Quint Starkie - Quintessential

Music fans who know the name of singer-songwriter-guitarist Quint Starkie will, more than likely, associate said name with another singer-songwriter-guitarist of some musical and lyrical note, Francis Dunnery, for whom the Swedish based Starkie plays with in Francis Dunnery’s It Bites.

The associations don’t end there; Quint Starkie is a major fan of Francis Dunnery and influenced by his acoustic based songwriting style and use of melody
(heard to not just fine but outstanding effect on Starkie’s 2016 solo album Ghost in My Heart).

While the Dunnery-isms are evident there’s self-made musical art and lyrical craft to Quint Starkie’s material, as heard on latest solo offering Quintessential (I see what you did there, Mr Starkie), an album that is lyrically personal but musically light, airy and pleasant as a cool breeze or coastal drive.

Perhaps not coincidence then that the album opens with 'Mr Maxwell,' a "car song" about a Sunday drive shared between father and young son. Carrying a delightful feel-good vibe, the song also offers up a nice correlation between drive-time and your favourite song/s on the radio ("push the pedal to the floor, try to squeeze a little more… Bowie’s on the radio (floating in a tin can!")

'Mr Maxwell' is one of two songs featured that first appeared as singles in 2020, better known as the year it all went pandemic-pear shaped. 'Mr Maxwell' and 'Endless Summer' (a reflective, smile-on-the-face song to love) were the better times ahead antithesis to the negativity of 2020; both deserve their Quintessential place here.

The newer material makes itself known across tracks such as the dreamy soul-pop of 'Just Like You,' which features delightful guitar remarks and lovely harmony & backing vocals (Tania Doko, Jule Wiegand, Dorie Jackson and Michael Kleimert all make themselves vocally known across various tracks) and the pop-bounce of 'Hollywood,' which is not without its poignancy ("LAX is the loneliest place in the world to find yourself when love takes off and leaves you…").

There seems to be a similar LA (dis)connection (Quint Starkie lived in LA for a time) in the ballad 'Fear of Flying' ("I’m conquering this fear of flying, but taking off without you is frightening") while the acoustic-led 'Home Again' is a lovely, re-grounding oneself number on the benefits of returning to where you truly belong ("thank you for the blessings of my family tree, my home is where my heart wants to be").

There’s more pop-fun (with a soupçon of 70s era Stevie Wonder circling in the background) to be had with the simple but ridiculously engaging 'Falling For the First Time' before 'Something I Couldn’t Be' (a Bonus Track for Japan, where the album has CD release – global release later this month) closes out the album in the most moving of hard-choice circumstances ("When ambition finally hit me there was nothing I could do, California was there waiting and she chose me over you").

Deeply personal in places it may be but this album is, as the title so emphatically states, Quintessential singer-songwriter listening.

Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ

Japanese release!

My New Album is being released in Japan on December 15th!

Check out the Undercurrent Stories podcast with the wonderful Bob Wells

"The Border Best Of Westcoast Sessions 2020".

