Andy Starr

Andy Starr (born October 21, 1932 in Combs , Arkansas as Franklin Dellano Gulledge , † September 12, 2003 ) was an American rockabilly musician and guitarist . Starr is not related to the singer of the same name Andy Starr , who only started his career in the late 1950s.

Life

Childhood and youth

Andy Starr grew up in extremely poor conditions as a child of Italian immigrants. He left school at the age of 14 and made a living as a hobo . In addition, he earned something with his guitar playing . Even as a child he was considered to be relatively aggressive, as a teenager he threatened his teacher with a gun. Starr was only 17 years old when the Korean War began. He volunteered as a soldier and was sent to the front a little later. There he founded the Arkansas Plowboys , his first band, with some war comrades .

Career

After being discharged from the army, Starr moved to Kansas , where he worked in a factory. His life was still marked by excess. After moving to California , he re-founded the Arkansas Plowboys with his brothers Bob and Clark . Here he called himself "Frank Starr" for the first time, as his Italian name did not match his rockabilly music. In the early 1950s he left the band and moved to Texas . There he played in various bars and pubs, as it was difficult for him to make a living. Then in 1955 he played on the radio for the first time, as heard by an employee of Lin Records. That got Starr a record deal. His first record, Dig Them Squeaky Shoes and The Dirty Bird Song , as well as his second release, were not hits but got him off to a good start. Starr got the opportunity to write some titles for country stars Porter Wagoner and Grandpa Jones . In 1956 he changed his stage name to "Andy Starr" because there was already a country music called Frank Starr . A short time later he was referred to MGM Records , where he had his greatest success with Rockin 'Rollin' Stone . Other Starr titles included Old Deacon Jones , Round and Round and Give Me A Woman . Starr was also a gifted guitarist. On his song Rockin 'Rollin' Stone he played lead guitar himself, worked as guitarist for Ray Smith and shared the stage with Elvis Presley in Gainsville in 1955 .

During the 1960s, Starr was under contract with Kapp Records and Holiday Inn. Between 1959 and 1965 he lived in Alaska , where he owned a club. Starr then moved to Idaho , where he worked in a sawmill and raised a family. He also attended LaSalle University for three years and ran for Senator for Idaho in 1974. Although he did not win the elections, Starr ran for the presidential candidacy in 1978 and 1992. Musically, Starr reported back a year before his death with the album Starr Struck .

Andy Starr died on September 12, 2003 at the age of 70 of complications from pneumonia. His recordings from 1955 to 1963 were released by Bear Family Records in 2003. He was also inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame .

Discography

Singles

year	title	Record company
1955	Dig Them Squeaky Shoes / The Dirty Bird Song	Lin Records
1955	Tell Me Why / For The Want Of Your Love	Lin Records
1956	Rockin 'Rollin' Stone / I Wanna Go South	MGM Records
1956	She's a Going Jessie / Old Deacon Jones	MGM Records
1956	Round and Round / Give Me A Woman	MGM Records
1957	One More Time / No Room For Your Kind	MGM Records
1957	Do It Right Now / I Waited For You To Remember	Kapp Records
1961	Evil Eye / Knees Shakin '	Holiday Inn Records
1962	Little Bitty Feeling / Lost In A Dream	Holiday Inn Records
1963	Me and The Fool / Pledge Of Love	Lin Records
Unpublished titles
	Do it right Rockin '& Reelin' Country Style Love Is A Simple Thing Loverman	Lin Records (unreleased)
	I'm Seeing Things (I Shouldn't See) Somali dolly	Kapp Records (not published)

Albums

• 19 ??: The Idaho State Penitentiary
• 1981: US Rockabilly (France, with Conway Twitty and Marvin Rainwater )
• 1995: Dig Them Squeaky Shoes ( Bear Family )

Web links

• Entry in the All Music Guide
• Andy Starr on Hillbilly-Music.com (English), as "Frankie Starr"
• Discography with audio samples