Posted on 07/07/2023 7:34:47 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Happy birthday to Ringo Starr (Richard Starkey) who was born on this day in 1940 and turns 83 today. Ringo is one of the two surviving members of what we used to call “The Fab Four.“ The band stopped recording 50-plus years ago and we are still talking about it. I guess that's impressive.
Ringo will probably go down in history as one of the luckiest men ever born. Talk about “being in the right place at the right time” or winning the biggest lottery of all time. "The luck of Ringo" or something like that.
In the summer of 1962, The Beatles, new producer George Martin, walked into a studio to record their first single. Martin settled on “Love Me Do,” a Lennon-McCartney tune, and it did reach the top 20 in the UK. It did not chart in the US. The B-side was “P.S. I Love You”, one of their most underrated songs!
The rest of the story, as Paul Harvey used to say, is that Martin replaced drummer Pete Best, an original member of the band and lifelong friend from Liverpool. Martin replaced Pete with Ringo. Martin's decision was all business. Pete just wasn't up to the task of being the drummer in a recording. I recall Martin in a documentary saying that they could keep Pete but that he'd use a studio musician to play drums on the record. Martin understood the friendship dynamics of the band but he had a job to do and a record to make and subsequently play.
Pete Best was out. Ringo Starr was in. Pete ended up with 9 to 5 job and sadly no one will write an article about his birthday. Ringo has a big mansion and everyone remembers his birthday.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
I believe the firing of Pete Best was more complicated than that. The other Beatles realized he wasn’t up to drumming, and they’d been wanting to tempt Ringo to join for a while.
George Martin did NOT replace Pete Best with Ringo.
He didn’t think Pete’s drumming was good enough for recording and told them all that he would use his own session drummers for the records.
The Beatles swapped out Pete for Ringo and when they brought HIM to record “Love Me Do”, George Martin didn’t want Ringo either.
He eventually softened.
“They cut all of Clarence’s parts out of “Love Me Do.”
LOL!!!
…and when he catches up with dem boys, he’s gonna put his foot so far up their behinds - that their breath is gonna smell like shoe polish!..”
“Hey, Paul, let’s get rid of Clarence and steal all his good ideas.”
“That was one of the great things about The Beatles, each had a distinctive voice that was suited for the different songs they did.”
Absolutely and they complemented each other well with a unique blend of their voices.
“Because” from Abbey Road is one of countless examples. Triple tracks of Paul/John/George singing all together along with harpsichord and Moog modular.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL0tnrl2L_U
On Amazon Music Prime (yeah, I canceled in protest then regretted losing books, etc.) I listened to Ringo’s complete collection. Some very good songs in there. I like “$15 Draw” from 1970’s Beaucoup of Blues, with very good picking, I guess you call it, at the end, probably a famous country guitarist.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdbO8ynNZac
“Picture Show Life” from “Old Wave” in 1983.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fPUSttyoDM
He wasn’t ashamed to incorporate references to former Beatle’s lyrics collectively and individually. He also has no shame showcasing his sentimentality and affection for the Beatle’s music and especially his friends.
My wife and I used to call this clown, “quivering lips”. See the later news clips of this guy and you will see what I mean.
He had Parkinsons IIRC.
No flamboyant drum solos (that I can think of). But, if you listen close, Ringo’s drumming is highly detailed and intricate. Also, I don’t think he ever missed a beat.
The only Ringo drum solo was on Carry That Weight/The End near the end of the medley on side 2 of Abbey Road followed shortly by the Paul/George/John battling guitar solos. I could listen to the 16 minute side 2 medley all day
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