THE NEW ALBUM 'THE LANGUAGE OF CURIOSITY' IS SET FOR RELEASE ON OCTOBER 8, 2021 - AVAILABLE TO PREORDER NOW
IN THE BEGINNING...
Full-time musicians Suzy Starlite and Simon Campbell are the Starlite Campbell Band.
Both had a history of writing, recording and touring with other bands before they met in 2010 and Starlite asked Campbell to join her band to play guitar.
The love soon extended past each other’s playing and the duo got hitched in 2014 following a whirlwind musical romance.
With a shared deep love of all things music and analog, they formed their new joint band, Starlite Campbell, in April 2016.
As prolific singer-songwriters, they started writing together immediately and have built up a large collection of songs in a variety of styles; from Americana, contemporary folk, electronic, progressive rock to '70s British rock and blues.
Their first recorded collaboration was on Campbell's second solo album, The Knife where they co-wrote and performed Do You Want Me with Campbell on acoustic guitar, Theremin and vocals and Starlite on Mellotron and vocals.
WHO ARE THE STARLITE CAMPBELL BAND?
European blues awards nominees the Starlite Campbell Band is husband and wife Suzy Starlite and Simon Campbell working as a four piece with some of the world’s finest musicians.
With contemporary original songs inspired by the people they meet and places they travel, the band has a vibe and feel reminiscent of the mid '60s to early '70s British rock and blues - think early Led Zeppelin, The Faces and Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac - the halcyon days of music.
Starlite and Campbell released their debut album ‘Blueberry Pie’ to rave reviews worldwide and a prestigious nomination for Best Album in the European Blues Awards.
"Unquestionably Blueberry Pie is a stunning debut" | 5* - Morgan Hogarth, Rock n Reel Magazine
'Blueberry Pie' received extensive international radioplay charting top 10 in the UK, Australia, The Netherlands and American Blues Charts and over 50 four and five star reviews worldwide. ,
From Suzy’s addictive, fun-loving bass groove and thunderous tone to Simon’s explosive vocals and fretwork, the band is joined by keyboard maestro Jonny Henderson on Hammond/Wurlitzer (Robben Ford / Matt Schofield) and shuffle-master Steve Gibson on drums (Jack Bruce / Chris Farlowe).
“Just as the Rolling Stones are making huge waves with their 30th studio release, Blue & Lonesome, along come a couple of seasoned musicians who bring back the sound of early UK blues, to near perfection.” | JD Nash - American Blues Scene, USA
The art of the song is everything and Starlite and Campbell fly in the face of disposable music - writing, recording and producing their work and then releasing on their independent label Supertone Records.
All their music is mastered by Jon Astley of Close to the Edge, England (The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, John Mayall).
"Blueberry Pie is a great album" | Cerys Matthews, BBC Radio 2 & 6 Music
The band's second album ‘The Language of Curiosity’ which is set for release in 2021, continues to push the boundaries of British rock and blues.
Featuring Simon Campbell on electric guitars with longtime collaborators Jonny Henderson, Christian Madden and Gabriele Del Vecchio sharing keyboard duties and the band's mighty rhythm section of Steve Gibson on drums and Suzy Starlite on bass! Vocal duties are shared by Starlite and Campbell.
The songs 'Stone Cold Crazy' and 'Lay It Out On Me' were released as singles in 2020 to excite the musical tastebuds ahead of the release of 'The Language of Curiosity' whch garnered rave and effusive reviews:
“What an atmospheric track "Lay It Out On Me" is, totally outstanding, breathtaking even. I love Simon's vocal performance on the track. It oozes class!” | Pete’s Rock News and Views, UK
"It is probably the most emotional song I’ve heard this year and is a standout number from their second album ‘The Language Of Curiosity’" | Andy Snipper, Music News
In response to the current world situation, the band also released their version of the Blind Faith classic 'Can't Find My Way Home' which garnered much praise from the Head of Music at the BBC and worldwide radio play.
“STUNNING PLAYING!" “BEAUTIFUL HARMONIES!”
“This was the real deal, scintillating stuff… Simon Campbell and Suzy Starlite are mad for the music, and mad for each other – and their enthusiasm is infectious.
And then – and then, folks – they close out with ‘Walkin’ Out The Door’, the opening track from Blueberry Pie. And this slice of mid-Sixties style soulful blues, with some wah-wah atmospherics, gradually morphs into Led Feckin’ Zeppelin, the riff tipping the hat to the likes of ‘How Many More Times’ while Starlite channels John Paul Jones with an increasingly mountainous bass line.