Playlist

1. Christian Gratz - Dark Lady

2. Page99 - Sunrise On The Water John Nixon Colton Weatherston

3. Stone Foundation - Picture A Life

4. Ed Mac - Margarita

5. Ollie Lepage-Dean - Home Sweet Home

6. Pricey Diggs - So Not To Worry Mark McMillen Ann Boreson

7. Lance Hoppen - Thanks

8. CWF feat. Michael McDonald - Love In The World Peter Friestedt

9. Abakan - Going Somewhere

10. TWRP - Need Each Other

11. Home Free - Christmas in L.A

12. Patrick Nelson - Someone Like You

13. Bernie Chiaravalle - So Good

14. Viktor Jakob-Jonsson - A Little Denial

15. Young Gun Silver Fox - Just For Kicks Shawn Lee

16. Burt Bacharach & Daniel Tashian - Midnight Watch

17. High South - Moonlight On Sunset

18. Joel Sarakula - Don't Give Up On Me

19. Christian Gratz - Lovelite

20. Page 99 - September

21. Rumer - Bristlecone Pine

22. Trembles of Fortune - Soothe A Savage Soul Geoff Thevenot

23. Tony O'Malley - Heartache

24. Young Gun Silver Fox - Kids Andy Platts

25. Super db - Kool Funk

26. Matt Duncan - Who Are You On Your Own

27. Randy Goodrum - Red Eye

28. Tomi Malm (Feat. Ole Borud) - Are You Real

29. Joel Sarakula - I'm Still Winning

30. PREP - Pictures Of You

31. Trembles Of Fortune - Turn Out The Lights

32. Ali Thomson - Black Comedy

33. Joseph Williams - Never Saw You Coming

34. Tim Treffers - Osaka Moon

35. State Cows - If We Could Be Together Daniel Andersson Stefan Olofsson

36. A Girl Called Eddy- a fan page - Jody Erin Moran

37. Allan Thomas - Van

38. Tomi Malm - Come Away

39. Jamie Hosmer - Comfortable Shoes

40. Martin & Garp - Making Up

41. Pearl Charles - What I Need

42. Dave Barnes - We're Gonna Miss These Days

43. Dave Hanson - Free

44. Marco Taggiasco (Feat. Damiano Libianchi) - Treasure In My Life

45. Tim Treffers - Where We Go Tonight

46. YATTE - Time Wasted

47. David Guez - A Hundred Million Years

48. Diane Birch - Boys On Canvas

49. Quint Starkie - Gotta Give It Up

50. Andy Ascolese - Not A Bossa Nova

The annual CKDCF event was online this year. Proud to have shared the same bill as some amazing artists, Steve Hackett, Chris Difford, Steve Hogarth, Luke Machin, Peter Jones, Francis Dunnery, Big Big Train, John and Wayne, Danny Dunnery, Stephen Harris..

Interview Part 2

Interview with Chris Morris California Spirit Radio Part 1

Review from Spain and airplay

Label: Quint Starkie

July 23, 2020 

El nuevo single de Quint Starkie es "Endless Summer" un toque de aire fresco para este cálido verano acompañado por la gran voz de Jule Wiegand y un video ambientado en viejos y buenos tiempos. Escúchalo.

Quint Starkie's new single is "Endless Summer" a touch of fresh air for this warm summer accompanied by the great voice of Jule Wiegand and a video set in good old days. Listen to it

Quint Starkie Vocals, Guitars, Keys, Programming....

Mats Byström Keys

Per Hansson Bass

Kjell Gustavsson drums.

New single out!

Endless Summer featuring Jule Wiegand!

Chris Morris’s Interview with Quint Starkie on ChroniclePost.Fr

Chris: Hello Quint , first of all thank you very much for accepting our invitation , and the first question that comes to mind is to ask you how are you and how did you live this difficult period?

Quint: Hi Chris, thank you so much for reaching out and for your fantastic support of my music! Sweden is taking a different approach to a lot of other countries, it’s still quite open and movement is unrestricted. Obviously all my gigs have been cancelled. We had a big 3 day festival booked in July with It Bites, but that has been cancelled. Otherwise I’m working on tracks for the new album in my studio and taking my dog for walks when I need a break.

Chris: How was this passion for music born, tell us a little about your career?

Quint: My interest in the guitar started when I saw a kids TV show and saw 3 kids strumming nylon string guitars. I just said to my Mother ”I want to play guitar”. My Father found me a teacher Burton Grainger who taught classical guitar and I started lessons at 12 Years old. I joined my first band at 17 playing covers in Pubs in the North West of England where I originate from. We played Dire Straits, Beatles Pink Floyd and whatever was in the Pop charts at the time.

I had a mentor at the time called Martin Abbott who was a session guitarist and worked on TV sessions. He had his own studio and used to let me assist on sessions. This early exposure to the studio would prove a real asset when I eventually got into session work and running my own studio.

