
Happy 85th Birthday Ringo Starr: ‘You know what I love to this day? The Beatles are still out there, and the music still holds up'
Originally published in Hot Press in 2021:
Sitting in the studio of his LA home, Ringo Starr looks unfeasibly good for his 81 years. He still retains his sharpLiverpudlian wit, albeit the Merseyside accent now has a slight American twang.
Throughout our half-hour audience, the iconic drummer's commitment to The Beatles' humanist message of peace and love is also manifest. With the introductions done, he gets down to talking to the assembled press corps.
Today's top videos STORY CONTINUES BELOW
'One question at a time,' he quips. Otherwise, we'll be here til December.
The first query concerns what Ringo would like listeners to take from his new EP, Change The World a wonderful selection of pop-rock anthems, featuring an assortment of guest appearances, a song written by Linda Perry, and a cracking cover of Rock Around The Clock.
'Joy,' he responds, 'and the expression 'Change the world'. We're changing it for the kids. There's all those people meeting in New York right now, but half the world's on fire and half of it's underwater. But they're still saying, 'We can't do this, we can't do that.' I think we have to do a lot, so I'd like to change the world for the kids.
I do wonder if politicians have kids. Do their kids have kids? Isnt that reason enough to let us breathe and find water? Anyway, apart from that, Ive got a CD out!
Someone ventures that the peace and love message doesn't seem to be working.
'I think you're wrong there,' Ringo counters. 'Because when I started the Peace & Love Moment for my birthday in 2008 on the streets of Chicago, we had around a hundred people. And now we actually have Peace & Love Moments in 28 countries around the world, so slowly but surely, we're like the pebble in the ocean, it's rippling out. You can only do what you do, and that's what I do: peace and love.'
Next up, Starr discusses the Rock Around The Clock cover and how recording it brought up some formative musical memories.
'Well, I'm sitting here and making an EP,' he reflects. 'And I love it, because it's four tracks and I do it in this room. The drums are in the bedroom; it's a small studio. I was just thinking about tracks for the EP, and I went through some memories. I had my seventh birthday in hospital, and also my 14th. I was still there when my 15th birthday was coming up, and I didn't want to spend it in hospital.
'So my mother talked to the doctors; I had TB and everything, and I'd been in there over a year. I was doing pretty good, and so they decided they'd let me out. First of all, I went down to London with my stepdad and my mum to see his folks. Then we came back to Liverpool, and my grandparents took me to the Isle of Man.'
It was there that the young Starr saw first-hand the visceral power of rock and roll.
'It was incredible, he continues, because I went to see the movie Rock Around The Clock, and it was full of crazy British holiday-makers. They had Kiss Me Quick hats and they were a little out of their minds. I'd been in hospital, and I don't know too much about what's going on lately. And they ripped up the cinema! I mean, they ripped out the chairs and threw them, and I was going, 'Wow, this is great'!
'In my head, I remember that moment like it was yesterday. So this time out, I said, 'I'm going to do Rock Around The Clock. Because it's my EP, I can do whatever I like, so I thought, Rock Around The Clocks gonna be great.' I did do a kind of old school, brushes version of it, and then I thought , 'Nah, put the sticks on'. And then I rocked and then I called Joe Walsh, and he rocked!'
It's a separate solo. You listen to covers of Rock Around The Clock, and everybody plays that same solo, but this is different.
The subject turns to touring, which leads Ringo to reflect on a recent trip home.
'Barbara and I were just over in England, he says. We went over to see our kids and grandkids, and we had a couple of weeks there, which was great. But you're still a bit like, 'Ooh'. Walking up Kings Road, we were the only ones with masks on. That's how it is. This year, because of the vaccination, we can actually move a little more than we did last year.
'So yeah, the pandemic. It's not like we can go anywhere. I keep thinking, 'I'll just get a plane and go.' Where? It's everywhere. That's the way it is. So I'm here talking to you guys!'
How does he go about choosing the musicians for his All Starr band line-ups?
'At first, I used to change the whole band,' explains Ringo. 'With the first band in 1989, I'd never done it before, and I just opened my phone book. It was, 'Oh, Joe Walsh, he'll be great. So will Levon Helm and Dr John.' I had all these numbers in my book. For all you youngsters, in those days, we used to have to keep them in a book! It went really well, so I decided to do it again with another band.
