Starsailor are James Walsh, James Stelfox, Ben Byrne, and Barry Westhead. Signing to EMI in early 2001, sold out tours, top 20 singles, and their debut long player followed over the next nine months. Love is Here peaked at No.2 to much critical fanfare.
Phil Spector produced two tracks on the band’s second album, Silence is Easy. The album was completed by John Leckie and Danton Supple, and also peaked at number two. It features the hit singles Silence Is Easy and Four To The Floor.
On The Outside (2005) had an altogether more direct rock sound, as demonstrated by the groove-laden Keep Us Together and the first single, In The Crossfire. All The Plans, released in 2009, boasted the melodically superior Tell Me It’s Not Over.
Following a five-year hiatus, the band returned in 2014, which kick-started one of the busiest periods in Starsailor history. A co-headline tour with Embrace and Greatest Hits album (also backed by a successful UK and EU Tour) came in 2015.
2017 saw the masterful All This Life arrive. Their first work with Embrace’s musical architect Rick McNamara was a hugely accomplished album, and served as proof that the band’s melodic sensibilities had ripened with age. 2024 saw new music in the shape of Where The Wild Things Grow, with McNamara again producing.
The band’s first live album, Starsailor with Strings: Live from Liverpool, formed part of Starsailor’s 25th anniversary celebrations in 2025.