#MyMusicStory

Submitted by: Chris Birkett (Spotify,Website,Twitter)

I started my career as guitarist/singer with a rock band from my hometown Farnborough, Hampshire in England. We called ourselves friends of Fernburgh, as it was the ancient name for this town. We played songs from Led Zeppelin, Free, Yes, Rory Gallagher and Deep Purple.

At that time I was 15 years old doing an Aircraft Electronics apprenticeship at the Royal Aircraft establishment in Farnborough.

My life took a different turn one day when Deep Purple performed at my technical college. I remember it clearly: I was standing in front of Richie Blackmore, the guitarist for Deep Purple, and was hit by an epiphany. I realized that I my destiny was not to be an electronic aircraft technician. At that moment, I wanted to be HIM.

This soul stirring event made the prospect of being a civil servant lose its charm. I had no intention of planning for a pension at the tender age of 15. This began my dream of becoming a great musician and flying to great heights of creative ecstasy.

 As soon as I could,  I ran away from home with my guitar and began the long climb to success in the music business. With many twists and turns, I’m happily playing and singing without any thoughts of retirement.

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Chris Birkett is an award winning producer, arranger, and composer and a talented singer, guitar player and percussionist. His music collaborations with A-list artists like Sinead O’Connor, Alison Moyet, Talking Heads, The Pogues, Bob Geldof, Quincy Jones, Thomas Dolby, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and Steve Earle have sold over 100 million records and earned a Grammy, four Junos, the Polaris Music Prize and three international AMPEX Golden Reel Awards for excellence in the music business.