1962–1970: The Beatles Ringo Starr

the beatles arrive @ john f. kennedy international airport on 7 february 1964. starr on right.

starr quit rory storm , hurricanes in january 1962 , briefly joined sheridan in hamburg before returning hurricanes third season @ butlins. on 14 august, lennon asked starr join beatles; accepted. on 16 august, beatles manager brian epstein fired drummer, pete best, recalled: said ve got bad news you. boys want out , ringo in. said [beatles producer] george martin wasn t pleased playing [and] boys thought didn t fit in. starr first performed member of band on 18 august 1962, @ horticultural society dance @ port sunlight. after appearance @ cavern club following day, best fans, upset firing, held vigils outside house , @ club shouting pete forever! ringo never! harrison received black eye 1 of upset fans, , epstein, car tyres had flattened in anger, temporarily hired bodyguard ensure safety.

starr s first recording session member of beatles took place on 4 september 1962. stated martin had thought crazy , couldn t play ... because trying play percussion , drums @ same time, 4 piece band . second recording session starr, took place on 11 september 1962, martin replaced him session drummer andy white while recording takes 2 sides of beatles first single, love me , backed p.s. love . starr played tambourine on love me , maracas on p.s. love . concerned status in beatles, thought: s end, re doing pete best on me. martin later clarified: didn t know ringo , wasn t prepared take risks.

by november 1962 starr had been accepted beatles fans, calling him sing songs. afterwards, began receiving amount of fan mail equal of others, helped secure position within band. starr considered himself fortunate on same wavelength other beatles: had be, or wouldn t have lasted. had join them people [sic] [as] drummer. given small percentage of lennon , mccartney s publishing company, northern songs, derived primary income during period one-quarter share of beatles ltd, corporation financed band s net concert earnings. commented on nature of lifestyle after having achieved success beatles: lived in nightclubs 3 years. used non-stop party. father starr became known late-night dancing , received considerable praise skills.

during 1963, beatles enjoyed increasing popularity in britain. in january, second single, please please me , followed love me uk charts , successful television appearance on thank lucky stars earned them favourable reviews, leading boost in sales , radio play. end of year, phenomenon known beatlemania had spread throughout country, , february 1964 beatles had become international success, performing on ed sullivan show record 73 million viewers. starr commented: in states know went on well. knocked me out see , hear kids waving me. d made personality ... our appeal ... re ordinary lads. source of inspiration several songs written @ time, including penny valentine s want kiss ringo goodbye , rolf harris s ringo president . in 1964, love ringo lapel pins outsold other beatles merchandising. furthermore, starr s insistence on prominently placing logo of company made prize american import drum kit, ludwig drums, on bass drum gave such burst of publicity company became dominant manufacturer of drums twenty years.

during live performances, beatles continued starr time routine had been popular among fans: lennon place microphone in front of starr s kit in preparation spotlight moment , audiences erupt in screams. when beatles made film debut in hard day s night, starr garnered praise critics, considered both delivery of deadpan one-liners , non-speaking scenes highlights of movie. extended non-speaking sequences had arranged director richard lester because of starr s lack of sleep previous night, starr commented: because d been drinking night incapable of saying line. epstein attributed starr s acclaim little man s quaintness . after release of beatles second feature film, help! (1965), starr won melody maker poll against fellow beatles performance central character in film.

during interview playboy in 1964, lennon explained starr had filled in beatles when best ill; starr replied: [best] took little pills make him ill . after starr made comment, provoked best filed libel suit against him lasted 4 years before court reached undisclosed settlement in best s favour. in june, beatles scheduled tour denmark, netherlands, asia, australia , new zealand, starr became ill day before start of tour. stricken high-grade fever, pharyngitis , tonsillitis, admitted local hospital briefly stayed followed several days of recuperation @ home. during time, starr temporarily replaced 5 concert dates 24-year-old session drummer jimmie nicol. starr discharged hospital, , rejoined band in melbourne on 15 june. later admitted feared permanently replaced during illness. in august, when beatles introduced bob dylan, starr first try cannabis cigarette offered band dylan, whereas lennon, mccartney , harrison hesitant.

