Will Starr (27 April 1922 – 6 March 1976) was a Scottish solo accordionist.

Early life

Will Starr was born William Starrs, the oldest son of a family of eight, in the mining village of Croy in Central

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. At the age of two, Will attempted to play his first tune, "Poor Old Joe", on a

melodeon Melodeon may refer to: * Melodeon (accordion), a type of button accordion *Melodeon (organ), a type of 19th-century reed organ *Melodeon (Boston, Massachusetts), a concert hall in 19th-century Boston * Melodeon Records, a U.S. record label in the ...

belonging to his father, Joseph Starrs. His family recognised the musical potential in young William and encouraged him to continue playing the melodeon. Later he progressed from the melodeon to the chromatic

button accordion A button accordion is a type of accordion on which the melody-side keyboard consists of a series of buttons. This differs from the piano accordion, which has piano-style keys. Erich von Hornbostel and Curt Sachs categorize it as a free reed ae ...

which he played for the remainder of his life. Will frequently played at local events and social functions accompanied by his sister Rosie, a singer.

Teenage Years

At the age of thirteen, while making a solo guest appearance at a County Dinner in the Grand Hotel in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Will was introduced by Sir Ian Colquhoun to Jock Kilpatrick, the manager of the Pavilion Theatre in Glasgow. Jock invited him to join the cast as a solo performer, and after being granted permission to take time off school, Will began his initially part-time professional stage career. On leaving school at fourteen, Will began working in the mines. When at the age of eighteen in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

he became eligible for service in the armed forces, he was exempted as an already working miner. Will recorded his first 78 record for

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...

at the age of 18. The music was of his own composition and was named "Jacqueline" (which is almost always referred to erroneously as "The Jacqueline Waltz") after his then girlfriend.

Adult Years

Although Will Starr travelled the world as an international performer, he always returned to Croy during his breaks from performing. Will Starr died from cancer of the spine in his home town of Croy on 6 March 1976 and was buried in the Starr family grave in Howe Road Cemetery, Kilsyth, Stirlingshire.

External links

Music in Scotland - Will StarrTribute to Will Starr
{{DEFAULTSORT:Starr, Will 1922 births 1976 deaths Scottish accordionists 20th-century Scottish male musicians 20th-century accordionists Deaths from cancer in Scotland Neurological disease deaths in Scotland Deaths from spinal cancer People from Croy