Ringo Starr jokes that his children grow tired of hearing him talk about retirement, often reminding him, “You’ve been saying that for the past decade.”
By Website Content Manager
The legendary musician is set to hit the road this June and has recently unveiled his latest country album titled Look Up.
Ringo Starr shows no signs of slowing down, even with a packed schedule that includes a new album, a concert special filmed at the Ryman Auditorium, and an upcoming tour. Despite frequently mentioning retirement, Starr’s three kids can’t help but tease him for repeatedly claiming he’s done.
“Sometimes when I finish a tour, I’ll say, ‘That’s it for me,’ and my kids always respond, ‘Dad, you’ve been saying that for a decade now,’” Starr shared with PEOPLE. “They get tired of hearing it,” he added with a laugh. “I do feel like I’ve had enough, but then I get a call saying, ‘Hey, we’ve got some shows if you’re interested,’ and suddenly I’m back at it!”
At 84, Starr is gearing up for a June tour with his All Starr Band, followed by a Las Vegas residency at The Venetian Theatre in September. The band — which Starr has led since 1989 — currently features Steve Lukather, Colin Hay, Warren Ham, Hamish Stuart, Gregg Bissonette, and Buck Johnson. Starr is the father of Zak, 59, Jason, 57, and Lee, 54, whom he shares with his late ex-wife Maureen, and he’s also stepfather to his wife Barbara Bach’s children, Francesca, 56, and Gianni Gregorini, 52.
Reflecting on the early days of his All Starr Band, Ringo Starr recalls how he once relied on his phone book to recruit musicians. “I’d find guys who were musicians and call them,” he says. “We opened in a field in Texas, and it was fantastic. We’ve been doing it ever since because I love performing live. I love the audience, they love me, and we have a great time.”
Starr’s upcoming shows will also highlight his new country album, Look Up, which was released in January. The album marks his second venture into country music since 1970’s Beaucoups of Blues and has become his most successful release in years. It broke into Billboard’s Top 10 album sales chart and earned Starr his first No. 1 album in the U.K.
Discussing the album’s unexpected success, Starr notes, “It kind of took on a life of its own. Sometimes we make the right turns.” He adds, “It’s been working out really well, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised.”
Starr credits producer T Bone Burnett for helping shape the album. The two had met before, but their paths crossed again in Los Angeles during a poetry reading by Olivia Harrison, George Harrison’s widow, which reignited their collaboration.
Ringo Starr recalls how his collaboration with producer T Bone Burnett began casually. “[I told him], ‘I’m making EPs, and if you have a track you think would suit me, send it over.’ It all started very openly,” Starr explains. Burnett soon delivered a beautiful country track — something Starr hadn’t expected.
Before long, Burnett had assembled nine songs, setting Look Up in motion.
“For fun during the process, I thought, ‘Well, Beyoncé had a country album — how amazing is that? And now I’ve got mine,’” Starr says. “I joked about calling it Be-Yond-Say, but I was talked out of it. In the end, I went with Look Up, which I love because it’s always better to look up than down.”
Though his dive into country music may surprise some, Starr’s connection to the genre runs deep. He first discovered country music as a teenager growing up in Liverpool, and it’s remained a cherished influence ever since.