The Uber Talented MARQUIS MICHAEL DES BARRES

By Alexxis Steele

Michael got an early start at acting here in the US. Even though his first acting role was with Tony Curtis in the 1966 film “Drop Dead Darling”, he was not credited until he was a supporting cast member of the classic 1967 film “ To Sir with Love”.

Playing opposite Sydney Poitier, he portrayed an East End pupil who always wore dark sunglasses inside and out. Following this,and a few other minor roles, he decided to switch his energies to music, which I will rewind back to later in this article.

Concentrating on his acting career once again, he was cast in the 1985 film “Ghoulies”, as cult leader Malcolm Graves, and in 1987’s “Nightflyers” as a Charismatic empath.

In 1989 he worked opposite Clint Eastwood in the film Pink Cadillac. Some of his other film roles until the end of the millennium have included- Midnight Cabaret, Under Siege, Waxwork ll: Lost In Time, A Simple Twist of Fate, Poison Ivy: The New Seduction,Diary of a Sex Addict, The Man From Elysian Fields, and Sugar Town. Michael was also cast briefly in the classic film Mulholland Drive in 2001, and in 2004 for Catch That Kid.

If you are a fan of tv shows, you will recognize Michael in the original MacGyver series portraying the villain Murdoc, as well as a lead cast member of the 19911992 season of WKRP in Cincinnati.

He has an extensive list of appearances on tv series he has acted in such as- Roseanne, Seinfeld, Renegade, Alf, Ellen, Nip/Tuck, Just Shoot Me,Hart To Hart, My Sister Sam, Lois & Clark, Melrose Place, Nash Bridges, Northern Exposure, Miami Vice, Rockford Files, St Elsewhere, 21 Jump Street, Frasier, Charmed, Gilmore Girls, CSI and NCIS, to name a few!

Michael has lent his voice in animated series such as: Kano in 1992’s Batman: The animated series, as Nostromos, in 1995 as Man in The Hole, in 1996 in “Mortal Kombat: Defenders Of the Realm,and also as Jackson Wheele in Spider Man during the same year.

In October of 2013 he appeared as Rance, the narrator for the Los Angeles Philharmonics world premiere of 200 Motels: The Suites by Frank Zappa.

Scrolling back into time we delve into Michael’s musical career.

1972 saw Michael spend two years with England’s Glam Rock Band Silverhead, which was on Deep Purple’s record label Purple Records, before moving to Los Angeles.

After arriving in Los Angeles, he formed the band Detective, who was signed to Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song Records label by Jimmy Page. Michael met Jimmy after a Silverhead performance in Birmingham, England that members of Led Zeppelin had attended.

In 1978 Detective disbanded,and in 1982 Michael formed Chequered Past.In 1983 he co-wrote the song “Obsession” with Holly Knight, and in 1984 the band Animotion did a cover of the song which became an international top-ten hit. I remember when the song was on MTV, which prompted my band, as well as many others to perform this catchy tune.

Michael’s band had opened for Duran Duran for a few shows during their tour that same year, and in 1985 when Robert Palmer left The Power Station, he was chosen to take his place as lead vocalist, and performed with the band at the Live Aid Concert in Philadelphia.

In 2013 Michael released a live album, Hot N Sticky Live, which was recorded at The Viper Room in LA, and in 2015 a solo album titled “Keys To The Universe”, at The Forum Music Village in Rome.

In 2018 he formed The Mistakes, a band consisting of all veteran studio and touring musicians, that have performed with the likes of Guns N Roses,Ace Frehley, Bon Jovi & Whitesnake. The band is signed to Steven Van Zandt’s Wicked Cool Records and has released 4 songs- “Living in the USA”/Gotta Serve Somebody, and “Crackle and Hiss”/”Stop in the Name Of Love”. The band’s plans to tour in support of their music was canceled due to the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic.

Michael released a documentary in 2021 titled: “Who Do You Want Me To Be”?, directed by J. Elvis Weinstein, on streaming platforms such as Amazon Prime, and is also available on DVD and Blu-Ray. The documentary journals his career through Rock N Roll, TV, and Movies.

Currently, he hosts “The Michael Des Barres Program”, every weekday morning from 8-11 AM EST, with a replay every weekday evening from 9-midnight PST on Little Steven’s Underground Garage, Sirius XM Channel 21. Your ears will get treated to an eclectic mix of rock, soul and punk, infused with his extensive musical knowledge and his messages of positivity and longevity. With all this amazing talent from one man, I am sure you will have no trouble finding any of the work that he has done in the last 50 plus years.. So… What are you waiting for? You can also find him on his website: https://michaeldesbarres.com