170-500: Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr , is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles . Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, usually for one song on each album, including " Yellow Submarine " and " With a Little Help from My Friends ". He also wrote and sang the Beatles songs " Don't Pass Me By " and " Octopus's Garden ", and
340-555: A libel suit against him that lasted four years before the court reached an undisclosed settlement in Best's favour. In June, the Beatles were scheduled to begin their world tour of Denmark, the Netherlands, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Before the start of the tour, Starr was stricken with a high-grade fever, pharyngitis and tonsillitis , and briefly stayed in a local hospital, followed by several days of recuperation at home. He
510-407: A thimble across a washboard , creating primitive, driving rhythms. Starkey enjoyed dancing as his parents had years earlier, and he and Trafford briefly took dance lessons at two schools. Though the lessons were short-lived, they provided Starkey and Trafford with an introduction that allowed them to dance competently while enjoying nights out on the town. On Christmas Day 1957, Graves gave Starkey
680-564: A 2003 LP entitled Fake Songs . Starr served as an honorary Santa Tracker and voice-over personality in 2003 and 2004 during the London stop in Father Christmas's annual Christmas Eve journey, as depicted in the annual NORAD tracks Santa program . According to NORAD officials, he was "a Starr in the east" who helped guide North American Aerospace Defense Command 's Santa-tracking tradition. His 2005 release Choose Love eschewed
850-589: A December 2005 auction. In England, meanwhile, Harrison met sitar maestro Ravi Shankar , who agreed to train him on the instrument. During a tour of the Philippines the month after the Yesterday and Today furore, the Beatles unintentionally snubbed the nation's first lady, Imelda Marcos , who had expected them to attend a breakfast reception at the Presidential Palace . When presented with
1020-460: A Little Help from My Friends ". Although the Beatles had enjoyed widespread commercial and critical success with Sgt. Pepper , the long hours they spent recording the LP contributed to Starr's increased feeling of alienation within the band; he commented: "[It] wasn't our best album. That was the peak for everyone else, but for me it was a bit like being a session musician ... They more or less direct me in
1190-520: A Little Help from My Friends", among other songs. Starr also appeared on-stage during Microsoft's June 2009 E3 press conference with Yoko Ono, McCartney and Olivia Harrison to promote The Beatles: Rock Band video game. The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison , and Ringo Starr . They are widely regarded as
1360-405: A backing band and electric instrumentation , and "dressed in the height of Mod fashion". As a result, Gould continues, the traditional division between folk and rock enthusiasts "nearly evaporated", as the Beatles' fans began to mature in their outlook and Dylan's audience embraced the new, youth-driven pop culture. During the 1964 US tour , the group were confronted with racial segregation in
1530-580: A bass guitar with the proceeds, joined in January 1960. He suggested changing the band's name to Beatals , as a tribute to Buddy Holly and the Crickets . They used this name until May, when they became the Silver Beetles , before undertaking a brief tour of Scotland as the backing group for pop singer and fellow Liverpudlian Johnny Gentle . By early July, they had refashioned themselves as
1700-613: A blackout." Having embraced sobriety, Starr focused on re-establishing his career by making a return to touring. On 23 July 1989, Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band gave their first performance to an audience of ten thousand in Dallas , Texas. Setting a pattern that would continue over the following decades, the band consisted of Starr and an assortment of musicians who had been successful in their own right at different times. The concerts interchanged Starr's singing, including selections of his Beatles and solo songs, with performances of each of
1870-547: A boost in sales and radio play. By the end of the year, the phenomenon known as Beatlemania had spread throughout the country, and by February 1964 the Beatles had become an international success when they performed in New York City on The Ed Sullivan Show to a record 73 million viewers. Starr commented: "In the States I know I went over well. It knocked me out to see and hear the kids waving for me. I'd made it as
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#17327724270902040-579: A bright, joyous, original sound, filled with ringing guitars and irresistible melodies." That "ringing guitar" sound was primarily the product of Harrison's 12-string electric Rickenbacker , a prototype given to him by the manufacturer, which made its debut on the record. Touring internationally in June and July, the Beatles staged 37 shows over 27 days in Denmark, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. In August and September, they returned to
2210-466: A collection of singles. Now we were really beginning to think about albums as a bit of art on their own." Released in December, Rubber Soul was hailed by critics as a major step forward in the maturity and complexity of the band's music. Their thematic reach was beginning to expand as they embraced deeper aspects of romance and philosophy, a development that NEMS executive Peter Brown attributed to
2380-480: A compositional perspective. He also influenced various modern drumming techniques, such as the matched grip , tuning the drums lower, and using muffling devices on tonal rings. In his opinion, his finest recorded performance was on the Beatles' " Rain ". In 1999, he was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame. In 2011, Rolling Stone readers named him the fifth-greatest drummer of all time. He
2550-605: A condom in a concrete corridor; the authorities deported them. Lennon returned to Liverpool in early December, while Sutcliffe remained in Hamburg until late February with his German fiancée Astrid Kirchherr , who took the first semi-professional photos of the Beatles. During the next two years, the Beatles were resident for periods in Hamburg, where they used Preludin both recreationally and to maintain their energy through all-night performances. In 1961, during their second Hamburg engagement, Kirchherr cut Sutcliffe's hair in
2720-510: A controversy with Christians in America's conservative Bible Belt region. The Vatican issued a protest, and bans on Beatles records were imposed by Spanish and Dutch stations and South Africa's national broadcasting service . Epstein accused Datebook of having taken Lennon's words out of context. At a press conference, Lennon pointed out, "If I'd said television was more popular than Jesus, I might have got away with it." He claimed that he
2890-607: A convalescence gift from Crawford. Starkey commented: "I was in the hospital band ... That's where I really started playing. I never wanted anything else from there on ... My grandparents gave me a mandolin and a banjo, but I didn't want them. My grandfather gave me a harmonica ... we had a piano – nothing. Only the drums." Starkey attended St Silas, a Church of England primary school near his house where his classmates nicknamed him " Lazarus ", and later Dingle Vale Secondary modern school , where he showed an aptitude for art and drama, as well as practical subjects including mechanics. As
3060-544: A copy of the British single "I Want to Hold Your Hand" in mid-December 1963 and began playing it on-air. Taped copies of the song soon circulated among other radio stations throughout the US. This caused an increase in demand, leading Capitol to bring forward the release of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" by three weeks. Issued on 26 December, with the band's previously scheduled debut there just weeks away, "I Want to Hold Your Hand" sold
3230-544: A cover of Carl Perkins' " Honey Don't " at the Concert for George held in the Royal Albert Hall , London. Early the following year, he released the album Ringo Rama , which contained a song he co-wrote as a tribute to Harrison, " Never Without You ". Also in 2003, he formed Pumkinhead Records with All-Starr Band member Mark Hudson. The label was not prolific, but their first signing was Liam Lynch , who produced
3400-431: A dinner appointment with her because he was asleep in his office. Starr founded the record label Ring O' Records in 1975. The company signed eleven artists and released fifteen singles and five albums between 1975 and 1978, including works by David Hentschel , Graham Bonnet and Rab Noakes . The commercial impact of Starr's own career diminished over the same period, however, although he continued to record and remained
3570-491: A familiar celebrity presence. Speaking in 2001, he attributed this downward turn to his "[not] taking enough interest" in music, saying of himself and friends such as Nilsson and Keith Moon : "We weren't musicians dabbling in drugs and alcohol; now we were junkies dabbling in music." Starr, Nilsson and Moon were members of a drinking club, the Hollywood Vampires . From the late 1960s until the mid-1980s, Starr and
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#17327724270903740-415: A faster tempo, a studio session in late November yielded that recording, of which Martin accurately predicted, "You've just made your first No. 1". In December 1962, the Beatles concluded their fifth and final Hamburg residency. By 1963, they had agreed that all four band members would contribute vocals to their albums – including Starr, despite his restricted vocal range, to validate his standing in
