The one member of The Beatles Ringo Starr said made every track better: “He’s so melodic”
Despite the fact that we can all agree that together, The Beatles were one of the greatest bands to ever exist, we’re hellbent on viewing their greatness through the divided lens of their two songwriting leaders. It’s simply not enough to be a Beatles fan anymore; you have to pledge your allegiance to either Paul McCartney or John Lennon.
Why? Well, because the pair represent wildly different spectrums of both The Beatles and the music that has been subsequently influenced by them. The existentialism and introspection of Lennon lend themselves to the band’s more philanthropic work, and built off a much punkier spirit than Macca. Lennon saw the world through what many would argue was a more truthful lens, while McCartney’s has rosier tints to it.
Optimistic, yes, more innocent maybe, but what McCartney certainly was was a master of melody writing. He had a unique ability to write songs that felt as though they fell from the sky, oozing a natural sense of musicality that, even without hearing the full length of any given song, you almost felt immediately familiar with it.
So when The Beatles eventually split at the end of the 1960s, the pair were given carte blanche to dive headfirst into their own musical styles, without fear of judgment. Lennon wasted no opportunity and penned the philanthropic classic Imagine, while McCartney staked his claim as master of the melody with the inherently playful RAM.
Somewhere in between the cracks, George Harrison and Ringo Starr were given space to identify their own artistic style. Unbound by the limitations of being supporting players, they boldly embarked on solo careers that would finally put them at the front and centre of their own ideas.
But in 2019, when the heights of his own career were in the rear view mirror, Starr embarked on a musical project that might just bring the four original members back together, for one last time. His track ‘Grow Old With Me’, from his 2019 album What’s My Name, was built off the back of a demo Lennon first wrote in Bermuda, as part of the Double Fantasy album.
Buoyed by the idea of completing a song once started by his old mate, Starr got to work on the track but realised that it was missing a clear sense of melody. Instantly, he knew that in his little black book of contacts was a man who could help in that department and could bridge the gap between Lennon’s darkness and McCartney’s light.
Starr explained, “Paul was coming into town, and I said, ‘I’d love for you to play on this track.’ I thought he’d be just perfect because he’s so melodic, and he can only enhance the track. That’s all he does when he plays, every time.”
It also turns out that during McCartney’s involvement in the session, he collaborated with producer Jack Douglas to introduce a string session, which actually remodelled George Harrison’s melody from ‘Here Comes The Sun’, inadvertently making Starr’s song a de facto reunion number.
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