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'Zak Starkey' (born 13 September, 1965 at Queen Charlotte's Maternity Hospital in London, England) is an English musician, best known as the current drummer for the British rock bands Oasis and The Who. He is also well-known as the first-born child of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr (whose real name is Richard Starkey) and his first wife, Maureen Cox. Zak Starkey is an accomplished drummer in his own right who has also worked with Johnny Marr, Icicle Works, the Waterboys, ASAP and the Lightning Seeds.

Contents

Personal life

Career

Early years (1977-1985)

The Who (1994-present)

Oasis (2004-present)

Other work (1985-present)

External links

Notes

Personal life

Zak Starkey was born on September 13, 1965. His parents divorced on July 17, 1975, when Zak was 9.
Zak married Sarah Menikides in a secret register office wedding on 22 January 1985. Not even his parents were told of it until after the event, but shortly afterward Ringo Starr provided a small celebration party at Tittenhurst Park. On 7 September, 1985, a week before his 20th birthday, his daughter Tatia Jayne was born, making his father, Ringo Starr, the first grandfather of all the Beatles' members.
Zak Starkey's parents separated in 1974, and were finally divorced in 1975. Ringo Starr afterward married Barbara Bach and Zak's mother married Hard Rock Café founder Isaac Tigrett, providing some opportunities for Zak's early career. Zak suffered the tragic loss of his mother, Maureen Cox in 1994 when she died of leukemia, despite a bone marrow transplant for which Zak was the donor.

Career

Early years (1977-1985)

Starkey received his first starter drum kit from his father, although it is mistakenly reported that it was given to him by his idol, The Who's Keith Moon. Moon did, however, give Zak his first professional kit – one Moon previously used with The Who - and also some drumming lessons.
At the age of eight, Starkey became interested in music. At ten, he started teaching himself how to play drums after receiving only one lesson from his famous father, who reportedly did not want him following in his footsteps. Although Ringo praises his son's undeniable skills and talent, he said that he "always regarded Zak as a lawyer or as a doctor", not a drummer like himself.
By the age of 12, Starkey was already performing in pubs with a band. In his teens, Starkey was a member of a garage act, the Next. He eventually landed work with a re-formed Spencer Davis Group. In 1985, shortly after getting married, Starkey released a musical version of ''Wind in the Willows'' with Eddie Hardin.

The Who (1994-present)

Although Zak had previously worked with John Entwistle in Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band tours, he received his first opportunity to work with The Who in 1994, with Roger Daltrey in his "Daltrey Sings Townshend" tour. This tour developed from a two night performance at Carnegie Hall to celebrate Daltrey's fiftieth birthday, when he afterward recruited John Entwistle, Simon Townshend and Zak Starkey to complete a U.S. tour.
In 1996, Starkey left his band Face, to work with The Who on their Quadrophenia tour. He received very good reviews in this role for being a strong drumming presence but without explicitly imitating Moon. Zak was the full-time drummer for The Who beginning with their 1996 Quadrophenia Tour. Both Townshend and Daltrey stated that he is the best drummer The Who had since the death of original drummer Keith Moon. He provided drumming for one track on The Who's 2006 album ''Endless Wire'', and for two new tracks released in 2004 on . However, he was unable to provide the drumming for the EP Wire & Glass or the album ''Endless Wire'' because he was on tour with Oasis at the time Townshend recorded the songs. Starkey worked with The Who on The Who Tour 2006-2007, which was to finish in Glastonbury in 2007. It finished at Hartwall Areena in Helsinki, Finland on 9th July. Afterward he is expected to work more with Oasis.
According to Pete Townshend's official web site, Zak was invited to become a full member of The Who, but he declined:

Oasis (2004-present)

In 2004, Starkey spent a period of time working with the Britpop band Oasis, filling a void left by longtime drummer Alan White's departure. In May 2005, Noel Gallagher revealed to the BBC that Starkey had recorded in the recording sessions (March-December 2004) for their new album, ''Don't Believe the Truth''. Zak recorded all but one track of the sessions. In an official promotional video for the album, Zak commented on the band and the sessions, saying, "It was amazing. They're all singers, They're all guitar players, they're all songwriters, they're all producers... and they're all fucking drummers."
Starkey participated in every show on Oasis' 2005/2006 world tour and also appeared in the promo videos for the singles. However, as he was not an official member of the band, he very rarely appeared with the rest of the band in promotional activities such as interviews and photo shoots.
After the end of tours in April, Noel Gallagher confirmed that Starkey was invited to be Oasis' official drummer, but that couldn't materialize before his current working engagements with The Who are completed in mid-2007. Noel said that he felt Starkey had strong emotional ties with The Who and he wouldn't leave them completely, also adding that he was content to have Starkey alternate his career between the two bands.
In February 14, Starkey sat behind the drums, when the band received the BRIT Award for Outstanding contribution to music. The band played a set consisting of "Cigarettes & Alcohol", "The Meaning of Soul", "Morning Glory", "Don't Look Back in Anger" and "Rock 'n' Roll Star".
Zak is expected to drum on the band ''forthcoming seventh album'' to be released sometime in 2008. He is also expected to join the band full-time.

Other work (1985-present)

In 1985, both he and his father Ringo Starr performed as drummers on the recording ''Sun City'' by Artists United Against Apartheid.
In 1988, Starkey replaced Chris Sharrock as the drummer in The Icicle Works. He left the band in 1989, and did not appear on any Icicle Works recordings, although a B-side later issued by Icicle Works leader Ian McNabb featured Starkey on drums, and is presumed to actually date from Starkey's tenure with the group.
Zak played on ''Silver and Gold'' a solo album released by Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith in 1989.
In addition to his work with The Who and Oasis, Starkey continued to work with other acts, including touring with The Lightning Seeds. In 2000 Starkey was a founding member of Johnny Marr & The Healers, debuting with ''Boomslang'' three years later. In 2007, Zak was drummer on the Paul Weller single "This Old Town" along with Blur guitarist Graham Coxon.

External links

★ Oasis Online

★ Kathy's Zak Site - frequently updated fansite of Zak with lot of info about his session and touring work

★ Oasis Australia

★ The Who Location Guide - Guide to historical Who locations in the UK and US.

★ The Who Forum - Who news & discussion

Notes