3910-549: A fire destroyed his Hollywood home and much of his Beatles memorabilia. On 19 May 1980, Starr and Barbara Bach survived a car crash in Surrey , England. Following Lennon's murder in December 1980, Harrison modified the lyrics of a song he had originally written for Starr, " All Those Years Ago ", as a tribute to their former bandmate. Released as a Harrison single in 1981, the track, which included Starr's drum part and overdubbed backing vocals by McCartney, peaked at number two in
4080-434: A further progression outside the traditional boundaries of popular music. As the lyrics grew more artful, fans began to study them for deeper meaning. While some of Rubber Soul ' s songs were the product of Lennon and McCartney's collaborative songwriting, the album also included distinct compositions from each, though they continued to share official credit. " In My Life ", of which each later claimed lead authorship,
4250-641: A hobby that she shared with her husband, an avid fan of swing . Prior to the birth of their son, whom they called "Ritchie", the couple had spent much of their free time on the local ballroom circuit, but their regular outings ended soon after his birth. Elsie adopted an overprotective approach to raising her son that bordered on fixation. Subsequently, "Big Ritchie", as Starkey's father became known, lost interest in his family, choosing instead to spend long hours drinking and dancing in pubs, sometimes for several consecutive days. In an effort to reduce their housing costs, his family moved in 1944 to another neighbourhood in
4420-467: A letter published in Melody Maker , a fan asked the Beatles to let Starr sing more; he replied: "[I am] quite happy with my one little track on each album". In August 1966, the Beatles released Revolver , their seventh UK LP. It included the song " Yellow Submarine ", their only British number-one single with Starr as the lead singer. Later that month, owing to the increasing pressures of touring,
4590-477: A line." Epstein attributed Starr's acclaim to "the little man's quaintness". After the release of the Beatles' second feature film, Help! (1965), Starr won a Melody Maker poll against his fellow Beatles for his performance as the central character in the film. During an interview with Playboy in 1964, Lennon explained that Starr had filled in with the Beatles when Best was ill; Starr replied: "[Best] took little pills to make him ill". Soon after, Best filed
4760-452: A million copies in under four weeks. It became their first single to sell a million copies, and remained the biggest-selling record in the UK until 1978. The success brought increased media exposure, to which the Beatles responded with an irreverent and comical attitude that defied the expectations of pop musicians at the time, inspiring even more interest. The band toured the UK three times in
4930-684: A million copies, becoming a number-one hit in the US by mid-January. In its wake Vee-Jay released Introducing... The Beatles along with Capitol's debut album, Meet the Beatles! , while Swan reactivated production of "She Loves You". On 7 February 1964, the Beatles departed from Heathrow with an estimated 4,000 fans waving and screaming as the aircraft took off. Upon landing at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport , an uproarious crowd estimated at 3,000 greeted them. They gave their first live US television performance two days later on The Ed Sullivan Show , watched by approximately 73 million viewers in over 23 million households, or 34 per cent of
5100-494: A mixing session for " I Want You ". At a business meeting exactly one month later, Lennon told the others that he was leaving the band, effective immediately. However, the band's break-up would not become public knowledge until McCartney's announcement on 10 April 1970 that he was also leaving. Shortly before McCartney announced his exit from the Beatles in April 1970, he and Starr had a falling out due to McCartney's refusal to cede
5270-552: A noise on a box ... Sometimes, he just slapped a biscuit tin with some keys, or banged on the backs of chairs." The pair were joined by Starkey's neighbour and co-worker, the guitarist Eddie Miles, forming the Eddie Miles Band, later renamed Eddie Clayton and the Clayton Squares after a Liverpool landmark . The band performed popular skiffle songs such as " Rock Island Line " and "Walking Cane", with Starkey raking
Ringo Starr - Misplaced Pages Continue
5440-808: A performance at London's Wembley Arena for the Prince's Trust charity. In January 1988, he attended the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony in New York, with Harrison and Ono (the latter representing Lennon), to accept the Beatles' induction into the Hall of Fame. During October and November 1988, Starr and Bach attended a detox clinic in Tucson, Arizona ; each received a six-week treatment for alcoholism. He later commented on his longstanding addiction: "Years I've lost, absolute years ... I've no idea what happened. I lived in
5610-446: A personality ... Our appeal ... is that we're ordinary lads." He was a source of inspiration for several songs written at the time, including Penny Valentine 's " I Want to Kiss Ringo Goodbye " and Rolf Harris 's " Ringo for President ". Cher released her first single, " Ringo, I Love You " in 1964 under the pseudonym Bonnie Joe Mason. In 1964, "I love Ringo" lapel pins were the bestselling Beatles merchandise. The prominent placing of
5780-664: A planned country album, produced by Chips Moman , after which Moman was blocked by a court injunction from issuing the recordings. Starr narrated the 1984–86 series of the children's series Thomas & Friends , a Britt Allcroft production based on the books by the Reverend W. Awdry . For a single season in 1989, Starr also portrayed the character Mr. Conductor in the American Thomas & Friends spin-off, Shining Time Station . In 1985, Starr performed with his son Zak as part of Artists United Against Apartheid on
5950-458: A poor grasp of mathematics. His lack of education contributed to a feeling of alienation at school, which resulted in his regularly playing truant at Sefton Park . After several years of twice-weekly tutoring from his surrogate sister and neighbour, Marie Maguire Crawford, Starkey had nearly caught up to his peers academically, but in 1953, he contracted tuberculosis and was admitted to a sanatorium , where he remained for two years. During his stay
6120-553: A position as a barmaid, an occupation that she held for twelve years. At the age of six, Starkey developed appendicitis . Following a routine appendectomy he contracted peritonitis , causing him to fall into a coma that lasted days. His recovery spanned twelve months, which he spent away from his family at Liverpool's Myrtle Street children's hospital. Upon his discharge in May 1948, his mother allowed him to stay at home, causing him to miss school. At age eight, he remained illiterate, with
6290-482: A problem". As a result, six covers from their extensive repertoire were chosen to complete the album. Released in early December, its eight original compositions stood out, demonstrating the growing maturity of the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership. In early 1965, following a dinner with Lennon, Harrison and their wives, Harrison's dentist, John Riley, secretly added LSD to their coffee. Lennon described
6460-471: A result of the prolonged hospitalisations, he fell behind his peers scholastically and was ineligible for the 11-plus qualifying examination required for attendance at a grammar school . After the extended hospital stay following Starkey's recovery from tuberculosis, he did not return to school, preferring instead to stay at home and listen to music while playing along by beating biscuit tins with sticks. On 17 April 1954, Starkey's mother married Harry Graves at
6630-467: A second-hand drum kit consisting of a snare drum , bass drum and a makeshift cymbal fashioned from a rubbish bin lid. Although basic and crude, the kit facilitated his progression as a musician while increasing the commercial potential of the Eddie Clayton band, who went on to book prestigious local gigs before the skiffle craze faded in early 1958 as American rock and roll became popular in
6800-407: A series of articles in which Mann offered detailed analyses of the music, lending it respectability. With the Beatles became the second album in UK chart history to sell a million copies, a figure previously reached only by the 1958 South Pacific soundtrack . When writing the sleeve notes for the album, the band's press officer, Tony Barrow , used the superlative the "fabulous foursome", which
6970-528: A show in Atlanta, the Beatles gave one of the first live performances ever to make use of a foldback system of on-stage monitor speakers. Towards the end of the tour, they met with Elvis Presley , a foundational musical influence on the band, who invited them to his home in Beverly Hills . Presley later said the band was an example of a trend of anti-Americanism and drug abuse. September 1965 saw
Ringo Starr - Misplaced Pages Continue
7140-407: A song each from Lennon and McCartney. A commercial and critical success, the LP also included " Oh My My ", a US number five. The album reached number seven in the UK and number two in the US. Author Peter Doggett describes Ringo as a template for Starr's solo career, saying that, as a musician first rather than a songwriter, "he would rely on his friends and his charm, and if both were on tap, then
