters of the 20th Century alongside Paul McCartney, Elton John and Holland-Dozier-Holland.

He died at his home in Nashville, Tennessee, on 8 June.

In a statement, James’s family said “his larger-than-life personality filled any room he was in, and his smile lit it up”.

“He was a captivating storyteller who had the sweetest smile, the most infectious laugh and a twinkle in his eye that never dimmed,” they said.

News of his death was first reported by the Houston Chronicle.

James was born Francis Zambon in Houston in 1940 and gravitated towards music at a young age. By 1959, he was performing locally and had recorded a single called Jive Note.

His career was put on hold when he was drafted into the army to fight in the Vietnam War.

On his return, he signed to a Memphis music publishing company, where he helped write songs for fellow Houston native BJ Thomas – including his breakout hit The Eyes Of A New York Woman.

The partnership also produced Hooked On A Feeling and It’s Only Love, but James still had ambitions to become an artist in his own right.

He recorded his own version of Suspicious Minds in 1968, with the lyrics inspired by his own relationship. James was married but still had feelings for his childhood sweetheart – who was also married.

“It was a confusing time for me,” he later told the Wall Street Journal. “I felt as though all three of us were all caught in this trap that we couldn’t walk out of.”

The record label was confident that James’s recording would be a smash, but it failed to chart.

A year later, Elvis was booked into the studio where James worked, and the star was looking for new material to record. Suspicious Minds wa suggested, and the star went “crazy about it”.

“He wanted to hear the song over and over again, and learned it on the spot,” said producer Chips Moman.

Using almost exactly the same arrangement as James’s original, Elvis took the song to number one in 1969 – rejuvenating his career.

Elvis would return to James for further hits, including It’s Only Love, Moody Blue and Raised on Rock.

But perhaps their best-known collaboration is Always On My Mind.

First recorded by Brenda Lee, then Gwen McCrae, the ballad was co-written by James alongside Johnny Christopher and Wayne Carson in 1971.

Elvis covered it two years later, initially issuing the song as the B-side of Separate Ways. In the UK, it was promoted to A-side status and reached number nine in the charts.

Since then, it has been recorded by more than 300 other acts. Willie Nelson’s version topped the US country charts in 1982, and earned James a Grammy Award for song of the year.

The Pet Shop Boys also covered it in 1987, turning the winsome melody into a hi-NRG disco stomper. It became a Christmas number one single in the UK, and was later named the best cover of all time in a poll conducted by the BBC.

It’s not the only one of James’s songs to be revived by a cover version. In 1974, Swedish group Blue Swede recorded a pop version of Hooked on a Feeling and scored a US number one.

The song gained another lease of life when it featured in Quentin Tarantino’s film Reservoir Dogs, and Blue Swede singer Björn Skifs performed it at the opening of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Malmo.

James’s songs Sunday Sunrise and Raised on Rock have also been recorded by multiple artists, and the Fine Young Cannibals released a hit version of Suspicious Minds in 1986.

The musician continued to write hits throughout the 1970s, as well as releasing music with his own band, The Mark James Trio.

In later years, he became more interested in film scores, and studied the discipline at UCLA and the American Film Institute. The 2001 short film Trade Day has a score by him, under his birth name.

He was inducted to the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2014, and was also entered into the Texas Songwriters Hall of Fame, the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Speaking in 2021, James looked back at his career and said he was “thankful” that his songs were “still being embraced by new generations of listeners around the world”.

BJ Thomas once said his friend had a gift for “telling stories in a concise way”.

“They get to the point. They’re relatable. They’re familiar.”

James is survived by his wife of 53 years, Karen Zambon; his daughters Sammie and Dana Zambon; grandchildren and extended family.

In a statement, they said: “Mark’s legacy and zest for life will live on in the hearts of those who loved him, and through his timeless lyrics and melodies that have been the soundtrack of lovers for generations.”