Basic Information
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Name (as searched) | Sametto James |
| Relationship to Etta James | Son |
| Primary roles | Bass guitarist, touring musician, recording/production contributor |
| Notable album credits | Life, Love & the Blues (1998) — band member; Let’s Roll (2003) — bass/producer; Blues to the Bone (2004) — bass/production roles |
| Active (public record) | 1990s — 2010s (studio & touring work with Etta James; ongoing catalog credits) |
| Public profile | Low — primarily album liner notes, music databases, modest Facebook presence |
| Birthdate / personal details | Not publicly verified |
| Financial / net worth | No authoritative public disclosure found |
Content Sections
A son in the band — identity and role
Sametto James is best known as one of Etta James’s two sons and a working bassist who joined the family’s professional sphere. He provided the stable base for singers onstage and in the studio. That role appears in late 1990s and early 2000s liner-note credits and performance footage of him in the rhythm section behind his mother.
He is not a flashy solo star; rather, Sametto is the kind of musician whose work reads in the small print of albums and manifests in the groove. That quiet labor — playing, arranging, helping produce — is the substrate that allowed Etta’s later recordings to keep their muscle and pulse.
Family roll-call (concise introductions)
| Family member | Relationship | Short intro |
|---|---|---|
| Etta James (Jamesetta Hawkins) | Mother | Legendary singer whose late-career recordings and tours featured her sons in the backing band. |
| Donto James | Brother | Drummer and frequent collaborator; often paired with Sametto in family production and live work. |
| Artis Mills | Stepfather / husband of Etta | Longtime husband who appears in public narratives about the family and estate matters. |
| Dorothy Hawkins | Maternal elder | Etta’s mother; part of the maternal line referenced in biographies. |
| Lula & Jesse Rogers | Foster caregivers to Etta | The couple who raised Etta and are often mentioned in family histories and early biographies. |
Family shows up in headlines like chorus lines: sometimes supportive, sometimes complicated, but always central to the story. Sametto’s public life is entwined with those relationships — as bandmate, son, and later as part of the family presence that managed both music and difficult estate moments.
Career & recorded work — the measurable beats
Sametto’s credited contributions cluster around a handful of high-profile records and the touring life that accompanied them. The measurable points in his public résumé are straightforward:
- 1990s — Visible as a backing musician on Etta’s late-career festival and studio work; the decade marks his emergence in liner notes.
- 1998 — Life, Love & the Blues — Listed in band personnel; part of the live/studio mix that framed Etta’s revitalized blues output.
- 2003 — Let’s Roll — Credited as bassist and contributor to production; the album figures in the era’s awards conversations.
- 2004 — Blues to the Bone — Credited on bass and with production/engineering roles on some releases.
Numbers matter here more as evidence than as trophies: album release years, instrument credits, and appearance counts in video and concert archives form the scaffold of a career that is collaborative rather than headline-grabbing.
Timeline (compact table)
| Year / Range | Event |
|---|---|
| 1990s | Sametto appears in liner notes and backing-band listings for Etta James. |
| 1998 | Credited on Life, Love & the Blues as part of Etta’s band. |
| 2003 | Credited on Let’s Roll as bassist/producer. |
| 2004 | Credited on Blues to the Bone with bass and production roles. |
| 2011 | Public attention around family and care/estate disputes. |
| 2012 | Etta James passes; family members including Sametto are named in coverage and retrospectives. |
| Post-2012 | Sametto remains represented in music databases and retrospective pieces for his work with Etta. |
This is a timeline that reads like the rhythm section of a song: steady pulses, occasional syncopation, and a few loud moments where family matters crested into public view.
Visibility, social presence, and what’s not public
Sametto’s digital footprint is narrow. Public traces are mostly in album databases, liner notes, and a modest social-media page; he does not present as a high-profile solo artist with an extensive independent discography. Financial details and private personal data — birthdate, home city, net worth — are not publicly verified in the record assembled here. The visible narrative is professional and family-focused rather than self-promotional.
The contours of reputation — what the record shows
Think of Sametto as a guardian of tone. Musicians like him are often remembered not because they aimed the spotlight at themselves, but because they maintained the tonal center that keeps an iconic voice sounding true across decades. In the public materials compiled, he appears as the son who learned the trade beside his mother, who toured, who sat in the studio, and who — with his brother — helped shape the sound of a late-career catalog.
Uncertainties and gaps
His birthdate, net worth, and autonomous artistic catalogue outside of Etta are unknown. When the public record is silent on personal information, caution is best: state credits and avoid guesswork.
FAQ
Who is Sametto James?
Sametto James is best known as one of Etta James’s two sons and a working bass guitarist who contributed to his mother’s later albums and tours.
What instrument does he play?
He is credited primarily as a bass guitarist and as a production/engineering contributor on some late-career records.
Which notable albums list him in the credits?
Public credits place him on Life, Love & the Blues (1998), Let’s Roll (2003), and Blues to the Bone (2004).
Did he produce music as well?
Yes; he and his brother were involved in producing and assisting with engineering on some of Etta’s later records.
Is he a solo artist with his own albums?
There is no prominent solo discography under his name in the public record; most credits are collaborative, tied to his work with Etta.
Is his birthdate publicly known?
No reliable, publicly verified birthdate is available in the records assembled here.
Does he have a public social media presence?
There is a modest presence (notably a Facebook page) but no large, verified profile under his name that commands wide public attention.
Are there reported financial details or net worth estimates?
No authoritative public net-worth figures or personal financial disclosures were found in the available public record.
