If you had placed a bet on which Beatle would make the most impact with a single in the close aftermath of the band’s breakup, you probably could have received lucrative odds on Ringo Starr in that sweepstakes. After all, Starr was the least frequent singer and songwriter out of the quartet. Starr played off of that underdog status on the 1971 single “It Don’t Come Easy”. It’s a song that’s all about struggle, and Ringo Starr came out of it with a monster hit that any of his bandmates would have envied.
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Ringo Starr was the most prolific of The Beatles in 1970, the year that the band’s breakup was announced. He released a pair of albums in that single calendar year. Sentimental Journey was a tribute to standards from the Great American Songbook, while Beaucoups Of Blues indulged Ringo’s love of country music.
Because of the nature of the music contained on those albums, they were never going to be commercial blockbusters. It was almost as if Starr was purposely lowering expectations with these records, which were very well done but not all that ambitious.
When Starr did return to the pop/rock world with “It Don’t Come Easy”, he worked overtime to get it right. The song was recorded on three different occasions in early 1970, before final overdubs were added to the third version months later. Those overdubs included backing vocals from Pete Ham and Tom Evans of Badfinger.
Starr received all the credit for writing the song. But in later years, he acknowledged that George Harrison helped him out in that regard. Harrison’s churning guitar part is also crucial to the recording of the song.
Throughout his career with the Fab Four, Starr had occasionally cultivated a persona as someone overlooked or put-upon. (This was especially true in The Beatles films.) That made him a natural to deliver the message of this song, which is all about an uphill battle to achieve bliss in the world.
Exploring the Lyrics of “It Don’t Come Easy”
“Got to pay your dues if you want to sing the blues.”
That’s one of the finest opening lines you’ll ever hear in a rock song, working on a lot of levels for Ringo Starr. You could look at it as the complaint of a musician, referencing all the trials they must endure to get to the top. But considering that singing the blues usually means that you’re feeling bad, it could also imply that bellyaching without cause is in poor form.
In any case, the line sets the tone for Starr to give us some of his homespun wisdom.
“Forget about the past and all your sorrows,” he advises. “The future won’t last, it will soon be your tomorrow.”
You might get a bit lost trying to wrap your head around that logic, but it’s typical of Ringo’s slightly askew point of view.
Starr occasionally lets some edgier moods into the picture, like when he sings “I don’t ask for much, I only want trust.”
Still, he’s mostly all about pushing positivity. “Use a little love and we will make it work out better,” he sings, and then later, “Please, remember peace is how we make it.”
If you know anything about Ringo Starr, it’s that he has stayed pretty consistent with that peace and love message. With “It Don’t Come Easy”, he suggests that striving for those ideals isn’t a quest for the faint of heart.
Photo by Daniel Knighton/Getty Images
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