WHEN iconic music producer Phil Spector emerged from a twenty year retirement to work with Starsailor, the band thought they had it made.

If anyone could send the northern rock troupe’s sound to a whole new level then it was surely him.

But sadly this was not fated to be a match made in heaven as the tortured genius’s presence on their acclaimed second album Silence Is Easy nearly sparked the band’s disintegration.

The 1960s star is now awaiting trial for an alleged murder shortly after working with the group in 2003.

"The first week with Phil was magical. He is one of the most charming people I’ve ever met and he told us all these stories of all the naughty things that went on when he was recording with John Lennon," explained the group’s bass-player James Stelfox on their painful studio experience.

"But after a while he lost what we were trying to do and it was the closest the band has come to breaking up. The four of us were in the studio and were not speaking to each other."

Moving on from the wreckage of that episode, their latest LP is a leaner, meaner affair. It starts as it means to continue with the brilliantly moody rock track In The Crossfire, which bristles with an angst and urgency of a band on a mission.

They are striking back with a new UK tour calling at the Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone and are armed with a fresh arsenal of edgy and well crafted tunes. There's clearly a renewed mood of optimism in their ranks.

Their spirits have been bolstered by the news that the new record, On The Outside has just entered the charts inside the top twenty.

"We are all proud of it but I am not sure it will be a commercial success as there may not be enough ballads on it for the ladies. But commercial success is not everything, except for EMI," he said with a little dismay directed at the company to which they signed nearly four years ago.

Indeed it seems some time since the runaway success of their first album, Love Is Here. The four former music college friends dreams were wildly exceeded as it clocked up a staggering total of a million sales.

As for James himself, some of his earliest memories were of playing Irish folk songs with his friends. Having known Starsailor drummer Ben since he was five has given them an understanding which is rare in many bands.

Though he recognised frontman James Walsh’s potential from the outset, the Lancashire quartet could never have imagined the status they would eventually achieve. One of his finest memories to date was of their first US shows.

"We did a tour with the Charlatans in America at the Viper Rooms and I played bass with them which was great," he recalled with enthusiasm.

At 29, he’s a little older and wiser, yet has lost none of the drive to perform for the fans. Stel, as he’s known, is also enjoying family life as a dad to his nine-month-old son Ethan. "He is going to play an instrument as soon as he can. I already take him to down to football, so he will do one or the other."

The next musical generation of Starsailor could well be around the corner, as singer James also recently became a father.

Starsailor play Folkestone Leas Cliff Hall on Thursday, November 10. Tickets £16.50. Box office 01303 228600.