Pianoman

𝗣𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗡 — 𝗙𝗨𝗟𝗟 𝗕𝗜𝗢𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗣𝗛𝗬 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲

PIANOMAN is one of UK dance music’s most enduring and authentic voices: a producer, artist, songwriter, sample pack creator, sound designer, label owner and published author with over three decades at the heart of British club culture.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗚𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚

James Sammon’s journey with dance music began in 1988, on a pirate radio show in the North of England, playing early US house and techno.

Classics from Chicago and Detroit pioneers like Farley “Jackmaster” Funk, Juan Atkins and Kevin Saunderson were part of a huge wave of American dance music crossing the Atlantic. Labels such as Neil Rushton’s Kool Kat, later Network Records, licensed key Detroit releases for the UK, while compilations like Jack Trax and Acid Trax, along with shrink-wrapped import 12"s, filled DJs’ record boxes across the country.

That was the sound that shaped him. In 1991 he walked into a recording studio for the first time: Beaumont Street Studios in Huddersfield. The music that inspired him on the radio was about to become the music he made.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗦

From there, PIANOMAN started pressing his own vinyl and hand-delivering records across the UK. That grassroots hustle shaped the uncompromising, artist-first approach he still works by today.

It paid off with ‘Blurred’. The original 300-copy bootleg pressing sold out, and the track went on to become a UK Top 10 hit, selling 480,000 copies in the UK. Club anthem ‘Cast A Spell’ followed into the UK Top 10, and 1997’s ‘Live Your Life Be Free’ also charted. His work has been released on Armada Music, Universal Music, Polydor Records, Ministry of Sound, AATW Records, 3 Beat Records, Trick Records, FFRR Records and Storm Music.

In 2025, ‘Cast A Spell’ was licensed to Armada Music to mark the track’s 30th anniversary, proof that his 90s catalogue still connects with a new generation of DJs and listeners.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗

While many know PIANOMAN for his defining contributions to 90s UK dance, he has always been a multi-genre songwriter, producer and artist. His catalogue spans Piano House, UK Garage, Speed Garage, Bassline, Breakbeat, Hard Donk, Techno and Trance, with Trance releases on both Storm Music and his own Pianoman Productions label. He has never been content to stay in one lane.

Whether it’s euphoric piano anthems, hard-edged club weapons, driving trance or underground garage cuts, PIANOMAN brings the same signature: authentic credibility married to dancefloor power.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗔𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗦

He runs two independent imprints. Sub Bass Records is home to his Breakbeat, UK Garage, Speed Garage and Bassline releases. Pianoman Productions is dedicated to his Piano House, Tech House, Trance and club output. Both labels are distributed via DITTO.

With deep ties to the Bradford, Leeds, Sheffield and Manchester scenes, PIANOMAN is rooted in Northern England’s proud dance music legacy. He received pivotal early radio support from DJs including Stu Allan, Dave Graham, Lee Butler and Mark Simon, and has collaborated with some of the most respected names in UK dance.

𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗕𝗘𝗬𝗢𝗡𝗗

2026 has been a landmark year. PIANOMAN’s summer release ‘Come Together’, a dreamy, euphoric piano house anthem with a powerful female vocal, landed on June 12th via Pianoman Productions.

Back where it all started, PIANOMAN has returned to vinyl. Through Elastic Stage he releases a curated run of PIANOMAN records: the most-wanted 90s classics alongside never-before-released DJ-only remixes, each with full colour sleeves and labels and collectable inner sleeves. The series includes ‘PIANOMAN Repressed’ and ‘Shine For You (Mixes)’. Music, vinyl and DJ USB collections are also available direct from castaspell.biz.

As a sample pack creator and sound designer, he has released the Pianoman 90s Dance and Piano sample packs (Volumes 1 and 2) and the Pianoman 90s Sylenth Soundbank, all available exclusively at Orange Groove Samples. These packs give producers direct access to the authentic sounds and textures that defined an era.

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗨𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗥

Under his real name, James Sammon, he has written and published a series of industry guides in Hardback, Paperback and Kindle:

• The DJ Social Media Playbook
• Social Media and Digital Marketing Guide for Independent House Music Producers
• Automation Production Techniques: Bass, Synths, Pads and Leads
• The DJ and Producer Bible — Three Complete Guides in One Volume

Available on Amazon and all major book retailers, sharing the knowledge, tools and strategies behind a 30-year independent career.

PIANOMAN’s focus has always been the music, the craft and the community. Not nostalgia. Not reinvention. Just relentless forward motion.

Pianoman Productions | Sub Bass Records | Distribution: DITTO