7310-437: A succession of drummers, including Pete Best , before inviting Starr to join them in 1962. Manager Brian Epstein moulded them into a professional act, and producer George Martin guided and developed their recordings, greatly expanding their domestic success after they signed with EMI Records and achieved their first hit, " Love Me Do ", in late 1962. As their popularity grew into the intense fan frenzy dubbed " Beatlemania ",
7480-510: A three-motion-picture deal, primarily for the commercial potential of the soundtracks in the US. Directed by Richard Lester , A Hard Day's Night involved the band for six weeks in March–April 1964 as they played themselves in a musical comedy. The film premiered in London and New York in July and August, respectively, and was an international success, with some critics drawing a comparison with
7650-467: A waiter serving drinks on a day boat that travelled from Liverpool to North Wales, but his fear of conscription into military service led him to quit the job, not wanting to give the Royal Navy the impression that he was suitable for seafaring work. In mid-1956, Graves secured Starkey a position as an apprentice machinist at Henry Hunt and Son, a Liverpool school equipment manufacturer. While working at
7820-428: Is considered a highlight of the entire Lennon–McCartney catalogue. Harrison called Rubber Soul his "favourite album", and Starr referred to it as "the departure record". McCartney has said, "We'd had our cute period, and now it was time to expand." However, recording engineer Norman Smith later stated that the studio sessions revealed signs of growing conflict within the group – "the clash between John and Paul
7990-547: Is credited as a co-writer of four others. Starr was afflicted by life-threatening illnesses during childhood, with periods of prolonged hospitalisation. As a teenager Starr became interested in the UK skiffle craze and developed a fervent admiration for the genre. In 1957, he co-founded his first band, the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group, which earned several prestigious local bookings before the fad succumbed to American rock and roll around early 1958. When
8160-538: The BBC , also joined the airport reception, the first of more than 100 such events. The next day, the band began its fourth tour of Britain within nine months, this one scheduled for six weeks. In mid-November, as Beatlemania intensified, police resorted to using high-pressure water hoses to control the crowd before a concert in Plymouth. On 4 November, they played in front of The Queen Mother and Princess Margaret during
8330-528: The Cavern Club the following day, Best fans, upset by his firing, held vigils outside his house and at the club shouting "Pete forever! Ringo never!" Harrison received a black eye from one upset fan, and Epstein, whose car tyres they had flattened in anger, temporarily hired a bodyguard. Starr's first recording session as a member of the Beatles took place on 4 September 1962. He stated that Martin had thought that he "was crazy and couldn't play ... because I
8500-640: The Kaiserkeller in October. When he learned they had been performing at the rival Top Ten Club in breach of their contract, he gave them one month's termination notice, and reported the underage Harrison, who had obtained permission to stay in Hamburg by lying to the German authorities about his age. The authorities arranged for Harrison's deportation in late November. One week later, Koschmider had McCartney and Best arrested for arson after they set fire to
8670-564: The Ludwig logo on the bass drum of his American import drum kit gave the company such a burst of publicity that it became the dominant drum manufacturer in North America for the next twenty years. During live performances, the Beatles continued the "Starr Time" routine that had been popular among his fans: Lennon would place a microphone in front of Starr's kit in preparation for his spotlight moment and audiences would erupt in screams. When
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#17327724270908840-777: The Maharishi Mahesh Yogi . While attending the Maharishi's intermediate course at his ashram in Rishikesh , India, they enjoyed one of their most prolific writing periods , composing most of the album there. It was here that Starr completed his first recorded Beatles song, " Don't Pass Me By ", but he left after 10 days and later compared his time there to a stay at Butlin's . The long-lasting health problems that began in his childhood had an impact on his time in India, causing him to experience allergies and sensitivities to
9010-585: The Marx Brothers . United Artists released a full soundtrack album for the North American market, combining Beatles songs and Martin's orchestral score; elsewhere, the group's third studio LP, A Hard Day's Night , contained songs from the film on side one and other new recordings on side two. According to Erlewine, the album saw them "truly coming into their own as a band. All of the disparate influences on their first two albums coalesced into
9180-498: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, 1988, and each principal member was individually inducted between 1994 and 2015. In 2004 and 2011, the group topped Rolling Stone ' s lists of the greatest artists in history . Time magazine named them among the 20th century's 100 most important people . In November 1956, sixteen-year-old John Lennon formed a skiffle group with several friends from Quarry Bank High School in Liverpool . They were called
9350-630: The Royal Variety Performance at the Prince of Wales Theatre . Please Please Me maintained the top position on the Record Retailer chart for 30 weeks, only to be displaced by its follow-up, With the Beatles , which EMI released on 22 November to record advance orders of 270,000 copies. The LP topped a half-million albums sold in one week. Recorded between July and October, With the Beatles made better use of studio production techniques than its predecessor. It held
9520-578: The Tidewater area of Virginia from Gene Loving of radio station WGH and was featured on the "Rate-a-Record" segment of American Bandstand , but it failed to catch on nationally. Epstein brought a demo copy of " I Want to Hold Your Hand " to Capitol's Brown Meggs , who signed the band and arranged for a $ 40,000 US marketing campaign. American chart success began after disc jockey Carroll James of AM radio station WWDC , in Washington, DC, obtained
9690-403: The album era , as albums became the dominant form of record use over singles . These records also increased public interest in psychedelic drugs and Eastern spirituality, and furthered advancements in electronic music , album art , and music videos . In 1968, they founded Apple Corps , a multi-armed multimedia corporation that continues to oversee projects related to the band's legacy. After
9860-489: The most influential band of all time and were integral to the development of 1960s counterculture and the recognition of popular music as an art form. Rooted in skiffle , beat , and 1950s rock 'n' roll , their sound incorporated elements of classical music and traditional pop in innovative ways. The band also explored music styles ranging from folk and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock . As pioneers in recording , songwriting, and artistic presentation,
10030-457: The " exi " (existentialist) style, later adopted by the other Beatles. Later on, Sutcliffe decided to leave the band early that year and resume his art studies in Germany. McCartney took over bass. Producer Bert Kaempfert contracted what was now a four-piece group until June 1962, and he used them as Tony Sheridan 's backing band on a series of recordings for Polydor Records . As part of
10200-690: The 1972 T. Rex documentary Born to Boogie . In 1973 and 1974, Starr had two number one hits in the US: " Photograph ", a UK number eight hit co-written with Harrison, and " You're Sixteen ", written by the Sherman Brothers . Starr's third million-selling single in the US, "You're Sixteen" was released in the UK in February 1974 where it peaked at number four. Both tracks appeared on Starr's debut rock album, Ringo , produced by Richard Perry and featuring further contributions from Harrison as well as
10370-505: The 1978 Martin Scorsese documentary The Last Waltz . Also in 1976, Starr issued Ringo's Rotogravure , the first release under his new contract with Atlantic Records for the North American market and Polydor for all other territories. The album was produced by Arif Mardin and featured compositions by Lennon, McCartney and Harrison. Starr promoted the release heavily, yet Rotogravure and its accompanying singles failed to chart in
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#173277242709010540-513: The 50th anniversary of Lennon's birth. The track, produced by Lynne, features a supergroup composed of Lynne, Tom Petty , Joe Walsh and Jim Keltner . The following year, Starr made a cameo appearance on The Simpsons episode " Brush with Greatness " and contributed an original song, "You Never Know", to the soundtrack of the John Hughes film Curly Sue . In 1992, he released his first studio album in nine years, Time Takes Time , which
10710-584: The American population. Biographer Jonathan Gould writes that, according to the Nielsen rating service, it was "the largest audience that had ever been recorded for an American television program ". The next morning, the Beatles awoke to a largely negative critical consensus in the US, but a day later at their first US concert, Beatlemania erupted at the Washington Coliseum . Back in New York
