And now he's back as a fully fledged rock star. His song Life is Beautiful has been playlisted on Planet Rock Radio and his band, Toseland, will play at this year's Download Festival.
Jacques Villeneuve famously released a couple of albums of folky dirge and Lewis Hamilton has been recording a rap album but James is the first person to take the step from being a professional racer to a professional musician - and do it well.
Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden is another Renaissance Man. As well as fronting the world's largest heavy metal band he's an airline pilot, and is launching his own airline.
Here's the video to Life is Beautiful and here's a link to the Toseland website.