'The reason I picked those players is that you have to have hits. If you wanna be in the All Stars, you've got to have hits, cos we're a hit band. And you've got to play an instrument. So, you're listening, and you get an offer of three bass players, and you think, 'Oh yeah, he's got that good song, he'll be great'. Same with the piano player.
'I usually have about 12 or 13 to choose from, and I get it down to eight. That's how I do it. Now it's been going on for 30 years, people call us, they'd like their artists to be a part of it. I have to know if you can play because I want good players. So if you've got a song and you're a good player, there's a chance you'll get into the All-Stars.'
As for arrangements, it can change due to context.
'It depends on the track,' notes Starr. 'One time, Sheila E did Come Together, and I was like, 'I'm not doing that fill!' She said, Okay, then got on her congas and did her version! That was so cool. Anyway, we love Sheila. I'm just hanging out, doing stuff and having fun. Being real when we play.
'You can't see it, but next door, there's a gym, and I work out nearly every other day. There is another room past that where I get my paints out. This star on the wall in the background here, I painted that. On top there, you might see the record that you're going to buy! We're promoting!'
Starr then returns to how hed like people to react to Change The World.
'I'd like them to be kind, considerate, loving, he says. Peace is what I love. We live in America, and half the world is starving, half the world doesn't have water. Everybody knows I support Water Aid because I believe if you don't have anything, you should have water if you're on this planet. It's necessary, they're drinking crap water that's polluted.
'And a couple of years from now, it'll be hard to breathe because of the pollution in the air. Just be kind to your neighbour, to your friends, to the person next door. Let's try and understand what they're going through, not only us. I mean, I'm not political, but they sent all those Haitian people back from Texas.
'What are they going to do? They left their country because there's no food, and there's nothing for them. Thousands of them died. And then the storm. I can't do it, this is why governments have to take charge not only of their countries, but these other countries that are really suffering. Ooh, you've got me on me high horse now!'
One of the most influential drummers in music history, Ringo then reflects on the late Charlie Watts, who was similarly inspirational to successive generations of musicians.
'Charlie was a great guy, he was a lot of fun,' says Starr. 'He had a harder band than I did to keep together! I'd meet Charlie, we'd hang out; he's been up here. It's not like we lived together. We lived close in London, we'd bump into each other on Kings Road or whatever. Or we'd find ourselves at dinner or a gig.
'But I had a party in the 70s, and I had a drum kit up in the attic, it was like a cinema and music space, or whatever you want to do up there. And Charlie came, and so did John Bonham. So we had three drummers just hanging out, and Bonham got on the kit. It's not like on-stage, where it's nailed down, so it's steady.
'So as he was playing, the bass drum was hopping away from him. You had Charlie Watts and Ringo holding the bass drum for him as he played! And you think, 'Oh man, that would have been a great little TikTok, or a photo that would have gone worldwide'. But in the 70s I had parties and you'll never find any photos, because I wouldn't let you take photos in my house. But I always think that would have been a great shot to have. So yeah, we will miss Charlie, he was a beautiful human being, he was the quiet man.'
Starr is then asked if he thinks The Beatles changed rock history.
'I wouldn't say rock history, I think they changed music history. One of the biggest things The Beatles did was write the songs, and then we'd all record them. In those days, you had the writer, which was like a separate gig, and then the band recorded it. We had a moment with George Martin where he would bring great songs, and George and I said, 'No, no, we want to do John and Paul's.'
'That's how it happened. And you know what I love to this day? The Beatles are still out there, and the music still holds up. We worked real hard, and of course, we had some great songs.
To conclude, Ringo talks about Peter Jacksons' hotly anticipated documentary on the making of Let It Be, which incorporates a huge volume of new archival footage to greatly expand on the original film about the sessions.
'The documentary was great,' says Ringo. 'It's a little longer now, because Apple, our company, found 56 hours of unused footage from the Michael Lindsay-Hogg documentary. We were blessed that Peter Jackson took it on, to put it together, to make it different. I was always moaning about the original;, there's no real joy in it. It's all based on this downer little incident.
Anyway, Peter would come into LA and hed bring stuff to show me on his iPad. He'd say, 'We found this,' and there'd be footage of us laughing and fooling around. You have to think, from the beginning to the end of January, we'd made a record, and we'd done that rooftop gig, which went great. Wed played live again.
