McCartney Times

From “Yellow Submarine” to “Octopus’s Garden,” he has revealed an attraction to the sea and offered a musical means for escape from the mundane.

Can you imagine taking a yellow submarine to an octopus’s garden?

“I’d like to be under the sea/ In an octopus’s garden in the shade,” Ringo Starr sings on the Beatles song, “Octopus’s Garden.” “We would be warm/ Below the storm/ In our little hide-a-way beneath the waves/ Resting our head/ On the sea bed/ In an octopus’ garden near a cave.”

Starr with his performance of these and other Beatles songs established his own legacy within the legacy of the world’s most famous rock band. And it’s worth noting that the Beatles hailed from Liverpool, England, which sits at the juncture of the River Mersey and Irish Sea.

“He was a bad boy,” Robert Natal of Holmes said in the complimentary tone of a fan. “I enjoy his music still.”

Far beyond the music industry, the Beatles reshaped modern culture with music that endures across generations.

And holding down the beat through it all has been Starr, a songwriter, vocalist and drummer whose deep catalog of post-Beatles songs offers insight on a musician who celebrates his past while refusing to rest on his laurels in the present.

You can see it all live on stage twice in the coming week when Starr brings his 2018 All Starr Band to New York City and Saratoga Springs. Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band are set to perform at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan on Sept. 13 and Saratoga Performing Arts Center on Sept. 14.

These shows will complement nicely the gigs Starr has previously played in our area, at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Sullivan County. And Starr’s shows within driving distance of the Hudson Valley follow the 2017 release of his 19th solo album, “Give More Love.”

Adding depth to these upcoming shows — as if any more is needed — are Starr’s band mates in the 2018 edition of the All Starr Band. These include Colin Hay from Men At Work; Steve Lukather from Toto; Gregg Rolie from Santana; and Graham Gouldman of 10cc. Warren Ham plays percussion and sax and Gregg Bissonette is the All Starr Band drummer.

Starr during his 2010 performance at Bethel Woods performed plenty of Beatles classics, including “Act Naturally,” “I Wanna Be Your Man,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Honey Don’t” and “With A Little Help From My Friends.” His All Starr Band mates typically perform their own hit songs over the course of the evening.

Starr was unavailable for an interview, but during past discussions with the Journal he shared plenty:

Speaking to the Journal before playing Bethel Woods in 2012, he said being a Beatle was still a tangible feeling for him and he remained closely in touch with that period of his life.

“It’s the songs that bring that to the forefront,” he said.

Starr also spoke to the Journal in 2010 in advance of performing at Bethel Woods, which sits on the Woodstock concert site in Sullivan County. Speaking of the famous festival, he said, “It was the biggest show ever at that time.”

But for all its history, The Beatles were not a part of Woodstock. So where was Starr when he heard that Woodstock was happening on a farm in upstate New York?

“I was eating ice cream in England, in the back of a limousine,” he said.

Radio Woodstock (WDST/100.1 FM) Program Director and Morning Host Greg Gattine met Starr when the famous drummer performed at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in 2000.

“Just to be in the room, just to stand next to a Beatle… just to have him look you in the eye and shake your hand, there is nothing that compares to that,” Gattine said.

As for Starr’s musical endeavors and the All Starr Band’s means of fusing the old and the new, Gattine said, “He goes out there and makes it fresh and makes it exciting. He makes people come alive when they hear these songs. I hope Ringo never stops doing this.”

John W. Barry: jobarry@poughkeepsiejournal.com, 845-437-4822, Twitter: @JohnBarryPoJo

If you go

Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band 

When: Sept. 13

Where: Radio City Music Hall, New York City

Information: www.msg.com/radio-city-music-hall

When: Sept. 14

Where: Saratoga Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs

Information: Visit www.spac.org

Source: Ringo returns! Beatles drummer set for shows with All Starr Band