Mike Starr (musician)

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Michael Christopher Starr (April 4, 1966 - March 8, 2011) is an American musician known as the original bassist at Alice in Chains, whom he played from the band formation from 1987 to January 1993.

Video Mike Starr (musician)

Careers

In 1983, Starr formed the heavy metal band Sato, his first record group. They are famous for the song "Leather Warriors", which appeared on Northwest Metalfest, a compilation album featuring various metal acts released in 1984 by local label Seattle Ground Zero Records. Starr briefly joined another band by the name of Gypsy Rose, which included early producer Alice N 'Chains, Tim Branom on lead vocals and band candidate Jerry Cantrell on guitar. Starr and Cantrell left Gypsy Rose and started working in another band. Cantrell wanted to form a new band and his roommate, Layne Staley, gave him Melinda Starr's phone number, Sean Kinney's drummer boyfriend, so Cantrell could talk to him. Kinney and her boyfriend went to Music Bank and listened to Cantrell's demo. Cantrell mentions that they need a bass player to jam with them and he has someone in mind: Mike Starr, with whom Cantrell has played in the band Gypsy Rose in Burien. Kinney pointed out to his girlfriend and said: "That strange cause is his sister". Kinney called Starr and a few days later he jammed with him and Cantrell on Music Bank. But they do not have a singer. Then the trio began staging what Cantrell and Kinney later said was a fake audition to persuade Staley to join their band. Eventually, Staley quit the other bands he performed at the time and joined their band on a full-time basis.

The band gained attention in the Seattle area playing under several different monikers before they finally settled on the name of Alice in Chains, which they took from former Staley band, Alice N 'Chains. The band then signed a record deal with Columbia Records and enjoyed extensive success through record sales and radio playback in the grunge rock movement in the early 1990s. Starr with the group for Facelift and Dirt and Sap EP albums. He is most often seen playing multiple variations of Spector NS-2 bass guitar through Ampeg SVT all-tube heads and Ampeg 8.5 "10" speaker cabinets.

Starr left the group while on tour behind the album Dirt . According to former singer Layne Staley, in the Rolling Stone article since February 1994, Starr's departure from Alice in Chains stems from "just a difference in priority.We want to continue the intense tour and press, Mike is ready to go home. "Starr, however, was mentioned on an episode of Celebrity Rehab that he was expelled from the band for his drug addiction. Starr was later hired to play bass for the band Sun Red Sun, featuring Ray Gillen and Bobby Rondinelli, both former Black Sabbath members. The project was cut short by Gillen's death in 1993. After the dissolution of Sun Red Sun, Starr stopped playing music professionally until 2010.

In 2010, Starr reportedly worked with his new band, which included a tour with the band Days of the New. This was cut short, however, with his sudden death.

Maps Mike Starr (musician)

Personal life

In April 1994, Starr was arrested for possession of drugs at the Houston Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas. When he tried to check in for a flight to Los Angeles with a suitcase he stole from the baggage claim area, the airport authorities searched him and found him carrying marijuana. He was sentenced to 30 days in prison in Houston. Starr claimed to steal his luggage after he discovered that his own luggage was broken. In April 2005, Starr was arrested in Seattle for vandalism after he was caught pulling hood ornaments from a car. It was reported that his past expenses included DUI, reckless driving, and various drug charges. On September 28, 2009, Starr was arrested in Los Angeles on drug charges. The arrest was a charge of narcotics crime. He was detained in Bauchet Street Prison with a $ 100,000 bail.

Starr appeared in the third season of the reality television series VH1 Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew in 2010, documenting its treatment for methadone addiction started in August 2009 at the Pasadena Recovery Center. The next assignment lives in a quiet neighborhood and is then documented on a spin-off of Sober House . He and his recovering companion from Mackenzie Phillips and Tom Sizemore adders appeared in the episode of the fourth Celebrity Rehab episode of the fourth season to testify of their recovery for patients that season. During this performance, Starr marks six months and seven days of calm.

In an interview on VH1 with Layne Staley's mother, Nancy McCallum, Starr said that she spent time with Staley the day before she died on Starr's birthday is April 4th. Starr claims that Staley is very ill but will not call 911. The two former bandmates argue for a while, which ends with Starr storming out. Starr states that Staley called him when he went: "Not like this, do not go like this". Because Staley is believed to have died a day later, on April 5, Starr expressed regret that he did not call 911 to save his friend's life; Starr reports that Staley threatened to terminate their friendship if he did. Starr was the last known person to see Staley alive. The interview ended with Starr apologizing to McCallum for not calling 911, but McCallum insisted that both he and anyone in his family blamed Starr for Staley's death. He also told Starr: "Layne will forgive you He will say, 'Hey, I'm doing this, not you.'" In that way, Starr still blames himself for Staley's death. Starr kept this story a secret for himself until his performance at Celebrity Rehab in February 2010. "I wish I was not too tall on benzodiazepine [that night], I'll never just get out the door, Starr. In addition, during the interview Starr claimed that Staley saved his life when Alice in Chains was touring in January 1993 with Nirvana in Brazil. Both Staley and Kurt Cobain gave her a shot of heroin one night on tour. Just after Staley shot him again, Starr fainted, but was quickly revived by Staley by giving him CPR. Starr then remembered waking up by a hysterical crying Staley.