Then I joined a semi-professional band playing in working mens clubs on weekends. Eventually I joined a professional touring band and did a European tour playing 6 nights a week, all styles from Jazz standards, Country, Blues to Top 40.

I saw an advert for Musician’s Institute in Guitar Player magazine and applied. I was accepted and moved to Los Angeles in March 1986. I spent a year studying (one of the best years of my life) then returned to England. I was back in LA June 1987 and starting working with many different types of gigs. I transcribed music and made lead sheets for a record company, I worked as a teacher at Musician’s Institute, joined original bands and got a management deal.

« I was playing with the same musicians who played on the ABBA records. »

One day I met a beautiful Swedish girl at a party in Hollywood and that girl has been and still is my wife for the last 30 years… Upon moving to Sweden I joined an original band who were signed to Elektra records. We were produced by Anders Bagge who went on to work with Madonna and Celine Dion amongst many others. Another producer who was a session guitar player got me into sessions and soon I was playing with the same musicians who played on the ABBA records.

A chance meeting at a party with a film director got me into the jingle and commercial industry. I have had a very nice career over the last 25 years composing and producing music for most of the big brands here in Sweden including McDonald’s Toyota Heineken, DHL, Burger King, Volvo, Ikea and many more. I used to have Max Martin sing on my jingles…he would move on to become the best songwriter producer in the world.

In 2001 I signed a publishing deal with EMI and wrote over a 150 songs for them resulting in cuts in Australia, France, Germany, Sweden, Asia and The USA… I’m still very active in the commercial industry having added sound design to my list of services.

Chris: You have been in writing for a long time for great artists like Alcazar but also Sophie Zelmani and many others and you decided to finally be in the front of the stage, this desire to be an interpreter was stronger than anything?

Quint: I almost released a solo album in 1995, but for some reason it didn’t happen. In 2012 I read about one of my favourite artists, Francis Dunnery of It Bites fame. He was touring the world playing house concerts.

”Remember Quint you should make an album, document your soul.”

– Francis Dunnery

I booked a concert in our house and he literally changed my life in a big way that night. He came back a second time and as he was leaving after the concert in his car he wound down the window and said ”remember Quint you should make an album, document your soul.”

Six months later he called me and asked how the album was going and I told him I was still doing the jingles and hadn’t started. Francis then offered to get involved and help me get started. I started sending songs to him and we skyped alot discussing arrangements and music in general. I was getting a musical education they don’t teach in schools.

Francis stages a charity event in his home town every year and one time I was approached by Dorie Jackson who said if I needed backing vocals on my album she would love to be involved. I couldn’t believe it!! Eventually after I had recorded most of the songs in my studio including Dorie’s vocals, Francis invited me to go over to his studio in New York to fine tune the arrangements. A magical week it was too!

Francis has been an amazing inspiration and constant supporter of my music and I can’t thank him enough. He has let me open on his last 2 tours and become a member of the touring version of It Bites.

Chris: And then there was this first album Ghost in my heart that you released in 2016 and that made you known to the general public , tells us a little about this adventure and with whom did you collaborate?

Quint: Having lived in LA I have a wide contact net and early on in the recording process I decided to reach out to my musician friends…. Toshi Yanagi a brilliant guitarist who plays with Dave Lee Roth and is the guitarist on the Jimmy Kimmel show played a solo on one track, Francis Dunnery played on Brightness in my Soul, Phil Hilborne a great British guitarist who’s played with everyone from Brian May to Iron Maiden contributed as well as a bunch of top notch Swedish session guys who are all friends….Göran Eriksson especially made a huge contribution on Pedal steel, Dobro, mandolin and lap steel.

I recorded a lot of the album in a small kitchen space with high ceilings. Sometimes I kept my demo vocals in the final mix and if you solo the tracks you can hear birdsong as I had a window open…..

Chris: I saw that you moved a lot geographically with a passage on Los Angeles, how was your life and what did you do there?

