Ringo Starr

Ringo Starr biography

Richard Starkey, MBE (born 7 July 1940), better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for the Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He joined the Beatles in August 1962, taking the place of Pete Best. In addition to his drumming, Starr is featured on lead vocals on a number of successful Beatles songs (in particular, "With a Little Help from My Friends", "Yellow Submarine", and the Beatles version of "Act Naturally"). He is credited as a co-writer of the songs "What Goes On" and "Flying", and as the writer of "Don't Pass Me By" and "Octopus's Garden".

As drummer for the Beatles, Starr was musically creative, and his contribution to the band's music has received high praise from notable drummers in more recent times. Starr described himself as "your basic offbeat drummer with funny fills". Drummer Steve Smith said that Starr's popularity "brought forth a new paradigm" where "we started to see the drummer as an equal participant in the compositional aspect" and that Starr "composed unique, stylistic drum parts for The Beatles songs". In 2011, Starr was picked as the fifth-best drummer of all-time by Rolling Stone readers.

Starr is the most documented and critically acclaimed actor among the Beatles, playing a central role in several of their films, and appearing in numerous other films, both during and after his career with the Beatles. After the Beatles' break-up in 1970, Starr achieved solo musical success with several singles and albums, and recorded with each of his fellow ex-Beatles as they too developed their post-Beatle musical careers. He has also been featured in a number of TV documentaries, hosted TV shows, narrated the first two series of the children's television series Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends and portrayed "Mr. Conductor" during the first season of the PBS children's television series Shining Time Station. Since 1989, Starr has toured with eleven variations of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.

Early life

Ringo Starr was born on 7 July 1940 at 9 Madryn Street, Dingle, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, the son of Elsie (née Gleave) and Richard Starkey, a confectioner. His paternal grandfather was born with the surname "Parkin", and later adopted his stepfather's surname, "Starkey". Starr's parents split up when he was three years old, and his mother subsequently married Harry Graves, who encouraged his interest in music. Starr's family moved when he was three years old to a smaller home at 10 Admiral Grove. Starr attended an Evangelical Anglican church during his childhood. He was afflicted by illness for much of his early years. When aged six, he had appendicitis, which developed complications, causing him to fall into a coma. At thirteen, he developed chronic pleurisy and was admitted to a sanatorium for two years. After this extended hospital visit he did not return to school. The periods of hospitalisation left him behind scholastically, and as a result he was ineligible to attend a grammar school or even sit its Eleven plus qualifying examination. Earlier, Starr attended St Silas, a Church of England primary school in High Park Street, close to his home in Admiral Grove; singer Billy Fury attended the school at the same time. Later, Starr attended Dingle Vale Secondary Modern School (now Shorefields Technology College), leaving in 1955. While there, he showed an aptitude for art and drama as well as practical subjects including mechanics.

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