Ringo Starr

Ringo did everything The Beatles needed him to do. Just like Charlie does everything the Stones need. They both know when "too much cowbell is too much".
 
I feel Ringo could probably do a lot more on the kit then he showed. He just played what the music needed, a steady back beat. His playing in my opinon shows that he is a good musician. Think about it , you have Lennon, Harrison, and McCartney out in front. Three great song writers with great lyrics, and the best three part harmony in Rock history. Why would you want to possibly drown that out by overplaying? I think his playing shows his understanding of music, ensemble is more important then self promotion.
 
I remember back in 1994 when I was in 6th grade. . . I got ahold of Rubber Soul and flipped my lid over the drumming on that album! This was the disc that really blew it wide open for me and made me realize that I wanted to be a drummer for the rest of my days. I can still remember putting a blanket over my toms and a wallet on my snare so I could get the sound he had on "Come Together"!
To me, there is something very infectious about Ringo's style; he has this great, loping feel with just a touch of his own original British funkiness and soul. That may sound weird, but I do believe that Ringo, in his own way, was a funky drummer!
 
Ringo is definately a Great drummer and one that was perfect for the Beatles.
I can't really fault his work that much and where he shines he really shines....
The drumming on She Said is wicard for example.

What really gets to me is that he was getting even better ,, like the drumming on Abbey Road for example ... Something and Oh Darling and Come Together have very cool dumming.
His peak may be the Plastic Ono Band record he played on.
The drum sound is very unique and original as well.
 
tallassfreak89 said:
Come on guys, he was not that good. the only thing that made him larger than life was that he was part of the beatles. You can argue all you want about how he can keep good tempo and make good beats but hes not all that good of a drummer (as in what your skill is as a drummer).


I have a personal rule.. dont bash other drummers.. especially those who are legends and pioneers. The fact is, im sure your an alright drummer, but can you get up infront of half the world and play as well as he did... that man had talent..no questions asked, especially in a time that was new to tech drumming and rock and roll drumming..the man was a genious
 
Avatar, avatar, avatar.....Happy Birthday to Ringo, and to My Sister
 
I'm a Ringo fan. I was defending Ringo before I ever thought of becoming a drummer, because if you actually listen to the Beatles (as I did, over and over, growing up due to my hippie parents) you will probably find that even though the drum beats are technically pretty simple, they're generally a very strong part of the song. One of my favorites is "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey". Whacky beat, played impeccably.

Two things I need to refute: first, the nonsense that Purdie played 'all of' Ringo's drum tracks. I have a copy of The Beatles Anthology, where Ringo very frankly talks about how he became a member of the group, and the songs he did and did not play. Except for Andy White playing drums on 'Love Me Do' (which Ringo is rather pissed about to this day, since it's a trivial drum beat) and Paul/John trying to play drums on songs like "Back in the USSR" due to tension within the group, Ringo played them all. The article linked above does a very solid job of discrediting Purdie's statements about playing in Ringo's stead, so the only reason I could see for anyone actually furthering this nonsense is because they just don't like Ringo.

Second, all this crap about The Beatles picking Ringo because Pete Best was supposedly too good or too hot or whatever - just drop it. The Beatles replaced Pete Best because he wasn't a good enough drummer, he didn't practice, and he didn't show up for gigs. From The Beatles Anthology:

Paul McCartney: "George Martin ... was not very pleased with Pete Best. George Martin was very used to drummers being very 'in time'. George took us to one side and said 'I'm really unhappy with the drummer. Would you consider changing him?' We said, 'No, we can't!' It was one of those terrible things you go through as kids. Can we betray him? No. But our career was on the line."
John Lennon: "This myth built up over the years that he was great and Paul was jealous of him because he was pretty and all that crap. They didn't get on that much together, but it was partly because Pete was a bit slow. He was a harmless guy, but he was not quick. The reason he got into the group in the first place was because we had to have a drummer to get to Hamburg. We were always going to dump him when we could find a decent drummer, but by the time we were back from Germany we'd trained him to keep a stick going up and down (four-in-the-bar, he couldn't do much else) and he looked nice and the girls liked him, so it was all right."
George Harrison: "To me it was apparent: Pete kept being sick and not showing up for gigs so we would get Ringo to sit in with the band instead, and every time Ringo sat in, it seemed like 'this is it'. Eventually we realised, 'We should get Ringo in the band full time.' I was quite responsible for stirring things up. I conspired to get Ringo in for good."
Paul McCartney: "Pete Best was good, but a bit limited. You can hear the difference on the Anthology tapes. When Ringo joins us we get a bit more kick, a few more imaginative breaks, and the band settles."

So in the end you either like him or dislike him because of how he drums, not because of some BS story about him replacing a better drummer who was prettier, or being a shell pretending to play what Purdie really played.

Ringo was obviously very capable, if not a great technical drummer (something he freely admits to - as my sig used to say, he believes that drumming should be solid rather than busy).