Quint: LA was great! I miss it, although I usually go back for the NAMM show in January. I lived there during a golden era for the record business…. LP’s were still sold, Tower Records on Sunset was an amazing place to hang. I got to play the clubs on the strip, the Whisky and Roxy as well as playing in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace. Bands like Guns and Roses, Poison, Motley Crue were all struggling on the circuit waiting for their break….

You could go out to clubs like the Baked Potato and watch Lukather and Jeff Procaro or Larry Carlton, Mike Landau, all these amazing players on most nights of the week.. so inspirational.

Chris: And precisely what are your musical influences?

Quint: As I started out playing ckassical guitar I really got into John Williams and Julian Bream two English guitarists and would play their album called Together alone on repeat in my childhood bedroom. I eventually got into Thin Lizzy and Brian Robertson… Gary Moore. I started listening to acoustic players like Leo Kottke and got into fingerpicking. Albert Lee came along and I got into country picking.

The guy who really influnenced me was Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits….Then Steve Lukather and Larry Carlton became big influences.. I got into Steely Dan and lots of American bands like Styx, Kansas, Christopher Cross as well English bands like 10cc and Supertramp….

Chris: We have noticed you recently in a formation that pays tribute to this mythical group Pages, can you tell us about it please?

Quint: I have a band that plays west coast covers and we have a nice gig in the heart of Stockholm outdoors every summer. Mikael Engström who put the Pages project together was at one of the gigs and approached me and asked if I would like to get involved. I wasn’t familiar with Pages but was a big Mr Mister fan. The band and the other vocalists are world class… it was such a cool project to be involved in!

Chris: Your musical news is rich because you just released this great single gotta give it up which is a gem that collaborated on this single and who made this great video?

Quint: I reached out and found a guy in Ireland who was great to work with and everything was done over internet…

Chris: And that’s not all because you announced the release on June 5th of a new single « MrMaxwell (The Car Song)” that I had the chance to listen to and that is a damn musical success and that really reminds me of the Fleetwood mac period of the 70’s?

Quint: Mr Maxwell is the most uptempo song I have released. I have a song on my first album about my youngest son Edward and felt I should write one about my eldest son. I love road trips and the song is about a weekend drive basically…..

« I have decided to release singles on the first Friday of each coming month. »

Chris: Do you know that many of us are waiting for your next album? When will it be?

Quint: To write and produce a full album takes a lot of hard work and concentration… it can also take time. The business is changing, peoples attention spans are getting shorter, so I have decided to release singles on the first Friday of each coming month. This keeps the attention and focus on my music more constant. It’s easy to keep energy levels in the studio high when taking one step at a time…

Chris: Last question, what is your favorite song you have listened to thousands of times?

Quint: Year of the cat by Al Stewart. I fell in love with my first sweetheart to that song and it brings back great memories everytime I hear it. Great songwriting, cool guitar solo and amazing sax. Produced by Alan Parsons…

Francis Dunnery’s It Bites 2020

Check out the new T-Shirts!

CKDCF 2019

Another fantastic weekend in Cumbria raising money for the CKDCF.

Some pictures from the event……

19.10.02 Album release in Japan.

Display in Tower records in Tokyo

Album Release Japan!

Ghost in my heart will be released in Japan on P-Vine Records on October 2nd.

Just back from a great mini tour in the North of England together with Dorie Jackson.

JAPAN

I’m very honoured and proud to announce that Ghost in my Heart will be released in Japan by P-Vine Records.

The new release will include a bonus track ”What you’re feeling”

Pages Tribute Fasching 25/26 May

Demoing for BOSE at the Fuzz guitar show….

Fuzz Guitar Show Gothenburg

I will be performing at the Bose booth

May 11/12 Seminar on Sunday at 12.00

Lorraine Poole Photography

New promo shots by London based Photographer Lorraine Poole!

Check out Lorraine’s amazing work on her website. www.lorrainepoolephotography.wordpress.com

New Furch Guitars-artist!

We are happy to present Quint Starkie as a new artist in our Furch-family. Quint is one of Sweden’s most experienced songwriters and with his debut album "Ghost in my heart" secures his roll as an artist.

