Jack Starr

Who is Jack Starr?

Jack Starr is a heavy metal and blues guitarist and songwriter born of a French mother and American father. He learned to play guitar by ear, copying the riffs of R&B records. His first semi-professional band was Les Variations in France with future members of Trust. Back in the U.S., he emerged on the rock and metal scene in 1981, forming, together with Joey Ayvazian, David DeFeis and Joe O’Rielly, the first incarnation of the heavy metal band Virgin Steele. The new band was selected in 1982 by Mike Varney of Shrapnel Records to appear on the label's compilation album U.S. Metal Volume 2. The song Starr sent in for the compilation was "Children of the Storm". After only two albums, Virgin Steele of 1981 and Guardians of the Flame of 1982, Starr left Virgin Steele in 1983 because of musical differences with the band’s front man and other main songwriter David DeFeis.

In 1984, Starr started his solo recording career with the album Out of the Darkness, featuring former Riot vocalist Rhett Forrester, members of The Rods and former Rainbow drummer Gary Driscoll.