'There's a great piece on in the doc for me, where Paul says, Well, who wants to play live? And you can hear me in the background going, I do! And we did. With The Beatles, we were always going to Turkey or somewhere, or we were going up Everest. Or well be in a desert, or well go to Hawaii and a volcano so it was like, 'Sod it, lets just walk across the road'.'
Which, of course, led to one of The Beatles' most iconic performances.
'With that one, it was, 'Let's just do in the roof,'' says Ringo. 'And that's what we did, and it was great. The police played a huge part; not that they did anything, but they were moaning at us. They look really silly in the film now. But we've got all this extra footage, so surprise, surprise, we're still hanging out.
'Peter's locked up in New Zealand because of the pandemic. So now the documentary is six hours long, and it's going to come out in America over three nights, through Thanksgiving. But it's got the start, the middle and the finish. The start is very slow, then we get into it, and then we're out. I mean, I love it, but I'm in it, of course, so six hours is never long enough!'
Ringo feels the film will be warmly received.
'I think everyone will enjoy it,' he enthuses, 'because you'll see this band who worked really hard, and went through emotional ups and downs to get where we got, every time. But that's just how it was. Four guys in a room; you're gonna have a few ups and downs.
'Thats all I can say about that — Peter Jackson is our hero, hes done a great job. The actual roof gig, in pieces, is 43 minutes long, whereas it was about eight-and-a-half. The end result is I loved it.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Americans baffled by Ireland's chicken fillet roll and Cork's flag during visit
Rattling off your go-to chicken fillet roll order might be second nature, but for tourists, the fascination lies in understanding why this humble deli item is a staple in Irish life. That's exactly what piqued the interest of American YouTubers Joey and Lauren, who sampled their very first chicken fillet roll on a trip to Cork. Their culinary adventure began after comedian and singer-songwriter Garron Noone dropped a comment on one of their videos. However, upon reaching Dunnes Stores to try out the renowned hangover remedy, they were hit by the sudden realisation that they were clueless about the process. The rookie pair, eager to dig into what they dubbed an iconic part of the Irish diet, turned to the store staff and some youngsters in line for their own rolls for guidance. Joey confessed to the camera inside Dunnes: "We are probably going to ask somebody because we have never gotten this before. We don't really know what this is but we know we need to try it." Despite the initial confusion, the content creators got their rolls after some help from locals (Image: YOUTUBE/Joey and Lauren) Lauren chimed in with her own uncertainty: "We are kind of confused how to get it, like if you are supposed to order it or buy it in a prepackaged thing?" After getting some assistance, they received their rolls, opting for a "really plain" combo of southern fried chicken, mayonnaise, butter, shredded cheese and corn, all for €4.99. Before tucking in, Joey expressed gratitude towards the Cork locals: "Everybody was super helpful. They helped us order it and we also got a free can of 7UP. "Really nice workers here and these group of guys to our right, they actually helped us out a lot, they have been really nice to us." When it came to the big reveal, Lauren declared: "It smells good. I don't know how I'm going to take a bit out of this it is so big. Oh my gosh. That's really good. It is hard to eat though." She went on to say: "We will definitely be getting this again. This is really good, definitely one of my favourite things that I have eaten here... hashtag demolished." A true sight to be hold (Image: YOUTUBE/Joey and Lauren) Joey was just as impressed, and after polishing his off, he enthused: "This is super good. In the words of Garron Noone, delicious, because this is super good. I would get this ten times out of ten, this is a ten out of ten, I am glad we got this. I am really hungry, kind of hungover, and this is a great treat for that." The pair had a brilliant time exploring Cork, but before discovering the ins and outs of the All Ireland hurling final, something else - aside from the chicken fillet roll - left them scratching their heads. Discussing the iconic red and white banners, Joey explained: "There is really great scenery here. We love this spot overlooking the water here, amazing. But as we have been doing our walks we have been noticing these flags, it looks like a Polish flag or an Indonesian flag so we were like, 'Are people just really big fans of Poland here because it is red and white?' "But luckily our friends last night told us it is actually Cork's county flag, so cool to know." Following the release of their video, which can be viewed in its entirety here, one viewer responded: "Chicken fillet roll out of Dunnes. You have been baptised. You can officially call yourself Irish."