10880-638: The Animals , Petula Clark , the Kinks , and the Rolling Stones to achieve success in America. During the week of 4 April 1964, the Beatles held twelve positions on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, including the top five. Capitol Records' lack of interest throughout 1963 did not go unnoticed, and a competitor, United Artists Records , encouraged its film division to offer the Beatles
11050-457: The Beatles at Bruno Koschmider ' s Kaiserkeller on 1 October 1960, where Starr first met the band. Storm's Hurricanes were given top-billing over the Beatles, who also received less pay. Starr performed with the Beatles during a few stand-in engagements while in Hamburg. On 15 October 1960, he drummed with John Lennon , Paul McCartney and George Harrison , recording with them for the first time while backing Hurricanes singer Lu Walters on
11220-430: The Beatles and went on holiday to Sardinia , where he and his family stayed on a boat loaned to them by actor Peter Sellers . During a lunch there, the chef served octopus and Starr refused to eat it; an ensuing conversation with the ship's captain about the animal inspired Starr's song " Octopus's Garden " from the Beatles' album Abbey Road , which he wrote using a guitar during the trip. Two weeks later, he returned to
11390-709: The Beatles faced a fierce backlash from US religious and social conservatives (as well as the Ku Klux Klan ) over a comment Lennon had made in a March interview with British reporter Maureen Cleave . "Christianity will go", Lennon had said. "It will vanish and shrink. I needn't argue about that; I'm right and I will be proved right ... Jesus was alright but his disciples were thick and ordinary. It's them twisting it that ruins it for me." His comments went virtually unnoticed in England, but when US teenage fan magazine Datebook printed them five months later, it sparked
11560-588: The Beatles formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool group, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes . After achieving moderate success in the UK and Hamburg , he quit the Hurricanes when he was asked to join the Beatles in August 1962, replacing Pete Best . In addition to the Beatles' films , Starr has acted in numerous others. After the Beatles disbanded , he released several successful singles including
11730-455: The Beatles gave their final concert, a 30-minute performance at San Francisco 's Candlestick Park . Starr commented: "We gave up touring at the right time. Four years of Beatlemania were enough for anyone." By December he had moved to a larger estate called Sunny Heights, 3 acres (1.2 ha) in size, at St George's Hill in Weybridge , Surrey , near to Lennon. Although he had equipped
11900-403: The Beatles made their film debut in A Hard Day's Night , Starr garnered praise from critics, who considered his delivery of deadpan one-liners and his non-speaking scenes highlights. The extended non-speaking sequences had to be arranged by director Richard Lester because of Starr's lack of sleep the previous night; Starr commented: "Because I'd been drinking all night I was incapable of saying
12070-428: The Beatles recorded ten songs during a single studio session for their debut LP, Please Please Me . It was supplemented by the four tracks already released on their first two singles. Martin considered recording the LP live at The Cavern Club, but after deciding that the building's acoustics were inadequate, he elected to simulate a "live" album with minimal production in "a single marathon session at Abbey Road". After
12240-422: The Beatles replaced him in mid-August with Ringo Starr , who left Rory Storm and the Hurricanes to join them. A 4 September session at EMI yielded a recording of " Love Me Do " featuring Starr on drums, but a dissatisfied Martin hired drummer Andy White for the band's third session a week later, which produced recordings of "Love Me Do", " Please Please Me ", and " P.S. I Love You ". Martin initially selected
12410-631: The Beatles revolutionized many aspects of the music industry and were often publicized as leaders of the era's youth and sociocultural movements. Led by primary songwriters Lennon and McCartney , the Beatles evolved from Lennon's previous group, the Quarrymen , and built their reputation by playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg , Germany, over three years from 1960, initially with Stuart Sutcliffe playing bass . The core trio of Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison, together since 1958, went through
12580-463: The Beatles without management; Starr remarked: "[It was] a strange time for us, when it's someone who we've relied on in the business, where we never got involved." Soon afterwards, the band began an ill-fated film project, Magical Mystery Tour . Starr's growing interest in photography led to his billing as the movie's Director of Photography, and his participation in the film's editing was matched only by that of McCartney. In February 1968, Starr became
12750-451: The Beatles, he thought: "That's the end, they're doing a Pete Best on me." Martin later clarified: "I simply didn't know what Ringo was like and I wasn't prepared to take any risks." By November 1962, Starr had been accepted by Beatles fans, who were now calling for him to sing. He began receiving an amount of fan mail equal to that of the others, which helped to secure his position within the band. Starr considered himself fortunate to be on
12920-451: The Beatles. On 16 August, Beatles manager Brian Epstein fired their drummer, Pete Best , who recalled: "He said 'I've got some bad news for you. The boys want you out and Ringo in.' He said [Beatles producer] George Martin wasn't too pleased with my playing [and] the boys thought I didn't fit in." Starr first performed as a member of the Beatles on 18 August 1962, at a horticultural society dance at Port Sunlight . After his appearance at
13090-574: The Beatles: "I lived in nightclubs for three years. It used to be a non-stop party." Like his father, Starr became well known for his late-night dancing and he received praise for his skills. During 1963, the Beatles enjoyed increasing popularity in Britain. In January, their second single, " Please Please Me ", followed "Love Me Do" into the UK charts and a successful television appearance on Thank Your Lucky Stars earned favourable reviews, leading to
13260-544: The Concert for Bangladesh , organised by Harrison, and with him co-wrote the hit single " It Don't Come Easy ", which reached number four in both the US and the UK. The following year he released his most successful UK hit, " Back Off Boogaloo " (again produced and co-written by Harrison), which peaked at number two (US number nine). Having become friends with the English singer Marc Bolan , Starr made his directorial debut with
13430-476: The Dingle, Admiral Grove ; soon afterwards his parents separated, and they divorced within the year. Starkey later stated that he has "no real memories" of his father, who made little effort to bond with him, visiting as few as three times thereafter. Elsie found it difficult to survive on her ex-husband's support payments of thirty shillings a week, so she took on several menial jobs cleaning houses before securing
13600-514: The Moondogs, were playing rock and roll whenever they could find a drummer. They also performed as the Rainbows . Paul McCartney later told New Musical Express that they called themselves that "because we all had different coloured shirts and we couldn't afford any others!". Lennon's art school friend Stuart Sutcliffe , who had just sold one of his paintings and was persuaded to purchase
13770-404: The Quarrymen , a reference to their school song "Quarry men old before our birth". Fifteen-year-old Paul McCartney met Lennon on 6 July 1957, and joined as a rhythm guitarist shortly after. In February 1958, McCartney invited his friend George Harrison , then aged fifteen, to watch the band. Harrison auditioned for Lennon, impressing him with his playing, but Lennon initially thought Harrison
13940-567: The Silver Beatles , and by the middle of August simply the Beatles . Allan Williams , the Beatles' unofficial manager, arranged a residency for them in Hamburg . They auditioned and hired drummer Pete Best in mid-August 1960. The band, now a five-piece, departed Liverpool for Hamburg four days later, contracted to club owner Bruno Koschmider for what would be a 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 -month residency. Beatles historian Mark Lewisohn writes: "They pulled into Hamburg at dusk on 17 August,
14110-598: The Starr version of "Love Me Do" for the band's first single, though subsequent re-pressings featured the White version, with Starr on tambourine. Released in early October, "Love Me Do" peaked at number seventeen on the Record Retailer chart. Their television debut came later that month with a live performance on the regional news programme People and Places . After Martin suggested rerecording "Please Please Me" at
14280-523: The UK. In November 1959, Starkey joined Al Caldwell 's Texans, a skiffle group who were looking for someone with a proper drum kit so that the group could transition from one of Liverpool's best-known skiffle acts to a full-fledged rock and roll band. They had begun playing local clubs as the Raging Texans, then Jet Storm and the Raging Texans before settling on Rory Storm and the Hurricanes shortly before recruiting Starkey. About this time he adopted
