Formation
In early 1993, guitarist and singer Roine Stolt had written material for his third solo album The Flower King and sought for musicians to perform it. He had wanted to release a progressive rock-style album for a while and felt the time was right to pursue the project. The album features Stolt on vocals, guitar, bass and keyboards, Jaime Salazar on drums, and Hasse Fröberg on vocals, and was recorded in Sweden between May 1993 and January 1994.
In preparation for Stolt's concert tour to support the album's release, Stolt, Salazar, and Fröberg were joined by Stolt's brother Michael on bass and Tomas Bodin on keyboards. The five performed their first gig on 20 August 1994 at an outdoor festival in Uppsala, Stolt's hometown and the city where The Flower King was recorded. After they decided to become a full time band, they officially adopted the name The Flower Kings, named after Stolt's album. Stolt had produced a list of potential titles for the record, one of which was "The Flower King", and chose it because of its positive meaning and its reference to the hippie era of the 1960s.
Activity
After performing a series of concerts through 1994, the band entered the studio in December 1994 to record their debut album, Back in the World of Adventures. The recording process was gradual, finishing in September 1995.
In 2000, Michael Stolt was replaced by Jonas Reingold. Two years later, Salazar was replaced by Zoltan Csörsz. Daniel Gildenlöw of Pain of Salvation joined the band the same year as a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist.
Other contributors have included Hasse Bruniusson (percussion) and Ulf Wallander (saxophone).
Stolt has written the vast majority of the material the band has recorded, with Bodin contributing most of the rest. The music is best described as symphonic progressive rock, bearing a strong resemblance to the music of Yes, King Crimson, Gentle Giant, and early Genesis, with jazz fusion and blues influences. The band's lyrics are almost uniformly positive and uplifting, affirming such values as love, peace, and spirituality, and furthering their association with Yes.
Their 1999 album Flower Power contains the eighteen-section, almost 60-minute "Garden of Dreams".
In June 2007, they released The Road Back Home, a compilation of remixed songs from 1994 to 2006, plus "Little Deceiver" (a previously unreleased track) and the full version of their cover of "The Cinema Show" by Genesis.
Zoltan Csörsz was replaced by new drummer Marcus Liliequist for one album, but returned for the 2007 album, The Sum of No Evil. He was subsequently replaced by Erik Hammarström in 2008.
In 2008, Ola Heden, previously of Reingold's side project Karmakanic, joined on guitar, vocals and keyboards.
In November 2008, the band were the opening act of the Ecco Prog Fest in Moscow.
After touring in 2008, The Flower Kings were inactive for four years. Stolt felt the band had varied levels of focus in their direction and had started to feel lost. They reunited in 2011 to work on new material after Stolt felt it was the right time and sensed eagerness from the other members to work together. This marked the arrival of German drummer Felix Lehrmann. Banks of Eden, the group's eleventh album, was released in June 2012 and was recorded with analogue recording techniques and styles reminiscent of the height of vinyl records. This was followed by Desolation Rose in October 2013.
The line up of Stolt, Bodin, Reingold, Fröberg and Lehrmann played together for the last time in 2015. 2016 and 2017 saw the bandmembers busy with other engagements.
In December 2017, the first part of a career-spanning box set titled A Kingdom of Colours was released. This first box, with 10 discs, covers the period from 1995 to 2002 and includes the studio albums from Back in the World of Adventures to Unfold the Future. The second box set, titled A Kingdom of Colours 2 and covering the albums Adam & Eve through to Desolation Rose, was released in June 2018.
In September 2018, Stolt announced a new album named Manifesto of an Alchemist. The album did not feature long-time keyboardist Tomas Bodin, and as such it is credited to "Roine Stolt's The Flower King" rather than "The Flower Kings"
In August the same year Roine Stolt presented a new band called "Roine Stolt and friends play The Flower Kings". The band featured Stolt, Fröberg and Reingold with new keyboard player Zach Kamins and new drummer Mirko De Maio. Roine Stolt stated that he was done being in a group and wanted to tour as a solo artist like Roger Waters or Steven Wilson. Tomas Bodin was not a part of this group and made his displeasure quite public. The band toured with Spock’s Beard in November and December 2018 and continued to do shows in 2019, this time under the name "The Flower Kings Revisited".
In July 2019, "Revisited" was removed from the band name, making it clear that this line up was now "The Flower Kings". The band went on to release the double albums Waiting for Miracles in 2019 and Islands in 2020, the latter having been recorded entirely remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 24 March 2021, Roine Stolt announced two big projects. The Flower Kings are working on a brand new album "in the same innocence" of Stardust We Are. On 19 April 2021, Roine officially teases that Stardust We Are is getting a brand new vinyl remaster.
