Ringo Starr released his new album, Look Up, on Friday, January 10. The 10-song collection finds the famous Beatles drummer taking a foray into country music in collaboration with T Bone Burnett, who co-produced the album and wrote or co-wrote most of the tracks.
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Starr always was generally considered the weakest singer of the Fab Four, but judging by his performances on Look Up, the 84-year-old rock icon’s voice has held up remarkably well. That being said, in a new interview with The Times of London, Ringo admitted that he isn’t that big a fan of his own singing.
“Well, I always wanted to be someone else, like Jerry Lee [Lewis] or someone,” he said with a laugh. “I mean, I can hold a tune, as long as it’s in my key.”
Starr added that he thinks fans’ perception of his vocals was bolstered by the quality of the material he was given to sing with The Beatles.
“[I]t just worked out with The Beatles because John [Lennon] and Paul [McCartney] were great writers,” he noted. “That’s what made us. And I’d get one song. And a couple of them were really good, you know, ‘With a Little Help from My Friends’ and ‘Yellow Submarine.’ They’re still huge and I still do them on tour [with his All Starr Band]. They wrote me a lot of really nice songs.”
Starr Shares Details About His New Song “Thankful”
Look Up includes one song that Starr had a hand in writing. Ringo and his longtime studio engineer Bruce Sugar co-wrote “Thankful,” which features guest vocals by acclaimed country/bluegrass artist Alison Krauss.
“Thankful” is a heartfelt ballad inspired by how he was able to turn his life around in the late 1980s after years of overindulging in alcohol.
“There is a nod to the past, because I’m thankful for [my wife] Barbara being in my life,” Ringo noted. “I’m thankful that my life has changed. [I was] at the top of the mountain, and gradually it worked its way down. And then I looked up and life came back.”
That positive attitude also is expressed in his new album title track, which Burnett wrote with Look Up co-producer Daniel Tashian.
“I truly believe in looking up,” Starr added. “You’re always in a better mood if you’re looking up. It’s one of those things you notice, walking around London, or it doesn’t matter where. They’re all looking down. There’s nothing down there.”
More About Look Up
As previously reported, besides Krauss, Look Up features several other guest artists, including Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, Lucius, and Larkin Poe. In addition, Starr’s brother-in-law, Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh, contributed slide guitar to song called “Rosetta.”
Starr’s 2025 Performance Plans
Ringo will celebrate Look Up’s release with two special Nashville concerts, on January 14 and 15, at the Ryman Auditorium. Starr will be joined at the shows by Burnett and various guest musicians.
The concerts will feature Ringo performing country-style versions of Beatles tunes and his solo hits, as well songs from Look Up and his 1970 country album, Beaucoups of Blues.
Starr also will be touring with his All Starr Band in the U.S. this June. The eight-date trek kicks off June 12 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and runs through a June 25 show in Charlotte, North Carolina.
🗣 Ringo Starr: ‘I only want to be in a band. You can’t play Yesterday just on drums
— Times Culture (@timesculture) January 14, 2025
In a rare interview, the Beatle says Liverpool was always the capital of country music and reveals the lesson he learnt from Elton John’s mum ⬇️https://t.co/mBhLVXdbfX
(Photo by MICHAEL TRAN/AFP via Getty Images)
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