The musician is Paul James, who enjoys entertaining the crowd while playing music he loves.

Bob Dylan was watching and asked to join James on stage.

"I'm an entertainer. It comes from working with Bo Diddley when I was young. So I don't stand still on stage," said James, who likes to play guitar behind his back or do the duck walk. "Sometimes I walk over to the bar while playing, have a drink with one hand while playing with the other, and, in this instance, Bob Dylan approached me. We agreed to get him on stage to play."

That night, Dylan didn't want to play his own songs and instead opted to perform James'.

They played late into the night, moving to James' house once the club closed to pass the guitar around until next morning.

After that, Dylan would frequently stop by James' shows and even asked him to open for him.

"I've always maintained independence so it helped me along," explained James.

He'll be in Burlington Nov. 25 at the Slye Fox for the CD release party of his latest album, La Vie en Bleu.

This new CD has 11 frequently-requested cover songs he has played over the past 25 years while four songs are James' own.

James decided years ago to record independently after his first experience went sour.

His first band, Lick 'n' Stick, was signed with CBS Records, before it became Sony Records.

"I wasn't happy with what was being recorded," he recalled. "I had no control. They wanted disco, so were adding female vocals and these disco beats, while I was early rock 'n' roll style. I couldn't do the disco thing anymore and the band broke up."

He organized the Paul James Band, releasing single after single. He then played a show with Bo Diddley, who asked James to back him on a film soundtrack.

"That was a shot in the arm for me," said James, who was influenced by Diddley, Chuck Berry, and later, Bruce Springsteen. "I became known for backup blues and was hired by an American band called Mink De Ville."

James had a taste of fame touring Europe with Mink De Ville, which was huge there, and partying with the Rolling Stones.

Once he returned to Canada he decided to put all his singles together, and those he wrote while on the road, and recorded an album, originally called Almost Crazy in 1984, and re-released in 1999 as Lazy, Crazy Blues.

He also released Acoustic Blues, originally in 1988 but re-released in 1999. The Toronto resident won a Juno in 1991 for Best Roots/Traditional recording.

La Vie en Bleu (2003) was recorded for the fans, said James.

"People frequently want me to play these cover songs. I figured I'd give them what they want," he said. "For the length of time I've been in this business (more than 25 years), my recorded output is fairly low. I'm going to make up for lost time and start recording now."

James will always stick with the melodies of classic rock and the roots of blues when it comes to performing and recording.

"Music always comes back to classic rock," he said. "Blues is the root -- blues had a baby and it was rock 'n' roll. But to me, classic rock is the best."

James said he'll put on a show here that will defy his age.

"I'm going to hit my audience between the eyes," he said. "I think this is my best album to date and I feel good. I still have as much energy as I did when I was 22 and I still love what I do."