THEN: Booth fronted James, Madchester dance-rockers who were swept into Britpop in the mid-’90s along with the rest of the UK music scene. Their Brian-Eno-assisted single “Laid” made them one of Britpop’s most popular US imports, and they spent most of 1994 touring the States in support of it. They remained a strong chart presence in the UK and a reliable US touring presence throughout the ’90s despite setbacks like the departure of manager Martine McDonagh (with whom Booth fathered a child) and guitarist Larry Gott (the band’s primary songwriter) and a neck injury that required emergency surgery for Booth.

NOW: Although Booth quit the band to go solo after a farewell tour in 2001, James reformed in 2007 and released a flurry of new albums between 2008 and 2010. They began regularly performing with an orchestra in 2012. A new single called “Moving On” is expected next week, culled from a new album called La Petite Mort.