Forty five years after the Beatles ugly breakup, Ringo Starr is still getting a little help from his friends. In fact, both his new album and tour are stuffed with special guests.
The forthcoming Postcards from Paradise, for instance, features Dave Stewart (who previously co-produced Ringo Starr’s Liverpool 8 in 2008), brother-in-law Joe Walsh (another frequent musical collaborator), former All-Starr Band member Peter Frampton and Alanis Morissette producer Glen Ballard (who co-wrote the opening cut on Starr’s most recent album, Ringo 2012), to name but a few.
“I do it at home,” he says in a new talk via Steve Marinucci. “I do basic tracks and I invite writers to come and join me, and we write songs — from Van Dyke Parks to Richard Marx,” Starr adds, chuckling. “I gotta write that down. So, I just have fun. I love hanging out with musicians. And we have the excuse, if we are writing a song.”
A highlight of Ringo Starr’s Postcards from Paradise promises to be “Island in the Sun,” which was written alongside the long-running current incarnation of his All-Starr Band — including Steve Lukather, Gregg Rolie, Todd Rundgren, Richard Page and Gregg Bissonette. Their 2015 tour kicks off on Wednesday, February 11, 2015, with dates in both North and South America.
“I love touring — well, nobody loves touring, but we all love playing,” Starr says. “You have to get on the plane, you have to get on the bus, you have to get in the car. You have to get in whatever you get into to get to the gig, and then it’s worth it.”
Postcards from Paradise, a project Ringo Starr says he worked on all of last year, is due March 31, 2015 via Universal. The former Beatles legend will receive the Award for Musical Excellence during this year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on April 18.
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