"Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr. James"[nb 1] is a song written by songwriters Geoff Stephens and John Carter, recorded by English pop group Manfred Mann in 1966.

Stephens and Carter, who were writers for a publishing company on Denmark Street, London, wrote the song in a style different from their usual compositions, as love was not the prevalent theme.

Released by Fontana Records on 21 October 1966, the song was backed by drummer Mike Hugg's composition "Morning After The Party" as the group's second single on the label.

Following a trend set by Bob Dylan, the song tackles the subject of life in British middle class suburbia from the perspective of a narrator, who laments the loss of a lover after her marriage to another man.

The song became a large success across Europe, reaching number two on the Record Retailer chart in the United Kingdom while peaking within the top 10 across the continent, Africa and Oceania.

[4] Their lead singer, Paul Jones had left the group shortly after their single "Pretty Flamingo" had reached number one on the Record Retailer chart.

[8] It reached number 10 on Record Retailer,[5] which proved that Manfred Mann were able to keep their momentum and relevance following the departure of Jones and according to AllMusic's Bruce Eder, also established their "commercial credibility".

[11][nb 2] Instead, Talmy presented Manfred Mann with tapes from the Denmark Street publishing offices, where Geoff Stephens and John Carter wrote their music.

[1] For the song, the duo had embraced the conservative nature of Denmark Street rather than the youth subculture that was growing in London, meaning that it was more straightforward.

[13] "Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr. James" was the second of three singles that were produced by Shel Talmy,[8] influential for his previous work with the Who and the Kinks, which Manfred Mann would gain experience from.

[14] In an interview for New Musical Express, lead vocalist d'Abo stated Talmy taught them "new and innovative techniques" in the studio, something that "our previous producer (John Burgess) [sic] didn't".

[16][17][18] On the instrument, keyboardist Manfred Mann plays loops using the flute setting during the intro, which then prevails in the composition after each chorus.

[13][22] It tells the tale of British suburbia and a "wedding story" which Bob Stanley claims comes from "a jilted lover",[22][23] which according to François Penz "didn't bring much hope to the suburban man either".

[13] Russo also believes that it was Manfred Mann's most straightforward pop rock due to the steel guitar played by group guitarist Tom McGuinness, whom he feels "makes an interesting and pleasant" contrast to the Mellotron backing.

[10] In the United Kingdom, "Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr. James" would be released on 21 October 1966 by Fontana Records as Manfred Mann's second single on that label.

[1] The song, featuring "strong Lovin' Spoonful-overtones" through the "cheesy, clinky piano",[26] followed the standard by Manfred Mann of having an outside writer composing the A-side, while the group themselves would write the B-side.

[32] The song was kept from the number-one spot by the Beach Boys "Good Vibrations", and exited the chart on 18 January 1967 at a position of number 42 after lasting for 12 weeks.

Writing for Record Mirror, Norman Jopling and Peter Jones declare that "Semi-Detached" has the potential of being a big hit.

[46] Writing for Disc and Music Echo, Penny Valentine states that the single is a "pop dream", with two "contrasting sides for the fans to dig".

According to Alec Palao, the song showcased a "much more sophisticated production style" than all the group's previous singles, including "Just Like a Woman".

[19] According to author Mark Cunningham, the single is almost entirely responsible for the influence and popularity of the instrument as it was the first commercially successful recording featuring it.