Zak Richard Starkey

He is an English rock drummer. He is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and Starr's first wife Maureen Cox. He is also known for his unofficial membership in the English rock band The Who, with whom he has performed and recorded since 1996. He is also the third drummer to have appeared with English rock band Oasis. Starkey has also worked with other musicians and bands such as, Johnny Marr, Paul Weller, The Icicle Works, The Waterboys, ASAP and The Lightning Seeds.

At the age of eight, Starkey became interested in music. Aged ten years old, he started teaching himself the drums after receiving a single lesson from his father, who did not want him following in his footsteps. Although Starr has praised his son's abilities he is said to have stated that he had always regarded Starkey as a future lawyer or doctor. However, the Who's drummer Keith Moon, who was one of Ringo Starr's closest friends and Starkey's godfather, stepped in as drum teacher. Moon gave Starkey his first professional drum kit, which later sold at Sotheby's for twelve thousand pounds. By the age of twelve Starkey was already performing in pubs and was later a member of a garage band called the Next.

In the early 1980s Starkey appeared with a re-formed Spencer Davis Group and on 22 January 1985 Starkey married Sarah Menikides. Shortly after his marriage, Starkey recorded a musical version of Wind in the Willows with Eddie Hardin. On 6 September 1985 his daughter was born, making Starkey's father, the first of The Beatles to become a grandfather. In the same year he joined his father Ringo Starr on Sun City by Artists United Against Apartheid. Starkey replaced Chris Sharrock as the drummer in The Icicle Works in 1989, leaving the band the next year without appearing on any recordings with them. A B-side later issued by founder member Ian McNabb, featured Starkey on drums and is presumed to date from Starkey's tenure with the group. Starkey played on Silver and Gold (1989), a solo album released by Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith.

Starkey worked with John Entwistle with Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band and on Entwistle's album The Rock. He then joined two members of the Who, Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle on a tour entitled Daltrey Sings Townshend , in 1994. This tour developed from a two night performance at Carnegie Hall to celebrate Daltrey's fiftieth birthday. In 1996 Starkey then left his band Face to work with The Who on their Quadrophenia tour.He received good reviews in this role and was praised by the music press, for a strong drumming presence, without trying to emulate the band's previous drummer, Keith Moon. Both Townshend and Daltrey stated that:

“He [Starkey] was the best drummer the Who had since the death of Keith Moon.”

In 2000 Starkey was a founding member of Johnny Marr & The Healers, however their album Boomslang would was not released for another three years. On April 14, 2001 he featured in both of the Backing band's for the Steve Marriott Tribute Concert, appearing with others including Humble Pie, Rick Wills, Rabbit Bundrick, Bobby Tench, Noel Gallagher and Paul Weller.

During 2004 Starkey joined the Britpop band Oasis and was featured on two tracks included on the Who's biographic album The Who: Then and Now. In May 2005, Noel Gallagher revealed to the BBC that Starkey had participated in the recording sessions for Don't Believe the Truth.

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zak_Starkey