James Robert Williamson (born 29 October 1949 in Castroville, Texas) is an American guitarist, songwriter, record producer and electronics engineer who is best known for his contribution to the protopunk rock band The Stooges. Williamson began playing guitar in the 7th grade, while his family were living in Lawton, Oklahoma: 'One summer while visiting Texas, I wound up getting a guitar because I thought it was cool. My sister was bringing home Elvis records and so I thought, "I gotta have a guitar".