On April 8th 2022, InsideOut and Roine Stolt announced that Back in the World of Adventures and Retropolis were getting "remastered and partly remixed". The release date for both was placed on May 27th 2022. Also Stardust We Are and Flower Power are getting remixes and remastered in June.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Flower_Kings
Studio albums
The Flower King (1994)
Back in the World of Adventures (1995)
Retropolis (1996)
Stardust We Are (1997)
Flower Power (1999)
Space Revolver (2000)
The Rainmaker (2001)
Unfold the Future (2002)
Adam & Eve (2004)
Paradox Hotel (2006)
The Sum of No Evil (2007)
Banks of Eden (2012)
Desolation Rose (2013)
Manifesto of an Alchemist (2018)
Waiting for Miracles (2019)
Islands (2020)
By Royal Decree (2022)
Starlight Man
The Flower Kings Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can be your starlight man
You can find a home inside me
I can bid you one more dance
I can be your all time father
I can be your backup friend
Although I speak in tounges of angels
I'm beside you
I'm the starlight in your mind
Look inside me
I am you, that's what I am
I'm around you
I'm the starlight in your mind
Look inside me
I am you, that's what I am
Carry on the torch I hand you
It'ss not made by human hand
Look inside the depth of my eyes
And you'll find a universe
I'm no taller than the treetops
And my sight is not the best
But my mind is at the outlook
And my view is from birds nest
I'm beside you
I'm the starlight in your mind
Look inside me
I am you, that's what I am
I'm around you
I'm the starlight in your mind
Look inside me
I am you, that's what I am
I'm beside you
I can be you guardian angel
Look inside me
You can find a home inside me
I'm around you
I'm the starlight in your mind
Look inside me
I am you, that's what I am
The lyrics of The Flower King's song "Starlight Man" can be interpreted in numerous ways. The first few lines suggest that the singer is offering to be a protector or savior for someone in need. The phrase "guardian angel" contributes to this interpretation. The following line, "I can be your starlight man" adds more depth to this idea. Since a "starlight man" is not a common phrase, it can be interpreted in several ways. However, it could be a reference to a celestial being who guides, leads, and gives light. Therefore, the singer offers himself as someone who can give guidance and light to the person he is addressing.
The following lines discuss the search for a home, both figuratively and literally. The expression "You can find a home inside me" is an analogy for finding comfort, protection, and a place of acceptance within the singer's realm. The singer is willing to provide this comfort to the person they are addressing. The idea of bidding for 'one more dance' could refer to the fact that the singer is willing to continue supporting the person for as long as they need it.
The middle part of the song has the singer offering to be a fatherly figure and a friend who can provide backup. Though the tone changes a bit in the line "Although I speak in tongues of angels, it resembles sounds of man," the singer is still offering support and guidance. The chorus repeats the idea that the singer is a presence in the person's life. Although he may be smaller and visually challenged, his mind and perspective that can provide profound insight and clarity.
Line by Line Meaning
I can be your guardian angel
I can protect and guide you as an angel would
I can be your starlight man
I can be the one who brings light into your life and guides your way
You can find a home inside me
You can feel safe and comfortable being with me
I can bid you one more dance
I am willing to continue our journey together and make more memories with you
I can be your all time father
I can provide guidance and support as a father figure, always
I can be your backup friend
I am here as a loyal friend, always ready to support you
Although I speak in tounges of angels
Even though what I say may sound otherworldly, it is still relatable
It resemble sounds of man
My words and thoughts resonate with human experiences
I'm beside you
I am always with you, supporting you
I'm the starlight in your mind
I am the one guiding and brightening your thoughts and perspective
Look inside me
Take a deeper look at who I am
I am you, that's what I am
In essence, I am a reflection of you and what you need
I'm around you
I am present and close by, always
Carry on the torch I hand you
Continue on the path that I have started for you
It'ss not made by human hand
The path I set before you is a universal one, not bound by societal norms or expectations
Look inside the depth of my eyes
Take a closer look at my true nature and intentions
And you'll find a universe
You will discover an entire world of possibilities and potential within me
I'm no taller than the treetops
I am humble, down-to-earth, and relatable
And my sight is not the best
I may not have all the answers, but I am still wise and insightful
But my mind is at the outlook
I have a unique perspective and approach to life
And my view is from birds nest
I have a broad and comprehensive view of the world, due to my lofty perspective
I can be you guardian angel
I am always here to protect and guide you
Contributed by Kaitlyn E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.