Both Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney criticized the Celebrity Rehab show, calling it "disgusting". However, they stopped criticizing their former bandmates and expressed the hope that Starr would change his life. "I really support Mike and I support his efforts to be clean and remain the person I and the band really care about," Cantrell said. "He is our friend, you know, and we wish him the best." Kinney also thanked Starr along with all the other members of Alice In Chains both in the past and now in liner notes from Alice in Chains' Black Gives Way to Blue.

In February 2011, Starr was arrested in Salt Lake City for an investigation of drug possession and on an extraordinary warrant from 2003 for failing to appear to impose penalties on separate drug-related beliefs. Starr was a passenger in a van that stopped at a routine traffic violation near 1200 S. State around 12:30 am. According to prison documents, Starr illegally owns prescription drugs, including the Opana painkiller, also known as oxymorphone, and alprazalam pills, used to treat anxiety and panic attacks. In addition, officers found Starr issued an arrest warrant. According to Utah court records, Starr was convicted in District Court 3 in 2003 for possession of a crime drug, but a warrant was issued on August 25, 2003 when he failed to appear to punish. Another Salt Lake police report shows that in 2003, Starr and his father, John Starr, were arrested for allegedly doing drugs on a Southwest flight from Los Angeles to Salt Lake City. John Starr said he brought his son to a drug rehab in Seattle at the time, the report said. John Starr was witnessed injecting Mike Starr with a syringe, and the two began arguing after the needle was broken, according to the report. Mike Starr was seen going to the bathroom plane for 15 to 20 minutes. When he returned, he handed something to John Starr, and "John then turned to the window with a tin of cut coke and matches," the report said. Both were arrested as they got off the plane. Researchers found Starrs had a syringe and a balloon containing heroin, according to police records. In the pocket of Mike Starr, police said they found Valium, Xanax, and Celexa. When they checked Starrs's suitcase, they found prescription drugs and medicines. Starr claimed his father forced him to shoot on the plane, according to the report.

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Death

On March 8, 2011, at 1:42 pm, police were summoned to a house in Salt Lake City where they discovered the 44-year-old body of Starr. There was no indication of fraud, and authorities suspect Starr died of a drug overdose. A personal commemoration was held for Starr at the Experience Music Project in Seattle on March 20, 2011. There were about 400 people attending, including former teammates Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney. Drew Pinsky says that Starr's death was the result of "overdose of prescription drugs." Drug addiction advocate, Bob Forrest, has described Starr and his colleagues Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew alum Jeff Conaway (who died two and a half months later) as having "such severe addiction."

In 2013, Alice in Chains drummer Sean Kinney added the initials "LSMS" to his drum kit, a tribute to Layne Staley and Mike Starr. Kinney explains: "There are six people in this band and that's it", and Cantrell adds, "And we're all up there".

On September 19, 2013, Jerry Cantrell paid tribute to Starr and Layne Staley before performing the song "Nutshell" with Alice in Chains at the Rock at a Rio concert in Brazil. For a performance at SÃÆ'Â £ Paulo on September 26th, the band has a T-shirt from Brazil's national football team named "Staley" and "Starr" on display on stage. Since then, Cantrell has always given awards to Staley and Starr before doing "Nutshell" at the concert.

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The posthumous release

In October 2017, Lost Realm Records released a limited edition limited edition CD-DVD package of 10 songs, taken from the original mastermate and remastered digital, and live performances by Sato's earlier Starr band, titled Leather Warriors - Sato Anthology 82/86 ; this package is dedicated to Starr memory.

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Legacy

For the "Top 10 Bass Riffs of the 90's" list, About.com reviewer Melissa Bobbitt highlights Starr's work on "Would?", Writing "[her] bass line sounds like a creeping dragon's creep, heroin."

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Discography

Alice in Chains

Sato

Other appearances

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References

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External links

• Sato on YouTube
• Sato - Wheels Burn on YouTube
• Sato - Leather Warrior on YouTube

Source of the article : Wikipedia