Pictured Chris Andersen - Marketing Manager Luthman SMTTS AB and Quint Starkie.

Ghost in my heart reaches 130,000 streams on Spotify

The Doghouse Ramsbottom UK

http://www.thedoghousejazzbar.co.uk/quint-starkie.html

Inside Musicast review

https://www.facebook.com/inside.musicast/photos/a.59548931429/10155665627836430/?type=3&theater

Fuzz Guitar show 2018 Gothenburg

A great weekend demoing for Bose together with the amazing Göran Eriksson...

UK GIGS

Just got back from 3 house gigs in the UK and an appearance on BBC Radio Lancs

Airplay in Belgium

http://www.trql.fm/listen.php…

Airplay in California

https://www.mixcloud.com/chrismoriss/31_california_spirit_radioshow_19052018/

Airplay in Switzerland!

https://www.mixcloud.com/clouseau7/bruno-ferrari-pr%C3%A9sente-quint-starkie-070518/
 

RIO BIO Skutskär with Dorie Jackson was a lovely intimate Theatre gig with a warm appreciative audience...photos coming soon....

Album Review from USA 2018

I've been trying to find time to write a little bit about my friend Quint Starkie's album, "Ghost In My Heart." Here's a guy I went to school with back at MI, where he was always one of the top guitar players. I had no idea he could sing, too. But he's got a quality voice reminiscent of Al Stewart, and a really laid-back songwriting and performance style that covers a variety of moods. It's kinda like English-style Americana, filtered through Stockholm! 

The disc is full of sweet and thick vocal harmonies, and tight and sympathetic musical performances - including a star turn by one Toshinari Yanagi! 

Thanks for turning me on to it, Jean-Marc Porson! Thanks for sharing a copy, Quint. Well-worth buying if you like a soulful brand of folk with sad steel guitar, reminiscent of the '70s.

Check out this video, which is pretty indicative of the vibe on "Ghost In My Heart." Get more info at http://www.quintstarkie.net/.

SPOTIFY 2017

Summary of a great year from Spotify.

54 Countries, 15k Fans, 3K hours streaming....

Dec 2017

Review of Ghost in my Heart by Ross Muir

http://www.fabricationshq.com/quint-starkie---ghost-in-my-heart.html

CKDCF 2017

Just got back from a magical weekend in the UK playing with Francis Dunnery and friends at the annual charity event in Egremont. A fantastic event with the nicest community. The event included a Friday dinner, sponsored walk on Saturday and an evening concert in Egremont Market Hall.

Some great reviews from Saturday's Gig in Egremont!

Still buzzing from the CKDCF weekend in Cumbria, we met so many great people including this man Quint Starkie who opened the evening with a really classy set. Check out his album "Ghost In My Heart" which we played for the first time in the car on the way up and then looped play non stop on the way back. if you think there's no great music around these days, you're not looking hard enough.

Neil Gowland

I was blown away by Quint’s performance with the band, those songs are so good.

Kevin Fabian

Something a little different to the music I usually post. This guy opened the show for Francis Dunnery on Saturday - a stomping set. Not just a great musician, but a good guy too!

Greg Daffern

The same could be said of Quint Starkie ......I had heard him play solo before and really enjoyed his song writing style, but it was raised to another level last night with the addition of some wonderful musicians and singers to back him up, a faultless performance of some beautiful songs with thought provoking lyrics, what's not to like

Buzz Elliot

If you like THE EAGLES or JOHN MELLENCAMP it’s time for you to pay attention. QUINT STARKIE is originally British but he’s Stockholm based since many years. This solo CD was out in 2016 but for some weird reason I didn’t know about its existence until very recently.

This CD is filled with good musicians, too, known and unknown. How about FRANCIS DUNNERY (ex IT BITES, production, drums, guitar), JOHAN GULLBO (keys), MAX LORENTZ (keys), GLADYS DEL PILAR (vocals) and many more.