14450-409: The UK. In America, the LP produced two minor hits, " A Dose of Rock 'n' Roll " (number 26) and a cover of " Hey! Baby " (number 74), and achieved moderate sales, reaching a chart position of 28. Its disappointing performance inspired Atlantic to revamp Starr's formula; the result was a blend of disco and 1970s pop, Ringo the 4th (1977). The album failed to chart in the UK and peaked at number 162 in
14620-640: The US charts and number 13 in the UK. Later that year, Starr released Stop and Smell the Roses , featuring songs produced by Nilsson, McCartney, Harrison, Ronnie Wood and Stephen Stills . The album's lead single, the Harrison-composed "Wrack My Brain", reached number 38 in the US charts, but failed to chart in the UK. Lennon had offered a pair of songs for inclusion on the album – " Nobody Told Me " and " Life Begins at 40 " – but following his death, Starr did not feel comfortable recording them. Soon after
14790-421: The US top-ten hit " It Don't Come Easy ", and number ones " Photograph " and " You're Sixteen ". His most successful UK single was " Back Off Boogaloo ", which peaked at number two. He achieved commercial and critical success with his 1973 album Ringo , which was a top-ten release in both the UK and the US. Starr has also featured in numerous documentaries, hosted television shows, narrated the first two series of
14960-411: The US, with a 30-concert tour of 23 cities. Generating intense interest once again, the month-long tour attracted between 10,000 and 20,000 people to each 30-minute performance in cities from San Francisco to New York. In August, journalist Al Aronowitz arranged for the Beatles to meet Bob Dylan . Visiting the band in their New York hotel suite, Dylan introduced them to cannabis . Gould points out
15130-426: The US. A similar situation arose during their May–June tour with Roy Orbison . In late October, the Beatles began a five-day tour of Sweden, their first time abroad since the final Hamburg engagement of December 1962. On their return to the UK on 31 October, several hundred screaming fans greeted them in heavy rain at Heathrow Airport . Around 50 to 100 journalists and photographers, as well as representatives from
15300-637: The US. In 1978 Starr released Bad Boy , which reached number 129 in the US and again failed to place on the UK albums chart. In April 1979, Starr became seriously ill with intestinal problems relating to his childhood bout of peritonitis and was taken to the Princess Grace Hospital in Monte Carlo . He almost died and during an operation on 28 April, several feet of intestine had to be removed. Three weeks later he played with McCartney and Harrison at Eric Clapton's wedding. On 28 November,
15470-479: The United Kingdom to reach number one. The band's third single, " From Me to You ", came out in April and began an almost unbroken string of seventeen British number-one singles, including all but one of the eighteen they released over the next six years. Issued in August, their fourth single, " She Loves You ", achieved the fastest sales of any record in the UK up to that time, selling three-quarters of
15640-415: The airport with news of Sutcliffe's death the previous day from a brain haemorrhage . Epstein began negotiations with record labels for a recording contract. To secure a UK record contract, Epstein negotiated an early end to the band's contract with Polydor, in exchange for more recordings backing Tony Sheridan. After a New Year's Day audition, Decca Records rejected the band , saying, "Guitar groups are on
15810-465: The album Introducing... The Beatles , comprising most of the songs of Parlophone's Please Please Me , but a management shake-up led to the album not being released. After it emerged that the label did not report royalties on their sales, the licence that Vee-Jay had signed with EMI was voided. A new licence was granted to the Swan label for the single "She Loves You". The record received some airplay in
15980-498: The album still sounds fresh, precisely because of its intense origins." Lennon said little thought went into composition at the time; he and McCartney were "just writing songs à la Everly Brothers , à la Buddy Holly, pop songs with no more thought of them than that – to create a sound. And the words were almost irrelevant." Released in March 1963, Please Please Me was the first of eleven consecutive Beatles albums released in
16150-468: The album was a commercial failure. Starr subsequently combined his musical activities with developing a career as a film actor . Starr played drums on Lennon's John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band (1970), Ono's Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band (1970), and on Harrison's albums All Things Must Pass (1970), Living in the Material World (1973) and Dark Horse (1974). In 1971, Starr participated in
16320-400: The album, recorded between August and October 1964, to continue the format established by A Hard Day's Night which, unlike their first two LPs, contained only original songs. They had nearly exhausted their backlog of songs on the previous album, however, and given the challenges constant international touring posed to their songwriting efforts, Lennon admitted, "Material's becoming a hell of
16490-545: The arrangement. The Butlins gig led to other opportunities for the band, including an unpleasant tour of US Air Force bases in France about which Starr commented: "The French don't like the British; at least I didn't like them." The Hurricanes became so successful that when initially offered a highly coveted residency in Hamburg , they turned it down because of their prior commitment with Butlins. They eventually accepted, joining
16660-737: The band acquired the nickname "the Fab Four". Epstein, Martin or other members of the band's entourage were sometimes informally referred to as a " fifth Beatle ". By early 1964, the Beatles were international stars and had achieved unprecedented levels of critical and commercial success. They became a leading force in Britain's cultural resurgence, ushering in the British Invasion of the United States pop market. They soon made their film debut with A Hard Day's Night (1964). A growing desire to refine their studio efforts, coupled with
16830-447: The band members' "now habitual use of marijuana". Lennon referred to Rubber Soul as "the pot album" and Starr said: "Grass was really influential in a lot of our changes, especially with the writers. And because they were writing different material, we were playing differently." After Help! ' s foray into classical music with flutes and strings, Harrison's introduction of a sitar on " Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) " marked
17000-409: The band over the next couple of months, and they appointed him as their manager in January 1962. Throughout early and mid-1962, Epstein sought to free the Beatles from their contractual obligations to Bert Kaempfert Productions. He eventually negotiated a one-month early release in exchange for one last recording session in Hamburg. On their return to Germany in April, a distraught Kirchherr met them at
17170-529: The beginning of a nine-year partnership with Mark Hudson , who produced the album and, with his band the Roundheads, formed the core of the backing group on the recordings. In addition, many famous guests joined on various tracks, including Martin, Petty, McCartney and, in his final appearance on a Starr album, Harrison. Most of the songs were written by Starr and the band. Joe Walsh and the Roundheads joined Starr for his appearance on VH1 Storytellers , which
17340-468: The burgeoning youth culture. The group's popularity generated unprecedented interest in British music, and many other UK acts subsequently made their American debuts, successfully touring over the next three years in what was termed the British Invasion . The Beatles' success in the US opened the door for a successive string of British beat groups and pop acts such as the Dave Clark Five ,
17510-508: The challenging nature of their concert tours, led to the band's retirement from live performances in 1966. During this time, they produced albums of greater sophistication, including Rubber Soul (1965), Revolver (1966), and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967). They enjoyed further commercial success with The Beatles (also known as "the White Album", 1968) and Abbey Road (1969). The success of these records heralded
17680-456: The children's television programme Thomas & Friends and portrayed "Mr. Conductor" during the first season of the PBS children's television series Shining Time Station . Since 1989, he has toured with thirteen variations of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band . Starr's playing style, which emphasised feel over technical virtuosity, influenced many drummers to reconsider their playing from
17850-505: The city. Starr, Nilsson, and Keith Moon were among the cast, along with a forty-foot robot named 'Gort' placed on the building. During this period Starr became romantically involved with Lynsey de Paul . He played tambourine on a song she wrote and produced for Vera Lynn , "Don't You Remember When", and he inspired another De Paul song, "If I Don't Get You the Next One Will", which she described as being about revenge after he missed
18020-452: The commercialised popular culture of television, radio, pop records, fan magazines, and teen fashion. To many of Dylan's followers in the folk music scene, the Beatles were seen as idolaters, not idealists." Within six months of the meeting, according to Gould, "Lennon would be making records on which he openly imitated Dylan's nasal drone, brittle strum, and introspective vocal persona"; and six months after that, Dylan began performing with