And Campbell goes into mad axeman mode, conjuring up a howling guitar interlude with the aid of an old-fashioned echoplex box of tricks – real analogue tape, boys and girls – ahead of an echo-laden solo. Greta Van Fleet eat your juvenile hearts out.” | Iain Cameron - Blues Enthused, UK
"The Starlite Campbell Band did more than rock the blues big top, the musical interplay, communication with the audience and get off your arse dance sounds and styles ensured the blues crowd as well as the band had a fantastic experience on Saturday night.
The Starlite Campbell band's debut at Wangaratta was an absolutely overwhelming success indeed!! | Frank Davidson, Co-artistic Director, Wangaratta Festival of Jazz & Blues, Australia
In February 2020, Suzy and Simon had just returned to their studio in Germany following a successful and fun tour of the UK which included the Great British Rock and Blues Festival, Skegness, when the Corona virus pandemic hit.
With all of their live dates cancelled, rescheduled and cancelled again, the band have a European tour booked for October/November 2021 which includes the UK, Germany, The Netherlands and the Czech Republic.
In the meantime Suzy and Simon have relocated their semi-mobile recording studio to the north of Lisbon in Portugal and will be working on completing 'The Language of Curiosity', a new contemporary folk album 'The Coat' and other exciting projects to be announced.
The Starlite Campbell Band: a fresh taste of British Rock and Blues - best experienced LIVE and on vinyl!
SESSION MUSICIANS
STEVE GIBSON
Drums
Having been signed to both Polydor and A&M Records, Steve is a fantastic musician who has worked with many great artists and has literally toured the world with the likes of Maggie Bell, Van Morrison, Jack Bruce, the Icicle Works, Madeleine Bell, Buzzcocks and more recently with Larry Garner, The Norman Beaker Band and Chris Farlowe.
He has known Simon for thirty years and is both a Paiste and Sakae drums endorsee.
Steve has played drums on all the Starlite Campbell Band recordings and is the first choice for the band live!
JONNY HENDERSON
Hammond Organ | Piano | Clavinet
Jonny is a massively respected Hammond Organ player who works tirelessly on the live circuit worldwide and has toured with Robben Ford, Matt Schofield and Otis Rush. He has been voted Keyboard Player of the Year in both the 2010 and 2011 British Blues Awards and in 2009, released an instrumental funk/jazz album under his own name, entitled 'Where Did I Leave My Keys?'
Jonny has featured on all the bands recordings to date.
CHRISTIAN MADDEN
Hammond Organ | Piano | Clavinet
Christian has known Simon for many years and played on both of his solo albums, ThirtySix (2011) and The Knife (2015).
He was the co-founder of 'The Earlies' which found both critical and commercial success in 2005-2008 and now is a full time member of Liam Gallagher's band.
He features on the band's new album The Language of Curiosity and often plays with the band live.
JOSH PHILLIPS
Hammond Organ | Piano | Clavinet
Josh began his career age sixteen playing organ on the soundtrack to Quadrophenia and he later was the keyboardist for British heavy rockers Diamond Head and has written for and/or performed with a wide range of musicians, including Big Country, Leo Sayer, Pete Townshend, The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Kenney Jones, Ronan Keating, Alisha’s Attic, Midge Ure, Eric Clapton, Paul McCartney and most recently Mike Rutherford, Judie Tzuke, Jeff Beck and Rod Stewart with Ron Wood.
He is currently a full member of Procol Harum and plays regularly with the Starlite Campbell Band
GABRIELE DEL VECCHIO
Hammond Organ | Piano | Clavinet
Born in Naples, Gabriele began playing piano at age ten going on to study at Asociación Napolitana de Jazz with Mario Insegna. In 2003 he formed ‘Sunset in Blue’ and recorded the critically acclaimed album ‘Faced to the Sun’ playing most major Italian blues festivals.
In 2005, Gabriele moved to Valencia and played with Trapobana, Los Fabulosos Blueshakers, Relevo de Plata and worked with musicians such as the highly respected Tonky de la Peña then becoming a member of nationally recognised 'Los Perros del Boogie' who supported AC/DC on the Spanish leg of their world tour.
He features on 'The Language of Curiosity' and also plays regularly with the band live.
