Ringo Starr - Look Up

  by Nick Dent-Robinson

published: 17 / 4 / 2025

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Review

Despite splitting up in 1970, members of The Beatles were once again topping charts and enjoying touring success in 2024. It seems incredible that, six decades after Beatlemania and the British invasion of the American charts, Liverpool's greatest-ever musical exports should still be such big news. In addition to a Martin Scorsese-produced Disney+ documentary and a deluxe vinyl box set, Paul McCartney brought down the curtain on his hugely successful ‘Got Back’ tour in December with triumphal gigs in Manchester and London. And now Ringo Starr (who made a surprise appearance with McCartney on the last night of his tour) has launched a new album, ‘Look Up’ which is his best in years. It sees the drummer link up with producer T. Bone Burnett on a set of country-style tunes perfectly suited to Ringo's laid-back voice and loose-swinging style of playing. Country enjoyed a resurgence in 2024 – though, at 84, Ringo is hardly jumping on this bandwagon as he has been playing country-inspired music for decades. Indeed, in the late 1950s, inspired by country-blues singer Lightnin' Hopkins, Ringo even tried unsuccessfully to emigrate to the USA to work as a county musician. He also was lead singer on The Beatles' 1965 cover of Buck Owens's country and western standard, ‘Act Naturally’, a song he still performs live, plus he made his first solo country album ‘Beaucoups Of Blues’ back in 1970! On ‘Look Up’ Ringo enjoys support from a number of well-known musicians including some of a younger generation like Grammy-award-winning bluegrass guitarists Molly Tuttle and Billy Strings as well as singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig of country-pop band Lucius. Producer Burnett has written or co-written nine of the eleven tracks on the album. Opening track ‘Breathless’ sets the tone for a fine album of love songs and heartache ballads. A bluesy country number, it is punctuated by quirky drum fills. Burnett has commented that Ringo revolutionised the approach of every rock and pop drummer who followed him - and certainly the drumming here is exemplary, forceful and unfussy, not unlike Ringo himself! Bluegrass virtuoso Tuttle adds striking female harmonies to the optimistic title track and she contributes more fine singing plus guitar and mandolin work on ‘I Live For Your Love’. She performs ‘Can You Hear Me Call’ as a full-blown duet with Ringo. Another regular contributor to Ringo's records is the Eagles' Joe Walsh, Ringo's brother-in-law. He adds a fiery slide guitar solo on ‘Rosetta’. Ringo's sole co-writing contribution, ‘Thankful” ends the album on a high. Bluegrass star Alison Krauss adds harmonies to this hearfelt ballad that provides a fitting finale. Ringo has commented that it is ironic that ‘Look Up’ is released in the UK on Decca – the label that famously rejected The Beatles in 1962. He has said that maybe the label wanted to belatedly put right a historical wrong! But ‘Look Up’ is certainly a stylish and impressive return for Ringo, whatever label it might be on!

Track Listing:-

1 Breathless
2 Look Up
3 Time On My Hands
4 Never Let Me Go
5 I Live For Your Love
6 Come Back
7 Can You Hear Me Call
8 Rosetta
9 You Want Some
10 String Theory
11 Thankful

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/ringostarrmus
https://twitter.com/ringostarrmusic
http://www.ringostarr.com/
http://www.ringotour.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringo_Sta
http://www.RingoPhotoBook.com

Label Links:-

http://decca.com/
https://www.facebook.com/deccarecords
https://twitter.com/deccarecords
https://www.youtube.com/user/deccamusi
https://instagram.com/deccarecords/

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