18190-478: The completion of a third song. Starr then played drums on McCartney's 1997 album Flaming Pie . Among the tracks to which he contributed, "Little Willow" was a song McCartney wrote about Starr's ex-wife Maureen, who died in 1994, while " Really Love You " was the first official release ever credited to McCartney–Starkey. In 1998, he released two albums on the Mercury label. The studio album Vertical Man marked
18360-599: The country at the time. When informed that the venue for their 11 September concert, the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida , was segregated, the Beatles said they would refuse to perform unless the audience was integrated. Lennon stated: "We never play to segregated audiences and we aren't going to start now ... I'd sooner lose our appearance money." City officials relented and agreed to allow an integrated show. The group also cancelled their reservations at
18530-405: The customary group photograph, its Aubrey Beardsley -inspired cover – designed by Klaus Voormann , a friend of the band since their Hamburg days – was a monochrome collage and line drawing caricature of the group. The album was preceded by the single " Paperback Writer ", backed by " Rain ". Short promotional films were made for both songs; described by cultural historian Saul Austerlitz as "among
18700-578: The designer Robin Cruikshank ran a furniture and interior design company, ROR . ROR's designs were placed on sale in the department stores of Harvey Nichols and Liberty of London . The company designed the interiors of palaces in Abu Dhabi and Oman, and the apartments of Paul Raymond and Starr's friend Nilsson. In November 1976, Starr appeared as a guest at the Band 's farewell concert, featured in
18870-413: The experience: "It was just terrifying, but it was fantastic. I was pretty stunned for a month or two." He and Harrison subsequently became regular users of the drug, joined by Starr on at least one occasion. Harrison's use of psychedelic drugs encouraged his path to meditation and Hinduism. He commented: "For me, it was like a flash. The first time I had acid , it just opened up something in my head that
19040-401: The facility Starkey befriended Roy Trafford, and the two bonded over their shared interest in music. Trafford introduced Starkey to skiffle , and he quickly became a fervent admirer. Soon after Trafford piqued Starkey's interest in skiffle, the two began rehearsing songs in the manufacturing plant's cellar during their lunch breaks. Trafford recalled: "I played a guitar, and [Ritchie] just made
19210-517: The first Beatle to discuss LSD publicly, declaring in a magazine interview that "it opened my eyes" and "made me a better, more honest, more tolerant member of society". Controversy erupted in June 1965 when Queen Elizabeth II appointed all four Beatles Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) after Prime Minister Harold Wilson nominated them for the award. In protest – the honour
19380-468: The first Beatle to sing on another artist's show without the others. He sang the Buck Owens hit " Act Naturally ", and performed a duet with Cilla Black , "Do You Like Me Just a Little Bit?" on her BBC One television programme, Cilla . In November 1968, Apple Records released The Beatles , commonly known as the "White Album". The album was partly inspired by the band's recent interactions with
19550-508: The first half of the year: a four-week tour that began in February, the Beatles' first nationwide, preceded three-week tours in March and May–June. As their popularity spread, a frenzied adulation of the group took hold. On 13 October, the Beatles starred on Sunday Night at the London Palladium , the UK's top variety show. Their performance was televised live and watched by 15 million viewers. One national paper's headlines in
19720-402: The following day, the Beatles met with another strong reception during two shows at Carnegie Hall . The band flew to Florida, where they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show a second time, again before 70 million viewers, before returning to the UK on 22 February. The Beatles' first visit to the US took place when the nation was still mourning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy
19890-412: The following days coined the term " Beatlemania " to describe the riotous enthusiasm by screaming fans who greeted the band – and it stuck. Although not billed as tour leaders, the Beatles overshadowed American acts Tommy Roe and Chris Montez during the February engagements and assumed top billing "by audience demand", something no British act had previously accomplished while touring with artists from
20060-429: The grinning Beatles dressed in butcher's overalls, accompanied by raw meat and mutilated plastic baby dolls. According to Beatles biographer Bill Harry , it has been incorrectly suggested that this was meant as a satirical response to the way Capitol had "butchered" the US versions of the band's albums. Thousands of copies of the LP had a new cover pasted over the original; an unpeeled "first-state" copy fetched $ 10,500 at
20230-404: The group's break-up in 1970, all principal former members enjoyed success as solo artists, and some partial reunions occurred. Lennon was murdered in 1980, and Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001. McCartney and Starr remain musically active. The Beatles are the best-selling music act of all time , with estimated sales of 600 million units worldwide. They are the most successful act in
20400-524: The group. Lennon and McCartney had established a songwriting partnership , and as the band's success grew, their dominant collaboration limited Harrison's opportunities as a lead vocalist . Epstein, to maximise the Beatles' commercial potential, encouraged them to adopt a professional approach to performing. Lennon recalled him saying, "Look, if you really want to get in these bigger places, you're going to have to change – stop eating on stage, stop swearing, stop smoking ...". On 11 February 1963,
20570-678: The history of the US Billboard charts , holding the record for most number-one albums on the UK Albums Chart (15), most number-one hits on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart (20), and most singles sold in the UK (21.9 million). The band received many accolades , including seven Grammy Awards , four Brit Awards , an Academy Award (for Best Original Song Score for the 1970 documentary film Let It Be ), and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards . They were inducted into
20740-476: The house with many luxury items, including numerous televisions, light machines, film projectors, stereo equipment, a billiard table , go-kart track and a bar named the Flying Cow, he did not include a drum kit; he explained: "When we don't record, I don't play." For the Beatles' seminal 1967 album, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band , Starr sang lead vocals on the Lennon–McCartney composition " With
20910-614: The invitation, Epstein politely declined on the band members' behalf, as it had never been his policy to accept such official invitations. They soon found that the Marcos regime was unaccustomed to taking no for an answer. The resulting riots endangered the group and they escaped the country with difficulty. Immediately afterwards, the band members visited India for the first time. We're more popular than Jesus now; I don't know which will go first – rock 'n' roll or Christianity. – John Lennon, 1966 Almost as soon as they returned home,
21080-401: The last covers the band would include on an album until Let It Be 's brief rendition of the traditional Liverpool folk song " Maggie Mae ". The band expanded their use of vocal overdubs on Help! and incorporated classical instruments into some arrangements, including a string quartet on the pop ballad " Yesterday ". Composed and sung by McCartney – none of the other Beatles perform on
21250-519: The launch of an American Saturday-morning cartoon series, The Beatles , that echoed A Hard Day's Night 's slapstick antics over its two-year original run. The series was the first weekly television series to feature animated versions of real, living people. In mid-October, the Beatles entered the recording studio; for the first time when making an album, they had an extended period without other major commitments. Until this time, according to George Martin, "we had been making albums rather like
21420-567: The local food; when the band travelled there, he resorted to taking his own food with him. Relations within the Beatles deteriorated during the recording of the White Album, and there were occasions where only one or two members were involved in the recording of a track. Starr had become tired of McCartney's increasingly overbearing approach, Lennon's passive-aggressive behaviour , and the near-constant presence of Lennon's wife Yoko Ono . After one particularly difficult session which included McCartney harshly criticising his drumming, Starr briefly quit
21590-408: The media widely adopted as "the Fab Four". EMI's American subsidiary, Capitol Records , hindered the Beatles' releases in the United States for more than a year by initially declining to issue their music, including their first three singles. Concurrent negotiations with the independent US label Vee-Jay led to the release of some, but not all, of the songs in 1963. Vee-Jay finished preparation for