If you want to bag on a drummer, why not Meg from the White Stripes? There's a really, really limited drummer. And the best part is that if you criticize her, Jack calls you a misogynist. What a world.
 
Ringo while not a dennis chambers or jo jo mayer was a drummer. A good solid drummer. He diid wat was necessary for the music and did it well. His ability as a timekeeper was never outshineded by his ego and he was very creative. I wouldn't pick him for the any other type of music but for the music he played he was pretty damn good.
 
Ringo ( yes again)

For all the Ringo Starr bashers out there, check out his website at www.ringostarr.com
Go to the "updates" tab, where he checks in every few weeks and leaves a small video clip message to his fans.
Click on the update for 7/04/06.
Ringo sits behind a beautiful marine pearl Ludwig kit, and does a short little display of his talent. Now, I know a lot of you will say "I can do that", but look at the effortless technique of his.
He was, and always will be a phenominal drummer.
Cheers
Phil
 
Re: Ringo ( yes again)

That wasn't all that "Amazing" lol, liek ya, I could paly that wih very little effort haha, I havn't always been a big fan of Ringo (not a Ringo basher lol) BUt ya, I just never found him that amazing of a drummer, I respect that alot of ppl became drummers listning to him, its just he's not as complex as I like to listen to 9I know complexity isn't a factor of drummin ,I just enjoy listning to it) But ya, I find this was a pointless thread lol.
 
Re: Ringo ( yes again)

White said:
That wasn't all that "Amazing" lol, liek ya, I could paly that wih very little effort haha, I havn't always been a big fan of Ringo (not a Ringo basher lol) BUt ya, I just never found him that amazing of a drummer, I respect that alot of ppl became drummers listning to him, its just he's not as complex as I like to listen to 9I know complexity isn't a factor of drummin ,I just enjoy listning to it) But ya, I find this was a pointless thread lol.


Mmmm....My point exactly.
 
i found a great article on ringo in my july 1997 modern drummer. for the rest of the article you will need to nuy the back issue or the archive but this part of the article is particularly valuable to any ringo talk.

Thirteen Reasons To Give Ringo Some Respect
by John Bryant
as Ringo Starr the luckiest no-talent on earth? All he had to do was
smile, bob his head, and keep the beat for three of the most talented
musicians/songwriters of the century. Sadly, there are people who actual-
ly feel this way about Starr. Frankly, they're missing quite a bit. The fol-
lowing list shows just a. few of the contributions Ringo made to the Beatles,
to music in general, and to the art of drumming.

Ringo was the first true rock drummer to be seen on TV. All of the early
"rock 'n' roll drummers" featured with Elvis, Bill.Haley, Little Richard,
Fats Domino, and Jerry Lee Lewis were mostly R&B drummers. These
players were barely making the transition from the swing drumming style of
the '40s and '50s to the louder and more "rocking" sound that is associated
with "I Want To Hold Your Hand."

Ringo changed the way drummers hold their sticks by making popular the
"matched" grip. Nearly all drummers in the modern Western world prior
to Ringo held their sticks with the "traditional" grip. Ringo showed the
world that power was needed to put the emphasis on the "rock" in rock 'n'
roll music, so he gripped both sticks like hammers and proceeded to build a
foundation for the music.

Ringo started a trend of placing drummers on high risers so that they
would be as visible as the other musicians. Certainly Ringo was not the
first drummer on a riser, but his visibility did proclaim him to be an equal
member of the band. This is significant because most drummers before him
were considered only sidemen. When Ringo appeared on The Ed Sullivan
Show in 1964, he immediately caught the attention of thousands of future
musicians by towering over the other three Beatles.

These same viewers noticed that Ringo was playing drums—Ludwig
drums, in fact. Ringo's influence was immediate. A mad rush to purchase
equipment ensued, and subsequently the entire percussion industry went
into a "boom" period that would last for years to come.

Ringo changed the sound of recorded drums. About the time of Rubber
Soul (released December 6, 1965), the sound of his drumset started to
become more distinct. Along with help from the engineers at Abbey Road
studios, Ringo popularized a new sound for drums—a clearer, more up-
close effect. He did this by tuning the drums lower and deadening the ring
with muffling materials (especially pillows in the bass drum). This sound
was to become very influential.

Ringo has nearly perfect tempo. This allowed the Beatles to record a song
twenty-five times, and then be able to edit together different parts of
numerous takes for the best possible version. Today click tracks are used
for the same purpose, but the Beatles had to depend on Ringo to keep the
tempo consistent throughout the dozens of takes. Had he not had this abili-
ty, the Beatles recordings would sound completely different. His perfect
time and good feel give Beatles tunes an "ageless" quality.

In most recording sessions the drummer's performance acts as a barome-
ter for the rest of the musicians. The stylistic direction, dynamics, and
emotions are filtered through the drummer. He is the catcher to whom the
pitcher/songwriter is throwing. If the drumming doesn't feel good, the per-
formance of any additional musicians is doomed from the start. The Beatles
rarely had this problem with Ringo.