on 11 february 1965, starr married maureen cox, whom had first met in 1962. time stress , pressure went along beatlemania had reached peak him. received telephoned death threat before show in montreal, , resorted positioning cymbals vertically in attempt provide protection would-be assassins. constant pressure of beatles fame affected live performances; starr commented: turning such bad musicians ... there no groove it. feeling increasingly isolated musical activities of bandmates, moving past traditional boundaries of rock music territory did not require accompaniment; during recording sessions spent countless hours playing cards road manager neil aspinall , roadie mal evans while other beatles perfected tracks without him. in letter published in melody maker, fan asked beatles let starr sing more; replied: [i am] quite happy 1 little track on each album .

in august 1966, beatles released revolver, seventh uk lp. album included song yellow submarine , british number 1 single starr lead singer. later month , owing increasing pressures of touring, beatles gave final concert, 30-minute performance @ san francisco s candlestick park. starr commented: gave touring @ right time. 4 years of beatlemania enough anyone. december, had moved upscale estate on 3 acres in saint george s hill called sunny heights. although had equipped house many luxury items, including numerous televisions, light machines, film projectors , stereo equipment, billiard table, go-kart track , bar named flying cow, did not include drum kit; explained: when don t record, don t play .

for beatles seminal 1967 album, sgt. pepper s lonely hearts club band, starr sang lead vocals on lennon–mccartney composition little friends . although beatles had enjoyed widespread commercial , critical success sgt. pepper, long hours spent recording lp contributed starr s increased feeling of alienation within band, commented: [it] wasn t our best album. peak else, me bit being session musician ... more or less direct me in style can play. inability compose new material led input being minimised during recording sessions; found himself relegated adding minor percussion effects songs mccartney, lennon , harrison. during down-time starr worked on guitar playing; commented: jump chords no 1 seems into. of stuff write twelve-bar .

epstein s death in august 1967 left beatles without management; starr remarked: [it was] strange time us, when s ve relied on in business, never got involved. afterwards, band began ill-fated film project, magical mystery tour. starr s growing interest in photography @ time led billing movie s director of photography, , participation in film s editing matched mccartney.

in february 1968, starr became first beatle sing on artist s show without other 3 present. sang buck owens hit act naturally , , performed duet cilla black, me little bit? on bbc 1 television programme, cilla. later year apple records released beatles, commonly known white album . creative inspiration double lp came in part band s recent interactions maharishi mahesh yogi. while attending intermediate course @ ashram in rishikesh, india, enjoyed 1 of prolific writing periods, composing of album s songs there. starr left after 10 days, completed first recorded beatles song, don t pass me . during recording of white album, relations within band became openly divisive. sessions progressed, collective group dynamic began decay; @ times 1 or 2 beatles involved in recording track. starr had grown weary of mccartney s increasingly overbearing approach , lennon s passive-aggressive behaviour, exacerbated starr s resentment of yoko ono s near-constant presence. after 1 particularly difficult session during mccartney had harshly criticised drumming, starr quit band 2 weeks, taking holiday family in sardinia on boat loaned peter sellers. during lunch break chef served octopus, starr refused eat. subsequent conversation ship s captain regarding behaviours of animal served inspiration abbey road composition, octopus s garden , starr wrote on guitar during trip. returned studio 2 weeks later, find harrison had covered drum kit in flowers welcome-back gesture.

despite temporary return congenial relations during completion of white album, production of beatles fourth feature film, let be, , accompanying lp, strained tenuous cohesion within band. on 20 august 1969, beatles gathered final time @ abbey road studios mixing session want . @ business meeting on 20 september, lennon told others had quit beatles, although band s break-up not become public knowledge until mccartney s announcement on 10 april 1970 leaving beatles.

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