JACK STARR's BURNING STARR - The Orange album (1989)

It's time to add some hard sounds to this blog.
Jack Starr is a guitarist and songwriter of French origin, who came to the rock and metal scene at the beginning of the '80s with the band Virgin Steele. I don't know you, but Virgin Steele was one of my favorite groups in my 'young metal years'.
By 1984 Jack formed his own project, 'Jack Starr's Burning Starr', enjoying limited success in the USA during the explosion of hair metal in the second half of the eighties, principally with their Ratt / Dokken oriented '85 release 'No Turning Back', featuring in the line-up future Danger Danger members Frank Vestry and Bruno Ravel.

But at the end of the decade, Starr recorded one of the most unknown American hard rock albums of the era, the self-titled "Jack Starr's Burning Starr", named by the fans as "The Orange album".
This album set a departure from the band's hard 'n heavy style into a more commercial sound, full of keyboards and catchiness.
"Send Me An Angel", "Love Can't Wait", "Fool For Love" or "Hold Back The Night" could have been huge hits on the radio. Sadly, it was a little too late when the album came out (almost 1990) and the labels started to drop artists playing this kind of stuff.
The album only was released in Japan and Germany, but with no promotion and poor distribution it went unnoticed to the major audience.

Well written and played, "The Orange album" is a solid melodic hard rockin' album with inspired guitar work, blasting compressed drums (including cowbells), heavy keyboards and more than competent vocals and choruses. The overall sound / style reminds me my loved Icon (the Phoenix, Arizona band), Keel and Dokken.
This CD version includes 2 tracks not present on the vinyl / cassette editions and has become impossible to find (a Japanese collector paid $300 for a copy, go figure).


01. Send Me An Angel
02. Bad Times
03. Fool For Love
04. Hold Back The Night
05. Love Can't Wait
06. Out Of The Blue
07. New York Woman
08. Tear Down The Wall
09. Break The Ice
10. Good Girls Gone Bad [CD bonus]
11. Remember Tomorrow [CD bonus]


Jack Starr - Guitars
Mike Tirelli - Vocals
William (aka Freebass) Fairchild - Bass
Jim Harris - Drums
Edward Spahn - Keyboards
Chris Collins - add. vocals



Get it HERE