21760-491: The medical staff made an effort to stimulate motor activity and relieve boredom by encouraging their patients to join the hospital band, leading to his first exposure to a percussion instrument: a makeshift mallet made from a cotton bobbin that he used to strike the cabinets next to his bed. Soon afterwards, he grew increasingly interested in drumming, receiving a copy of the Alyn Ainsworth song "Bedtime for Drums" as
21930-409: The moderate success of "Love Me Do", the single "Please Please Me" was released in January 1963, two months ahead of the album. It reached number one on every UK chart except Record Retailer , where it peaked at number two. Recalling how the Beatles "rushed to deliver a debut album, bashing out Please Please Me in a day", AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote: "Decades after its release,
22100-496: The monotony of numerous appearances at the same clubs night after night. In November 1961, during one of the group's frequent performances at the Cavern Club , they encountered Brian Epstein , a local record-store owner and music columnist. He later recalled: "I immediately liked what I heard. They were fresh, and they were honest, and they had what I thought was a sort of presence ... [a] star quality." Epstein courted
22270-457: The murder, Starr and his girlfriend Barbara Bach flew to New York City to be with Lennon's widow Yoko Ono. Following Stop and Smell the Roses , Starr's recording projects were beset with problems. After completing Old Wave in 1982 with producer Joe Walsh , he was unable to find a record company willing to release the album in the UK or the US. In 1987, he abandoned sessions in Memphis for
22440-445: The musical and cultural significance of this meeting, before which the musicians' respective fanbases were "perceived as inhabiting two separate subcultural worlds": Dylan's audience of "college kids with artistic or intellectual leanings, a dawning political and social idealism, and a mildly bohemian style " contrasted with their fans, "veritable ' teenyboppers ' – kids in high school or grade school whose lives were totally wrapped up in
22610-418: The other artists' well-known material, the latter incorporating either Starr or another musician as drummer. The first All-Starr excursion led to the release of Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band (1990), a compilation of live performances from the 1989 tour. Also in 1990, Starr recorded a version of the song " I Call Your Name " for a television special marking the 10th anniversary of John Lennon's death and
22780-532: The others were hesitant. On 11 February 1965, Starr married Maureen Cox , whom he had met in 1962. By this time the stress and pressure of Beatlemania had reached a peak for him. He received a telephoned death threat before a show in Montreal, and resorted to positioning his cymbals vertically in an attempt to defend against would-be assassins. The constant pressure affected the Beatles' performances; Starr commented: "We were turning into such bad musicians ... there
22950-418: The previous November. Commentators often suggest that for many, particularly the young, the Beatles' performances reignited the sense of excitement and possibility that momentarily faded in the wake of the assassination, and helped pave the way for the revolutionary social changes to come later in the decade. Their hairstyle, unusually long for the era and mocked by many adults, became an emblem of rebellion to
23120-458: The protest song " Sun City ", and, with Harrison and Eric Clapton , was among the special guests on Carl Perkins ' TV special Blue Suede Shoes: A Rockabilly Session . In 1987, he played drums on Harrison's Beatles pastiche " When We Was Fab " and also appeared in Godley & Creme 's innovative video clip for the song. The same year, Starr joined Harrison, Clapton, Jeff Lynne and Elton John in
23290-613: The recording – "Yesterday" has inspired the most cover versions of any song ever written. With Help! , the Beatles became the first rock group to be nominated for a Grammy Award for Album of the Year . The group's third US tour opened with a performance before a world-record crowd of 55,600 at New York's Shea Stadium on 15 August – "perhaps the most famous of all Beatles' concerts", in Lewisohn's description. A further nine successful concerts followed in other American cities. At
23460-411: The register office on Mount Pleasant, Liverpool. He was an ex-Londoner who had moved to Liverpool following the failure of his first marriage. Graves, an impassioned fan of big band music and their vocalists, introduced Starkey to recordings by Dinah Shore , Sarah Vaughan and Billy Daniels . Graves stated that he and "Ritchie" never had an unpleasant exchange between them; Starkey later commented: "He
23630-558: The release date of his eponymous solo album to allow for Starr's debut, Sentimental Journey , and the Beatles' Let It Be . Starr's album – composed of renditions of pre-rock standards that included musical arrangements by Quincy Jones , Maurice Gibb , George Martin and McCartney – peaked at number seven in the UK and number 22 in the US. Starr followed Sentimental Journey with the country-inspired Beaucoups of Blues , engineered by Scotty Moore and featuring renowned Nashville session musician Pete Drake . Despite favourable reviews,
23800-495: The results were usually appealing". Goodnight Vienna followed in 1974 and was also successful, reaching number eight in the US and number 30 in the UK. Featuring contributions from Lennon, Elton John and Harry Nilsson , the album included a cover (suggested by Lennon) of the Platters ' 1954 hit " Only You (And You Alone) ", which peaked at number six in the US and number 28 in the UK, and Hoyt Axton 's " No No Song ", which
23970-461: The same "wavelength" as the other Beatles: "I had to be, or I wouldn't have lasted. I had to join them as people as well as a drummer." He was given a small percentage of Lennon and McCartney's publishing company, Northern Songs , but derived his primary income during this period from a one-quarter share of Beatles Ltd, a corporation financed by the band's net concert earnings. He commented on the nature of his lifestyle after having achieved success with
24140-555: The sessions, the Beatles were signed to Polydor for one year. Credited to "Tony Sheridan & the Beat Brothers", the single " My Bonnie ", recorded in June 1961 and released four months later, reached number 32 on the Musikmarkt chart. After the Beatles completed their second Hamburg residency, they enjoyed increasing popularity in Liverpool with the growing Merseybeat movement. However, they were growing tired of
24310-417: The song " Summertime ". During Starr's first stay in Hamburg he also met Tony Sheridan , who valued his drumming abilities to the point of asking Starr to leave the Hurricanes and join his band. Starr quit Rory Storm and the Hurricanes in January 1962 and briefly joined Sheridan in Hamburg before returning to the Hurricanes for a third season at Butlins. On 14 August, Starr accepted Lennon's invitation to join
24480-407: The soot-filled air of their coal-fuelled neighbourhood. Adding to their difficult circumstances, violent crime was an almost constant concern for people living in one of the oldest and poorest inner-city districts in Liverpool. Starkey later commented: "You kept your head down, your eyes open, and you didn't get in anybody's way." After his return home from the sanatorium in late 1955, Starkey entered
24650-548: The stage name Ringo Starr; derived from the rings he wore and also because it implied a country and western influence. His singing solos were billed as Starr Time . By early 1960, the Hurricanes had become one of Liverpool's leading bands. In May, they were offered a three-month residency at a Butlins holiday camp in Wales. Although initially reluctant to accept the residency and end his five-year machinist apprenticeship that he had begun four years earlier, Starr eventually agreed to
24820-427: The star-guests approach of his last two studio albums but failed to chart in the UK or the US. That same year, Liverpool's City Council announced plans to demolish Starr's birthplace, 9 Madryn Street, stating that it had "no historical significance". The LCC later announced that the building would be taken apart brick by brick and preserved. Starr released the album Liverpool 8 in January 2008, coinciding with
24990-469: The start of Liverpool's year as the European Capital of Culture . Hudson was the initial producer of the recordings, but after a falling out with Starr, he was replaced by David A. Stewart . Starr performed the title track at the opening ceremony for Liverpool's appointment, but thereafter attracted controversy over his seemingly unflattering comments about his city of birth. Later that year, he
25160-405: The studio to find that Harrison had covered his drum kit in flowers as a welcome-back gesture. Despite a temporary return to friendly interactions during the completion of the White Album, production of the Beatles' fourth feature film Let It Be and its accompanying album further strained band relationships. On 20 August 1969, the Beatles gathered for the final time at Abbey Road Studios for
25330-430: The style I can play." His inability to compose new material led to his input being minimised during recording sessions; he often found himself relegated to adding minor percussion effects to songs by McCartney, Lennon and Harrison. During his downtime, Starr worked on his guitar playing, and said: "I jump into chords that no one seems to get into. Most of the stuff I write is twelve-bar". Epstein's death in August 1967 left
