Ex-Beatle in top form at 84: Ringo Starr with new country album: It’s “the broccoli”

His look is as iconic as he is: Slim, sporty, with dyed black hair and a beard as well as the obligatory sunglasses, Ringo Starr exudes a timeless cool. You really can’t tell that the ex-Beatle is 84 years old. “It’s all in the broccoli. “I eat broccoli almost every meal,” jokes the music legend in an interview with the German Press Agency in London. “And hey, it’s great that my hair stayed its color. I have no idea how that happens.” He grins mischievously.

Of course he also does sports, emphasizes the man whose real name is Richard Starkey, but who everyone has called Ringo for decades. “I have a trainer and I try to keep moving.” Plus, perhaps more importantly, he still plays drums regularly.

The next tour with his All Starr Band, a group of changing top musicians such as Steve Lukather (Toto) and Colin Hay (Men At Work), has already been booked. After several EPs, a new studio album from Ringo Starr is now being released. “Look Up” is a country record. To celebrate the release, he will perform two concerts at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in January.

Country has always been a passion

“When I was a teenager and music was becoming more and more important to me, I heard country music for the first time and I immediately loved it,” recalls the ex-Beatle. “I liked the emotions in it, this special way country singers tell their stories.” He has retained his great passion for the genre to this day.

Once, shortly after the Beatles’ breakup in 1970, the drummer and singer recorded an LP of country and western music in the country stronghold of Nashville. With “Beaucoups Of Blues” – his second solo record ever – Ringo surprised Beatles fans at the time. However, the change in style was not well received in Great Britain. Is things going better 55 years later with his 21st studio album?

Album came about from a chance encounter

“I see the album at number one,” he says and laughs. “But if not, I’ll just carry on.” When asked whether it still means anything to him to release a new album after his long and successful career, he surprisingly shakes his head. “No!” Because he originally had no intention of making an album. This only came about from a chance meeting with musical genius T Bone Burnett.

When Ringo asked him to write him a song for a new EP, Burnett sent him nine songs and became the album’s producer. “That’s how it is in my life, things happen by chance and then you make the right decision,” says Ringo. He is really proud of the album. “I think we both did a really good job. I sound good, I played good, and he brought in all the other musicians and everyone is playing fantastic.”

Relaxed late work by the ex-Beatle

From the lively opener “Breathless” to the gentle sounds of the characteristic pedal steel guitar in “I Live For The Moment” to the duet “Thankful” with country superstar Alison Krauss – “Look Up” is a routine, calm album. And that is meant positively. The ballad “Time On My Hands” is particularly beautiful with the great line: “I thought it was forever, but she had other plans.”

Things look different in real life. Ringo has been happily married to Barbara Bach (77) for over 40 years. The actress hardly leaves his side. “We made a movie together (Caveman) and I fell in love with her,” Ringo remembers. “We’ve been together ever since. I wake up every morning and think: She’s still here. Good!” He dedicated the song “Thankful” to his Barbara.

Drummer is still a dream job

The 84-year-old is also grateful that he is still here and in the business – after a decades-long musical career that began in Liverpool and finally took him to California via the Reeperbahn in Hamburg: from the band Rory Storm And The Hurricanes to world fame with the Beatles and a long solo career.

“I’m lucky,” says the Brit, who now lives mostly in sunny Beverly Hills. As a teenager, he had the dream of becoming a professional drummer. 70 years later, it is still a dream for him. “I’m a musician and I get to make music with people and play with other bands,” he enthuses. “I played with the biggest band in the world, I was a part of it. And now I’m still playing.” Thank broccoli.