2008年 Aug 5日 Tuesday, 1:00

Ringo Starr / It Don't Come Easy / Apr 1971

It's Beatles Week! Day 2: Richard Starkey a/k/a Ringo Starr, MBE

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/blog/ringo.jpg
(soucre: Boston Herald)

I'll start my salute to the individual members with the oldest Beatle, who also always had the most sunny disposition of all of them!

He might have felt like the bottom of the heap over in Europe, sitting behind leader John, "cute Beatle" Paul, and boyish George, but when they all came here, the American girls fell for his quirky humor and self-deprecating humor. How many screaming girls at those Beatlemania shows were wearing those "I Love Ringo" buttons?

I always felt particularly bad for poor Ringo during the final days of The Beatles, especially when you look at all those pictures from the era of Let It Be, when no one could muster a smile behind all those long, haggard looks. All he wanted was to keep making all that magic Beatle music with his best mates, but you can see him realizing a split is inevitable, and he just has this look like, "Man, this sucks. What are we gonna do now?"

Not wait around, that's not what he was going to do. Paul McCartney's solo album release in April 1970 was the source of so much furor, and both John Lennon and George Harrison had previously put out some limited solo work, but it's often overlooked that Ringo actually released the first proper solo album by a member of The Beatles, predating Paul's release by a few weeks with Sentimental Journey.

Story of the Day:
Do you recall the first time you saw Yellow Submarine, the movie? I can distinctly remember seeing it when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old and an old Cleveland UHF television station on a Sunday afternoon. It came on before Sunday afternoon dinner was ready, and when I was called to dinner I absolutely refused to leave the television to eat. Blue Meanies?? No WAY I was going to miss that, back in the days before VCRs. I was so fascinated with it hat they ate without me, I totally missed dinner that day, and didn't care at all. I could not wait to get to school that next day to talk about it with my friends during another of our lunchroom music discussuions. And of course, I felt bad for poor old Eeyore-like Ringo: "I feel like an old splintered drum stick…"

Selection of the Day:
"It Don't Come Easy" is a song that was begun by Ringo and George in early 1970 during the sessions for Sentimental Journey. Maybe it's a collaboration between Ringo and George, or maybe George wrote it for Ringo…well, who knows. It was released as an Apple Records single by Ringo in April 1971, not until over six months after his second album, Beaucoups of Blues, was released in September 1970. The song reached #4 in both the UK and U.S. singles charts.

Additional Favorite Tracks
Don't Pass Me By: Once Ringo finally got a song onto a Beatles album (after four years! there wasn't enough room until they did a double album) you could finally hear where he was in his mind, and straight out of the gate you can hear exactly where all of his solo work would go. As always, when you listen to it you can he amicable Ringo, just a bit distressed, saying, "Hey, don't forget me amidst all the rage and commotion. I think I have a few things to say, too. If that's all right with everybody else." Poor Ringo.

Octopus' Garden: Maybe some dismiss it, but it's like a refreshing highlight on Abbey Road. The imagery seems so hippie utopian ideal.

I'm The Greatest: Highly recommended is the live compilation The Anthology...So Far, featuring songs from the All-Starr Band tours that started in 1989. Ringo's typical happy-go-lucky music shines best live with "a little help from his friends" with that near-trop rock sound that comes from his love of L.A. and all things sunny. Seems like only Jimmy Buffet is missing! "Yes, my name is Billy Shears / You know it has been for so many years."

Liverpool 8: From his latest album, which has some good stuff on it. This title track (Liverpool 8 is the postal code for the area of Liverpool where Ringo was born) is a happy reflection on his life and career, especially focusing on the Beatles years, without being maudlin or sappy. A good sing-along.

For Love: This is my favorite song from the new album, and is certain to become one of my favorite Ringo tracks overall.

Pay attention to The Beatles Marathon this coming Thursday, because they'll be giving copies away of this album!

This Day in Beatles History: August 4, 1968 - Yellow Submarine goes into general release in UK theaters! How many cinema-goers were tripping when they saw this? How many still are when they watch it now? I suppose it probably should be at least once, but I'm afraid I'd miss all the great humor - I still catch new things when I watch it now.

Bonus Material: A Hard Day's Write is the kind of book I wish I could compile for all of my favorite bands, or even just one. Even if you're not an especially big Beatles fan, it's a great work worth having just for reference because it gives you the backstory on every single Beatles track, even those that never made an appearance until the Anthology discs.

\m/ (`°_°´) \m/