Ringo's "feel" serves as a standard for pop-rock record producers and
drummers alike. It is relaxed, but never dragging; solid, yet always breath-
ing. There is a uniqueness to Ringo's playing that can in some ways be
attributed to his being a left-handed drummer playing a right-handed drum-
set. Ringo's distinctive tom fills that lead with the left hand are just as
important to his sound as Steve Gadd's rudimental stickings are to his. And
yes, there is a great amount of musical taste in Ringo's decisions as to what
to play and when to play it.

Ringo hated drum solos, which, like it or not, wins points with quite a few
people. He only took one solo with the Beatles. His eight-measure break
appears during "The End" from Abbey Road. Some might say that it's not
a great display of technical virtuosity, but they would be at least partially
mistaken. Set a metronome to a perfect 126 beats per minute, line it up with
Ringo's solo, and the two will stay together!

Ringo's ability to play odd time signatures helped to push popular song-
writing into uncharted areas. Two examples include "All You Need Is
Love," which is in 7/4 time, and "Here Comes The Sun," with the repeat-
ing 11/8, 4/4, and 7/8 passages in the chorus.

Ringo's proficiency in many different styles such as two-beat swing
("When I'm Sixty-Four"), ballads ("Something"), R&B ("Leave My
Kitten Alone" and "Taxman"), and country (the Rubber Soul album)
helped the Beatles to explore many musical directions with ease. His pre-
Beatle experience as a versatile and hard-working nightclub musician
served him well.

The idea that Ringo was a lucky Johnny-on-the-spot-with-a-showbiz-stage-name
is wrong. In fact, when Beatles producer George Martin expressed his unhappiness after the first session with
original drummer Pete Best, the decision was made by Paul, George, and John to hire the
person they considered to be the best drummer in Liverpool—Ringo Starr. His personality was a bonus.

The rumors that Ringo did not play on many of the Beatle songs
because he was not good enough are false. In fact, according to
Mark Lewisohn's The Beatles: Recording Sessions [Harmony,
1988], Ringo played on every Beatles recording that include drums
except for the following: "Back In The USSR" and "Dear Prudence," on
which Paul played drums due to Ringo temporarily quitting the band,
"The Ballad Of John And Yoko," again featuring Paul on drums
because Ringo was off making a movie, and a 1962 release of "Love Me
Do" featuring session drummer Andy White.

When the Beatles broke up and were trying to get away from each
other, John Lennon chose Ringo to play drums on his first solo
record. As John said in his famous Rolling Stone interview, "If I get
a thing going, Ringo knows where to go—just like that." A great song-
writer could ask no more of a drummer—except maybe to smile and bob
his head.

John Bryant is a session drummer and producer in Dallas, Texas. He
has recorded and toured with Ray Charles, the Paul Winter Consort,
and the University of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band, and is cur-
rently a member of the D'Drum percussion ensemble. Bryant started
playing drums after seeing Ringo Starr on The Ed Sullivan Show in
1964. In 1976, he played a rehearsal with Paul McCartney & Wings
when regular drummer Joe English became ill.
 
OK, I might be doing a bad thing by opening the Ringo debate, but here goes because it makes for good discussion. Do you think Ringo was all he was hyped up to be, drumming-wise. If he was an adequate drummer, then he was the perfect definition of an adequate drummer. He always kept basic beats, tasteful fills, and even sang once!

Personally, I think he is a good drummer for his time, when drummers just gave a nice groove and then some, and that he deserves credit not only for that but also for inspiring literally millions of people to take up the drum sticks. Not only a good sticksman, but also really influential.

Your two cents???

http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/Ringo_Starr.html


I think the answer to this question lies in the # of units sold.

I don't understand the comment "for his time". Let's roll some names off the tongue from that time.

Shelly Manne
Buddy Rich
Earl Palmer
Elvin Jones
Jack DeJohnette
Tony Williams

And the list goes on and on. There were many great drummers during that time.
 
I think the answer to this question lies in the # of units sold.

I don't understand the comment "for his time". Let's roll some names off the tongue from that time.

Shelly Manne
Buddy Rich
Earl Palmer
Elvin Jones
Jack DeJohnette
Tony Williams

And the list goes on and on. There were many great drummers during that time.

He probably meant "that time" in the Rock-Field. There the Drummers like Earl Palmer or Hal Blaine or Buddy Harman were very back in the shadow of the singers - and not known. Only the Beatles brought the musicians into the frontrow.

On the other side in Jazz there were of course the great drummers very known as mentioned above...

Bernhard
 
He probably meant "that time" in the Rock-Field. There the Drummers like Earl Palmer or Hal Blaine or Buddy Harman were very back in the shadow of the singers - and not known. Only the Beatles brought the musicians into the frontrow.

On the other side in Jazz there were of course the great drummers very known as mentioned above...

Bernhard

Oh right. That helps. Thanks.
 
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