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[LennonStarrFan]

May 22, 2008
by  Ken Sharp

After The Beatles split in 1970, Vegas prognosticators would have bet the farm that the group’s drummer, Ringo Starr, was least likely to find success as a solo artist. Boy, were they wrong.

 Racking up such hits as “It Don’t Come Easy,” “Photograph” and  “You’re Sixteen,” Starr carved out a formidable solo career with such seminal albums as Ringo (featuring guest appearances by Fab Four comrades John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison), and Goodnight Vienna.

Photograph: The Very Best Of Ringo Starr is a recently released 20-track compilation showcasing the best of the ex-Beatle’s solo work. We caught up with Starr who gave us the lowdown on his solo days and some insight into his work with The Beatles.

Isn’t “Don’t Pass Me By” the first complete song you ever wrote?

Ringo Starr: Well, “Don’t Pass Me By” was the first song I’d written that we recorded. I’d written other songs, but they were always other people’s song; I just rewrote the words. I used to say that I was rewriting Jerry Lee Lewis B-sides. It was just a thrill. I remember writing it at the piano at this home in England that we were living in at the time. Then for me and ’til this day, it’s still magic when I write a song and get together with other musicians, and we record it, and it turns into the track. It’s still a mindblower for me, that process.

With “Don’t Pass Me By” and much of your work, there’s a distinct country thread. How did you first get into country music, and who are some your favorites?

RS: Oh there’s so many. Hank Snow, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Ernest Tubb, sort of the old boys in the country school. I come from Liverpool, which is a port, so a lot of neighbors went to sea. In fact, Liverpool is sort of the capital of country music in England. So, I just came by it naturally, sailors who would play the records. You’d go by someone’s house to visit someone, and his brother was in the navy and had these records. And I just instantly liked country music.

“Back Off Boogaloo” was influenced by Marc Bolan?

RS: Yes, it was, because he’d come for dinner. And he spoke like that. Not every line out of his mouth but you would say, “would you like some gravy?” and he’d say, “oooh, back off!” (laughs). Or he’d call you a boogaloo for some reason. Those words just stuck in my head. When I went to bed that night, the melody and the words “back off boogaloo, what do you think you’re gonna do?” came in my head; it was all there. I ran downstairs to tape it so I wouldn’t forget it. Many nights you think you’ve got a song, and I’ll get up in the morning, and I’ll write it down then. But you don’t stand a chance in hell ’cause it’s gone. So, this time I thought, “I’m gonna get up and do it.” None of the tapes were working, but in the end, I got some batteries together and got it down, thank God.

How did you come to write “Octopus’ Garden”?

RS: “Octopus’ Garden” certainly has a story. During the recording of The White Album, I left The Beatles. I went on holiday. We were lent this yacht, and we ordered lunch and the guy presented us with octopus and french fries. And we thought, what the hell is that? And then, the captain proceeded to tell me that afternoon that octopus actually go round the sea bend (singing) “resting their head” (laughs) and picking up shiny coral and stones and actually putting a garden around their cave. I just thought that was so beautiful, and I happened to have a guitar there and wrote the song.

 Yachts must be good luck for your creativity. You wrote “Octopus’ Garden” and your solo hit, “Photograph,” on a yacht.

RS: “Photograph” was written in Spain. I was doing the movie “Blindman.” And then, I finished it on a yacht in Cannes at The Cannes Film Festival with George (Harrison). Even on those early records, “Photograph” and “It Don’t Come Easy,” I was only good at two verses and a chorus really. And then, I would give it to George (Harrison) in those days. We’d always finish the third verses together, and he’d do the production. With my limited guitar (ability), I could only play three chords, and George would put in the passing chord and make me sound like a genius.

With the success of the single, “It Don’t Easy” followed by the smash albums, Ringo and Goodnight Vienna, you were on a roll. In fact, you were the first Beatle who had a #1 hit as a solo artist. But then that roll dramatically went south on albums like Ringo The Fourth and Rotogravure.

RS: I think the bottom dropped out ’cause I was dropping out; that was the deal. My energies were not into making records. I would make records, but there was no energy to promote it or take care of it and make sure that it was what I wanted to do. You know, it was my own fault. I felt other people might know better.

On John Lennon Anthology, there are several guide tracks with John singing lead on songs he wrote for you or found for you to record — “I’m The Greatest,” “Goodnight Vienna” and “Only You.” What are your recollections of those sessions with John?

RS: We always used to do that. It was great! Besides it’s easier for me if someone’s singing the song to play to them, because I play with the singer. You can feel where it needs bringing up or bringing down or whatever I feel at the time. John was always great fun to have in the studio and great energy. And I’d known him so it was always relaxing. Then I’d have to go and do the vocals after him of course. And he’d be in the booth with me, and he’d just be willing you on. You know, “Come on, let’s go!” It was just great energy and great support.

John was the best. I loved John. He was fine singer, a fine musician and he was a fine friend.

On your solo records released in the ’70s, you often recorded with a second drummer, Jim Keltner. Why?

RS: That started by accident because of the “Bangladesh” concert, which we played for George. And Jim (Keltner) was on it also. That was the first time I played with two drummers, and I just loved it so much.

Then we got to do the Ringo album and the Goodnight Vienna album. And also, when we got to New York to do the album, Ringo The 4th that Arif (Mardin) produced, suddenly we had Steve Gadd around. I think a bit of that was a union situation as well in those days. You can sing, because no one can do that for you, but I think it was something about taking the job away from an American musician.

What makes a great drum part?

RS: The fill is the art of the drummer, that happens in the moment. That’s always been the way with me. I can’t think about it. I don’t play drum parts. I have no idea how it’s gonna turn out. I don’t say, “Oh, 16 bars in I’ll do that.” I have no idea at all what I’m going to do, it just happens.

Your drum work was not only tight but could be very adventurous. The ending of “Strawberry Fields” showcases some wild off-the-wall tribal drumming. Was that work you enjoyed as well?

RS: You know, what you’re talking about just happens. There was no plan for that. I can play basic patterns, and the freedom is the fills. To move it to where you can put it in a different space as a drummer, especially with The Beatles only came at the end, because the songs were so set up that there was two verses, a chorus, a verse, a middle eight and a chorus and something like that. Then at the end we’d all be allowed to blow our tops, which we did. And we still did that under three minutes (laughs).

You truly blossomed as a drummer on Revolver. Did the vast improvement in sound inspire you?

RS: Yeah. Also I think we decided we could finally hear the bass drum on our records. If you listen to the early ones, there’s no sign of the bass drum, just like the snare and cymbals. So the recordings were getting better and you would play differently because you could hear it.

Lastly, when you were growing up as a teenager you were planning to move to Texas?

RS: Yeah. I was trying to immigrate to Houston, Texas, because Lightnin’ Hopkins, the blues player, lived there. I’m still into the blues and Lightnin’ is still my hero. I was working in a factory at the time and so was my friend, and we were looking for factory jobs. We had no real qualifications for anything else.

But we just wanted to be around Lightnin’. We went to the actual consulate and they gave us a lot of forms to fill in, which was the wrong thing to give any teenager. And we filled in the first set of forms and we thought, “OK” and then we took them back and they gave us an even bigger set of forms. It was very difficult then to get into America. In the ’50s, this was. We were young boys and we just got fed up in the end and carried on living in Liverpool. (laughs)

But it would have been interesting if that ever happened. You know when you look back, it’s like, that movie, “Sliding Doors,” a minute later something else could have happened.

Source: http://www.goldminemag.com/article/Backstage_Pass_It_dont_come_easy_for_ringo_starr/