We’re talking smooth rock/pop with obvious flirts with westcoast rock, especially the kind of westcoast that THE EAGLES are into in quite a lot of of their songs.

Opener “Where I belong” is like EAGLES spiced up with hints of JOHN MELLENCAMP or TOM PETTY, if you think of their mellow side.

“Sarah” could’ve been on a solo album by for example BERNIE CHIARAVALLE (of MICHAEL McDONALD’s band). Really good light westcoast rock!

Actually, some songs remind me of VENICE, too, at least their softer “Garage demos” songs. And this means quality, as you all know!

Finally, since I can’t help it. We’re all nostalgic from time to time and maybe that’s what Quint was when the album cover was planned. But seriously, would you buy a CD with this cover artwork just by chance? Nope, you absolutely need a recommendation. Now you’ve got it! But next time, a more tempting album cover would be needed. No offense meant, man. I am sure you had your reasons. The songs are the most important things, and this album is really nice.

Review on Melodic.net

Hi Quint,

cds received last week, thank you. One was for my best friend, we love to share music.

I've listened to your album twice, and I am totally blown away.

Great songs, great lyrics, great musicians, great voices.

Nostalgia and happiness, love and pain. In a word : Life.

No doubt you have documented your soul.

An amazing album.

Thank you,

Philippe Claerhout 

The Copenhagen Guitar show 2017

Two great days in this beautiful city demoing for Bose and playing songs from the album.

Live at Heart 2017

Thanks to everyone who came out for my 2 gigs at this year's festival! Stallbackan and Nikolaikyrkan were great venues for my music.

Had a great time opening for the amazing Dan Reed at Noel's in Stockholm. A pre-release party for Dan's new CD Confessions.

ON Aug 31st I have the honour of opening for Dan Reed at the pre- release party for his new CD at Noel's in Stockholm.

On Saturday June 24th I played a great Festival gig in Oxford UK with Dorie Jackson

GREAT REVIEWS FROM RECENT UK MINI TOUR

"For anyone that thinks I just do AOR (whatever that is?), or metal/rock and the like I can confuse you further by saying that I like anything that stirs feelings. This weekend was a prime example.

Thank you so much to Janette, Andrew, Ryan, Memphis and Rooney for the invite and the hospitality and the chance to catch up with the gang (thanks for the B&B Brenda and Tony)

As for the music, Quint Starkie you are a legend. A great performance of some magical songs and the stories behind them. Truly special and the album is even more sublime. First listen gave me hints of Chris Rea in the guitar sounds but more listens revealed something deeper. Steely Dan springs to mind in places and bits of Fleetwood Mac but that just gives a very simplistic idea of what is actually a case of artists being more than the sum of their influences and experiences.

Great night, beautiful sounds and if you see Quint performing near you ... get yourselves there.."

DAVID WILSON

"Fantastic night in Bolton on Sunday"

STU CLARK

"Brilliant night thank you Janette and Andrew for your hospitality and for letting the doggies stay and for Rooney keeping me company for most of the night. And for Quint thank you, fab musician it was a great night, awesome on the guitar"

NYREE ROSE

"Another great performance by Quint Starkie. Thanks to Janette and Andrew Brown for hosting. We really enjoyed the evening"

IAN ORMROD

"Thanks again for a fabulous evening and Quint, you are amazing, keeping us all hooked and then some more at the end of the evening! See you all again soon, lots of love xx

JEANETTE FARMER

"See u when you're back in England. Great gig. Thanks! Alley"

ALLEY CLARKE THE VENUE. LYMM CHESHIRE

"What a mint gig. Come back soon"

PAT DUGGAN THE DOGHOUSE JAZZBAR. RAMSBOTTOM

Malibu is getting airplay on Radio Malibu KLM 97.5 

April 26 ...Artist of the week on Nashville Calling Coast 97.6 fm

The new Album is coming out on P-Vine Records in Japan in November, it features Jule Wiegand on BV’s who has been recording here in Stockholm during the summer. Sounds fantastic…..