Ringo Starr delivers more than Beatles tunes at SPAC
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band gave their all to the Spa City crowd on Friday night at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, supplying a diverse set of tunes by different band members.
While the act most prominently features former Beatle Sir Richard Starkey, better known as Ringo Starr, he certainly was not the only star on stage at the recent late-season SPAC show.
Along with Ringo as part of the supergroup were Colin Hay of Men at Work, Steve Lukather of Toto, Gregg Rolie of Santana and new member Graham Gouldman of 10cc. On percussion and saxophone was Warren Ham and on drums Gregg Bissonette.
Each band member brought to the set their own most popular songs, a collection which includes hits like “Evil Ways,” “Roseanna,” “Land Down Under,” “I’m Not In Love,” “Black Magic Woman,” “Africa,” “Things We Do For Love,” “Who Can It be Now,” and “Hold The Line.”
What most of the pavilliononly crowd truly came out for, however, was to get a taste of The Beatles from one of the iconic band’s two surviving members.
At 78 years old, Ringo Starr is still proudly playing the music he made with The Beatles about a half-century ago.
With his new band of buddies, Ringo performed some Beatles favorites such as “What Goes On,” “Don’t Pass Me By,” “I Wanna Be Your Man” and “Yellow Submarine,” a fun sing-along for fans.
Ringo also played songs from his post-Beatles solo career that the audience enjoyed like the early 70s singles “It Don’t Come Easy,” and “Photograph” along with the more recent “Anthem,” an anthem for peace and love, released in 2012.
The evening ended with a jolly rendition of Beatles hit “With a Little Help from My Friends,” from the 1967 album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
No matter what the group was playing, Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band rocked the local venue on Friday night, and sure seemed to have fun doing it.
“There is no greater joy for me than playing great music with great musicians. Every night we get to play for all those loving people and it makes the hassle of touring worth it,” Ringo said in a press release announcing this current U.S, leg of the All Starr Band’s 2018 tour, calling it “a Peace & Love fest.”
Though times have sure changed over the past 50 years, Ringo Starr is still sharing the same message: peace and love. Before leaving the stage for the night, the supergroup leader left the crowd with these parting words: “Remember peace and love. Peace and love is the only way.”