Extra.ie
2 hours ago
- Extra.ie
Lionel Messi and wife Antonella get caught on Coldplay kiss cam
Soccer star Lionel Messi is the latest to grace the Coldplay kiss cam, as he attended the band's Miami gig with his wife Antonela Roccuzzo. The kiss cam has been a major talking point during the American leg Coldplay's tour, due to the awkward moment a couple jumped away from each other when they appeared on it. Lead singer Chris Martin, who was audibly taken aback by the reaction, tried to coax the couple back onto the jumbotron initially thinking they may just be a bit camera shy. Soccer star Lionel Messi is the latest to grace the Coldplay kiss cam, as he attended the band's Miami gig with his wife Antonela Roccuzzo.' Pic: Instagram Unfortunately, for their respective other halves — which wasn't each other — they weren't just camera shy, but feared they were caught cheating. The pair have since been identified as Andy Byron, CEO of Astronomer, and the Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot, with both being place on leave. Since the viral moment, social media has been awash with footage of other jumbotrons and kiss cams — with Inter Miami soccer player and captain Lionel Messi caught on cam at Coldplay's Miami gig. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ESPN FC (@espnfc) While the 38-year-old looked slightly uncomfortably he was able to laugh it off with his wife Antonella beaming and waving as fans cheered the gorgeous couple as Chris Martin serenaded them. The clip was shared to social media, with many praising the pair while others threw some jokes at the couple. One joked: 'Why is my husband with another woman?' While the Lionel Messi looked slightly uncomfortably he was able to laugh it off with his wife Antonella beaming and waving as fans cheered the gorgeous couple as Chris Martin serenaded them. Pic: Instagram Another added: 'He has the opportunity to do something hilarious.' A third praised: 'The best player the world will ever see.' Coldplay take a brief break from touring before making their way back to this side of the world, where they will play TEN nights at Wembley Stadium. Unfortunately, tickets are all sold out for the string of gigs — and if you are ditching your partner for your lover, maybe reconsider.


RTÉ News
7 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Rare Hulk stretch toy sells for thousands of pounds at auction
A stretch toy of Marvel's The Hulk, which has been described as one of the "rarest stretch toys in existence", has sold for thousands of pounds, according to Excalibur Auctions. The figure, which appears to be one of only 30 known examples of the original Hulk stretch figure from 1979 known to still exist, was sold to a private collector on Saturday at the Excalibur Auctions Vintage Toys, Diecast Models & Model Railways auction for £3,900 (€4,468). Originally estimated between £3,000 (€3,437) and £5,000 (€5,728), the final sale set a new record in the UK for "a figure of its kind", according to the auction house. Jonathan Torode, from Excalibur Auctions, said: "We were excited to offer this rare piece of nostalgia today, which set a UK auction record for a figure of its kind. "We saw competitive bidding on the phones and internet, with it finally winning out to a UK private collector, where we hope it will be as cherished by its new owner as much as it has been by its previous one." The character the toy is based on was created by the American comic book writer and producer Stan Lee and comic artist Jack Kirby, appearing in comic form for the first time in May 1962 under the Marvel name. He was later portrayed across TV, film, cartoon and video games as The Incredible Hulk – the alter ego of the physicist Dr Bruce Banner, who transformed into the superhero when he was angry or under extreme stress. A range of actors have since portrayed the character over the years, including Eric Bana in The Hulk (2003), Edward Norton in The Incredible Hulk (2008) and Mark Ruffalo in The Avengers (2012). The toy was described as being in "mint" condition after being kept out of the light, upright, and in its original packaging over the years. The Hulk figure also came with its original instructions and has never been offered for sale since it was bought in 1979, according to the auction house. Produced by renowned toymaker Denys Fisher (1918-2002), the figure came directly from its original owner who had begged his mother for one as a child. It was originally part of Kenner's "Stretch Armstrong" line and was later licensed under Denys Fisher in the UK. Fisher, who developed the Spirograph, grew up in the Leeds area and later lived in Dumfries and Cumbria. The Hulk stretch figure was filled with corn syrup to enable it to stretch and was made using the same latex and gel moulds as those used for the Stretch Armstrong figure. However, its green skin colouring, the Hulk head and the Marvel branding set it apart from the Stretch Armstrong toy. Manufactured in Thorp Arch, Wetherby, the toy was sold in limited quantities only in the UK, through select mail order catalogues and a handful of shops.