Garrison Starr
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Garrison Starr | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | April 29, 1975 |
| Origin | Hernando, Mississippi |
| Genre(s) | Folk |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, Guitar, Drums |
| Years active | 1993 - present |
| Associated acts | This Living Hand, The North La Brea All-Star Conquistadors |
Garrison Starr (b. Julia Garrison Starr on April 29, 1975[1]) is a singer-songwriter who originally hails from Hernando, Mississippi, a suburb of Memphis, Tennessee.
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[edit] Early career
Starr's first album, Pinwheels, was recorded in 1993, shortly after her high school graduation.[2] During a 1 1/2 year stint as a student at Ole Miss, Starr played drums for a local band, This Living Hand, in which she met and forged a friendship with fellow artist and producer Neilson Hubbard, and Clay Jones, who would produce her first major-label album. To this day, Starr and Hubbard frequently collaborate. Her second release, the 1995 seven-track EP Stupid Girl, references her experiences at Ole Miss, which were not always pleasant.
[edit] Geffen Records
Starr was signed to Geffen Records, which released her first major label album, Eighteen Over Me, in 1997. Eighteen Over Me includes the song Superhero, which is her most well-known song to date.
On the moderate success of Eighteen Over Me, Starr was invited to play on the highly successful all-female festival tour Lilith Fair, created by Sarah McLachlan.
Starr left the deep south for Los Angeles in the mid-1990s. While working on her next album, Starr took issue with the label's request that she submit acoustic demos of her songs for approval.[3] Starr (along with many other artists) was dropped from the Geffen roster.
[edit] Recent career
It was five years after the release of Eighteen Over Me before Starr released her next full-length album, 2002's Songs From Take-Off To Landing. In those years, the songs that she had begun working on at Geffen evolved and changed significantly before reaching the final versions that appear on the album.
Between these releases, Starr released two EPs. The first, 24/7, was released by Geffen and included live and acoustic versions of songs from Eighteen Over Me, as well as a cover of The Beatles' Taxman and a previously unreleased song, Simple Theme. The second EP, 2000's Somethin' To Hold You Over, was self-released for fans and included several original tracks, as well as a reworking of Molly from Eighteen and 5 Minutes, which would appear in a different form on her next album.
In Los Angeles she gained inspiration for two albums, Songs From Take-Off To Landing and Airstreams and Satellites, which was released in October 2004. The former album was released by Virgin Records' Back Porch Records label. The latter was released by Vanguard Records.
Starr re-recorded Superhero for Airstreams, which also includes a hidden track, Inside Out, in which she makes her first definitive reference to being a lesbian. In promoting the album, Starr toured with the likes of Melissa Etheridge, Steve Earle, Melissa Ferrick and Mary Chapin-Carpenter. She has been out since then.[4]
In 2005, Starr appeared with other artists in a series of performances at L.A.'s Room 5 as the North La Brea All Star Conquistadors. These performances were later released in a series of live albums by KUFALA Recordings.[5] The group, consisting of Starr, Gabriel Mann, Jay Nash, and Adrianne, toured the eastern United States in spring 2007.
Also in 2005, Starr returned to the south to Nashville, Tennessee, where she completed The Sound of You and Me, which was released in March 2006. Released by Vanguard Records, it includes a fellow Vanguard artist Mindy Smith on background vocals for track We Were Just Boys and Girls.
Starr recently completed a new collection of songs, Fans' Greatest Hits, Volume One (Live) for which she asked fans to vote for their top 10 favorite songs. She then recorded new acoustic studio versions of those songs. As of February 2007, the self-released album could be purchased through her web site.
Starr will be releasing "The Girl That Killed September" on October 18, 2007 in association with Media Creature Music.
[edit] Other Media Appearances
Starr's song Superhero has appeared on several compilations, including Live at World Cafe and CMJ magazine's sampler. It was featured during ABC-TV's coverage of the Women's World Cup Soccer in 1999.
Her cover of Steve Forbert's song It Isn't Going to Be That Way appeared on the compilation The I-10 Chronicles, Vol. 2: One More for the Road.
Starr's Beautiful in Los Angeles was the featured song on the season one finale of MTV's original program The Hills.
Starr has performed back-up vocals for artists including Michelle Malone and Mary Chapin Carpenter.
Starr appeared on CBS News television show "Second Cup Cafe" June22, 2007
[edit] Discography
| Year | Album Title |
|---|---|
| 1993 | Pinwheels |
| 1995 | Stupid Girl |
| 1997 | eighteen over me |
| 1998 | 24/7 (EP) |
| 2000 | Somethin' to hold you over (EP) |
| 2002 | Songs From Take-Off To Landing |
| 2004 | Airstreams & Satellites |
| 2006 | The sound of you and me |
| 2007 | Fans' Greatest Hits, Volume One (Live) |
| 2007 | The Girl That Killed September |
[edit] References
- ^ “Garrison Starr Biography”, MusicianGuide.com, <http://www.musicianguide.com/biographies/1608003377/Garrison-Starr.html>. Retrieved on 2007-09-22
- ^ “Garrison Starr, Mississippi Musician”, The Mississippi Writers and Musicians Project Of Starkville High School, <http://www.shs.starkville.k12.ms.us/mswm/MSWritersAndMusicians/musicians/Starr.html>. Retrieved on 2007-09-22
- ^ Simons, David (2003-05-01), “INDIE INK: Garrison Starr On her own and loving it”, OnStage Magazine, <http://onstagemag.com/ar/performance_garrison_starr_own/index.htm>. Retrieved on 2007-09-22
- ^ Garcia, Gilbert (2007-09-06), “Starr gazing”, Dallas Voice, <http://www.dallasvoice.com/artman/exec/view.cgi/89/6560>. Retrieved on 2007-09-22
- ^ “The North La Brea All-Star Conquistadors”, Kufala Recordings, <http://www.kufala.com/artists/artistBio.php?sel=47>
