Ringo Starr “2012”

 

Today’s Cool Album of the Day (#621 in the Series) is Ringo Starr, 2012

I do like this album, don’t get me wrong, but 28 minutes of music Ringo? Really? That’s the best you can do?  Maybe Barbara has been running around the house with her cave woman outfit or something. I’ll tell you what. If that’s all the effort you can come up with, then I’m only going to spend 28 minutes preparing and writing your album review. So if I don’t get to everything I want to say, it’s your fault. When time runs out, that’s it.

Ringo has stated that this album is a continuation of his 1973 release titled simply, Ringo. Oh, and for the record, Ringo was 45 minutes in length.

2012 is nine songs in length.  There are five new songs, two old songs and two covers.

The album kicks off with the “Anthem.” We know what Ringo’s anthem has been for years.  Peace and Love. We now know about it in song as well. At 5 minutes plus it’s easily the longest track on the disc.

“Wings” is the first single and was released last month in advance of the album. It was actually written back in 1973.  It originally appeared on the Ringo the 4th album in ’77.

The two cover tunes are Buddy Holly’s “Think it Over” and the traditional classic, “Rock Island Line.”  The drum intro on “Think it Over” had me thinking that I was listening to “You’re 16.”  It’s a nice rendition though overall. I really do like what he’s done with “Rock Island Line.” This has long been a favorite and his boogie woogie version is strong.

“Samba” was co-written with  Van Dyke Parks. It has a slight Latin tinge to it. And heck, if you toss in some nice mandolin then I’m usually in.

“Step Lightly” is the other older track on 2012. We first heard it on the previously mentioned Ringo album. I really like “Wonderful” mainly because of the really tasty guitar part from Steve Dudas.  I think this could be a single. It’s full of Ringo’s typical bright outlook.

“In Liverpool” was co-written with Dave Stewart. It’s a typical “Yeah we had dreams and we lived them” type of song.  Another possible single.

The last song is called “Slow Down” really Ringo? “Slow Down?” There was a pretty popular song from the 60s with the same title. You might have heard it once or twice.

One of the things I really like about 2012 is that Ringo still handles all the drum work himself. He didn’t bring (Oops, 28 minutes, times up)

— Larry Carta

Detailed Track Listing + Personnel

No Track  Composer and Credits Time

1.  Anthem (Starkey-Ballard) – 5:00

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, Percussion and Keyboards
• Steve Dudas – Guitar
• Bruce Sugar – Keyboards
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

2.  Wings (Starkey-Poncia) – 3:29

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, Percussion and Keyboards
• Joe Walsh – Guitar
• Benmont Tench – Organ
• Bruce Sugar – Piano, Horn Arrangement
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

3.  Think It Over (Holly-Perry) – 1:46

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, Percussion, Guitar and Keyboards
• Charlie Haden – Bass
• Steve Dudas – Guitar
• Bruce Sugar – Keyboards
• Richard Page – backing vocals

4.  Samba (Starkey-Parks) – 2:46

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, Percussion and Keyboards
• Steve Dudas – Guitar, Bass
• Van Dyke Parks – Keyboards, Accordion, String Arrangement
• Matt Cartsonis – Mandolin
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

5. Rock Island Line (Traditional,Arranged by Starkey) – 2:57

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, and Guitar
• Don Was – Bass
• Kenny Wayne Shepherd – Guitar
• Steve Dudas – Guitar
• Benmont Tench – Piano
• Edgar Winter – Sax

6. Step Lightly (Starkey) – 2:44

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, Percussion and Guitar
• Don Was – Bass
• Bruce Sugar – Keyboards
• Benmont Tench – Piano

7. Wonderful (Starkey-Nicholson) – 3:45

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, and Percussion
• Kenny Wayne Shepherd – Guitar
• Richard Page – Bass
• Steve Dudas – Guitar
• Bruce Sugar – Organ, Synth Horns, Keyboards
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

8. In Liverpool (Starkey-Stewart) – 3:18

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, and Percussion
• Dave Stewart – Guitar and Keyboards
• Benmont Tench – Piano
• Michael Bradford – Bass
• Ann Marie Calhoun – Violin
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

9. Slow Down (Starkey-Walsh) – 2:57

• Ringo Starr – Vocals, Drums, and Percussion
• Joe Walsh – Guitar and Backing Vocals
• Don Was – Bass
• Edgar Winter – Organ
• Bruce Sugar – Keyboard
• Amy Keys and Kelly Moneymaker – backing vocals

Links

• Official Ringo Website
• See our piece on the Ringo album
• See more new releases from 2012 that we’ve covered

Back to the Cool Album of the Day Home Page

Here’s a few cuts from Ringo 2012

Here’s some more albums from Hall of Famers

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