25500-503: The surviving former Beatles for the Beatles Anthology project. They recorded two new Beatles songs built around solo vocal and piano tapes recorded by Lennon and gave lengthy interviews about the Beatles' career. Released in December 1995, " Free as a Bird " was the first new Beatles single since 1970. In March 1996, they released a second single, " Real Love ". The temporary reunion ended when Harrison refused to participate in
25670-484: The time when the red-light area comes to life ... flashing neon lights screamed out the various entertainment on offer, while scantily clad women sat unabashed in shop windows waiting for business opportunities." Koschmider had converted a couple of strip clubs in the district into music venues, and he initially placed the Beatles at the Indra Club . After closing Indra due to noise complaints, he moved them to
25840-529: The top spot for 21 weeks with a chart life of 40 weeks. Erlewine described the LP as "a sequel of the highest order – one that betters the original". In a reversal of then standard practice, EMI released the album ahead of the impending single " I Want to Hold Your Hand ", with the song excluded to maximise the single's sales. The album caught the attention of music critic William Mann of The Times , who suggested that Lennon and McCartney were "the outstanding English composers of 1963". The newspaper published
26010-433: The way out, Mr. Epstein". However, three months later, producer George Martin signed the Beatles to EMI 's Parlophone label. Martin's first recording session with the Beatles took place at EMI Recording Studios (later Abbey Road Studios) in London on 6 June 1962. He immediately complained to Epstein about Best's drumming and suggested they use a session drummer in his place. Already contemplating Best's dismissal,
26180-460: The whites-only Hotel George Washington in Jacksonville. For their subsequent US tours in 1965 and 1966, the Beatles included clauses in contracts stipulating that shows be integrated. According to Gould, the Beatles' fourth studio LP, Beatles for Sale , evidenced a growing conflict between the commercial pressures of their global success and their creative ambitions. They had intended
26350-437: The workforce but was lacking in motivation and discipline; his initial attempts at gainful employment proved unsuccessful. In an effort to secure himself some warm clothes, he briefly held a railway worker's job with British Rail , which came with an employer-issued suit. He was supplied with a hat but no uniform and, unable to pass the physical examination, he was laid off and granted unemployment benefits . He then found work as
26520-591: Was a US number three and Starr's seventh consecutive top-ten hit. The Elton John-written " Snookeroo " failed to chart in the UK, however. In mid-November 1974, a music video for the song and promotional film for the album was filmed on the rooftop of the Capitol Records Building in Los Angeles, designed to resemble a stack of discs. Lennon provided a voiceover as Starr's spacecraft landed on the building and Starr boarded it before taking off over
26690-439: Was at that time primarily bestowed upon military veterans and civic leaders – some conservative MBE recipients returned their insignia. In July, the Beatles' second film, Help! , was released, again directed by Lester. Described as "mainly a relentless spoof of Bond ", it inspired a mixed response among both reviewers and the band. McCartney said: " Help! was great but it wasn't our film – we were sort of guest stars. It
26860-514: Was becoming obvious", he wrote, and "as far as Paul was concerned, George could do no right". Capitol Records, from December 1963 when it began issuing Beatles recordings for the US market, exercised complete control over format, compiling distinct US albums from the band's recordings and issuing songs of their choosing as singles. In June 1966, the Capitol LP Yesterday and Today caused an uproar with its cover, which portrayed
27030-512: Was fun, but basically, as an idea for a film, it was a bit wrong." The soundtrack was dominated by Lennon, who wrote and sang lead on most of its songs, including the two singles: " Help! " and " Ticket to Ride ". The Help! album, the group's fifth studio LP, mirrored A Hard Day's Night by featuring soundtrack songs on side one and additional songs from the same sessions on side two. The LP contained all original material save for two covers, " Act Naturally " and " Dizzy Miss Lizzy "; they were
27200-519: Was great ... I learned gentleness from Harry." Beatles biographer Bob Spitz described Starkey's upbringing as "a Dickensian chronicle of misfortune". Houses in the area were "poorly ventilated, postage-stamp-sized ... patched together by crumbling plaster walls, with a rear door that opened onto an outhouse." Crawford commented: "Like all of the families who lived in the Dingle, he was part of an ongoing struggle to survive." The children who lived there spent much of their time at Prince's Park , escaping
27370-542: Was inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , as a Beatle in 1988 and as a solo artist in 2015, and appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2018 New Year Honours for services to music. Richard Starkey was born on Sunday 7 July 1940 at 9 Madryn Street in Dingle , an inner-city area of Liverpool . He is the only child of confectioners Richard Starkey (1 October 1913 – 5 December 1981) and Elsie Gleave (19 October 1914 – 1 January 1987). Elsie enjoyed singing and dancing,
27540-457: Was inside of me, and I realised a lot of things. I didn't learn them because I already knew them, but that happened to be the key that opened the door to reveal them. From the moment I had that, I wanted to have it all the time – these thoughts about the yogis and the Himalayas, and Ravi 's music." McCartney was initially reluctant to try it, but eventually did so in late 1966. He became
27710-413: Was no groove to it." He was also feeling increasingly isolated from the musical activities of his bandmates, who were moving past the traditional boundaries of rock music into territory that often did not require his accompaniment; during recording sessions he spent hours playing cards with their road manager Neil Aspinall and road manager Mal Evans while the other Beatles perfected tracks without him. In
27880-455: Was produced by Phil Ramone , Don Was , Lynne and Peter Asher and featured guest appearances by various stars including Brian Wilson and Harry Nilsson. The album failed to achieve commercial success, although the single " Weight of the World " peaked at number 74 in the UK, marking his first appearance on the singles chart there since "Only You" in 1974. In 1994, he began a collaboration with
28050-526: Was referring to how other people viewed their success, but at the prompting of reporters, he concluded: "If you want me to apologise, if that will make you happy, then okay, I'm sorry." Released in August 1966, a week before the Beatles' final tour, Revolver marked another artistic step forward for the group. The album featured sophisticated songwriting, studio experimentation, and a greatly expanded repertoire of musical styles, ranging from innovative classical string arrangements to psychedelia . Abandoning
28220-717: Was released as an album under the same name . During the show, he performed greatest hits and new songs and told anecdotes relating to them. Starr's final release for Mercury was the 1999 Christmas-themed I Wanna Be Santa Claus . The album was a commercial failure, although the record company chose not to issue it in Britain. Starr was inducted into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 2002, joining an elite group of drummers and percussionists that include Buddy Rich , William F. Ludwig Sr. and William F. Ludwig Jr. On 29 November 2002 (the first anniversary of Harrison's death), he performed "Photograph" and
28390-469: Was temporarily replaced for five concerts by 24-year-old session drummer Jimmie Nicol . Starr was discharged from the hospital and rejoined the band in Melbourne on 15 June. He later said that he feared he would be permanently replaced during his illness. In August, the Beatles were introduced to American songwriter Bob Dylan , who offered the group cannabis cigarettes. Starr was the first to try one but
28560-497: Was the object of further criticism in the press for posting a video on his website in which he harangued fans and autograph hunters for sending him items to sign. In April 2009, he reunited with McCartney at the David Lynch Foundation 's " Change Begins Within " benefit concert, held at New York's Radio City Music Hall . Having played his own set beforehand, Starr joined McCartney for the finale and performed "With
28730-504: Was too young. After a month's persistence, during a second meeting (arranged by McCartney), Harrison performed the lead guitar part of the instrumental song " Raunchy " on the upper deck of a Liverpool bus, and they enlisted him as lead guitarist . By January 1959, Lennon's Quarry Bank friends had left the group, and he began his studies at the Liverpool College of Art . The three guitarists, billing themselves as Johnny and
28900-460: Was trying to play the percussion and the drums at the same time, we were just a four-piece band". For their second recording session with Starr, on 11 September 1962, Martin replaced him with session drummer Andy White while recording takes for what would be the two sides of the Beatles' first single, " Love Me Do ", backed with " P.S. I Love You ". Starr played tambourine on "Love Me Do" and maracas on "P.S. I Love You". Concerned about his status in
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