by I have not always been a fan of Ringo Starr. Of all the Beatles, I liked him the least — for me it was always John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and then finally Ringo. Yet between the two Beatles that are with us now (those being Paul and Ringo), I actually prefer Ringo a bit even though Paul does so much to promote vegetarianism. When I listen to McCartney’s newer music I don’t quite feel the same enthusiasm as I did with his earlier work, both with The Beatles and with The Wings. I was therefore intrigued when I saw that Ringo was coming out with a new album, and that its title was a tribute to one of his best selling solo albums — Ringo. I am happy to report that it is a strong album, albeit short — I will get to that.
The album starts off strong with the marching of boots that transitions into a steady drumbeat and the song Anthem, which is almost like the anthem to the album itself. The song has a good melody to it and Ringo sings about it being an anthem to peace and love. While I was listening to the song I couldn’t help but feeling as though I were listening to a newly discovered Beatles song. Many songs on the album, in fact, had the feeling of Beatles songs from the early rock era — strong beat, catchy lyrics, and not too long. The first couple of times I listened to this album in its entirety I was amazed that it seemed to be over not long after it began but I then realized that it didn’t just seem to go by quickly — it really is under a half an hour for all nine songs.
One of the songs on the album, Wings, is a new recording of a song of the same name that was originally released on Ringo’s sixth studio album, which was called Ringo the Fourth only because it was his fourth rock album. Was Ringo so unhappy with how it went over the first time around that he had to record it a second time? Here is a video of his performing the song on the Craig Ferguson late night show.
If you are in the market for a fun and poppy album that will lift your spirits and get you moving (I could easily imagine jogging while listening to this album) I definitely recommend Ringo 2012.
I’m concerned he’s remaking too many songs from his old records. “Step Lightly” originally came out on his debut “Ringo” album. His Ferguson performance is lip-synced.
Ouch! Maybe he should step down as well!
Ringo always had so much promise, but his “laid-back” attitude comes off as a bit lazy to me. I preferred John and George because their energy was high and inspiring and always controlled.