Ringo Starr Rocks PPAC
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
A lovely Sunday night in June brought former Beatle Ringo Starr to a sold out concert at the Providence Performing Arts Center. The Fab Four drummer brought his “All Starr Band” to PPAC for a show complete with Beatles classics, some top shelf covers, and an entertaining mix of classic rock from the late 60’s (Santana) through the 1980’s (Toto, Mr. Mister).
Beatles in RI – A Short History
It’s truly a rare site – a Beatle in the Ocean State. Not the kind creeping around in your garden, but a Beatle of the musical variety. In fact, an informal survey of local musical experts suggests that it’s only happened twice before.
First, there was an historic George Harrison show at the (brand spanking new) Providence Civic Center in December, 1974. Harrison toured with Ravi Shankar that year, although Shankar was too ill to perform in Providence. (Harrison apparently had a scratchy throat that night as well.)
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTRingo’s All Starr Band previously visited the Ocean State in 1995 playing at the esteemed Warwick Musical Theatre. It appears we in Rhode Island catch Beatle-mania every twenty years or so. So on Sunday night, three generations of fans crowded into PPAC for a special show.
Beatles Classics
All agreed it was a special night of music. Early highlights included a number of rock and roll classics frequently covered by The Beatles. The band opened with “Matchbox,” and later rocked on “Honey Don’t,” both originally by Carl Perkins. Starr has always favored the rockabilly beat and more was heard later with “Act Naturally,” a Buck Owen original. “We’re in cowboy country, right?” asked the Fab Four’s jester.
Would you believe that Ringo turns 74 in July? A senior moment may have led to a minor lyric mishap during the White Album classic “Don’t Pass Me By.” The bandleader handled it amicably and the adoring crowd was quick to forgive.
Sing-a-longs are a Ringo tradition and this show was no different. Indeed, tonight, the crowd of people did more than stare, there was close to 100% participation on “Yellow Submarine” and everyone joined in singing the encore “With a Little Help From My Friends.”
Ringo’s best tunes of the night were his originals – songs like “Photograph,” and “It Don’t Come Easy,” were performed at a high level, often surpassing the original versions.
New Tunes
Ringo’s strengths are the classics, but he did bring a couple of new tunes along, both songs from recent album Ringo 2012. They were well received, although neither will ever achieve the epic status of his earlier material.
“Wings” (the song, not the band), was somewhat ordinary, and “Anthem,” a lyrical prayer for peace and love, also lacked the spark of a great song. The 2012 album didn’t sell very well, as the bandleader noted gingerly, thanking “the two or so fans who bought it.” Still, the album drives home Ringo’s central message of peace, love, and understanding, a genuine theme running through his music.
A Little Help From His Friends
The “All Starr” approach works well for Ringo who clearly gets by with a lot of help from his friends. The top notch band features guitar genius Steve Lukather of Toto, keyboardist Gregg Rolie from Santana, guitarist Todd Rundgren of Nazz and Utopia, bass player Richard Page, founder of Mr. Mister, and drummer Greg Bissonette.
One might not have expected sing-a-longs to Toto and Mr. Mister at a Ringo Starr show, but songs like “Africa,” “Hold the Line,” and “Broken Wings” were major crowd pleasers. Lead guitarist Lukather of Toto really has some chops, crushing it on his own material as well as Santana hits like “Evil Ways” and “Black Magic Woman.” The man can shred!
All around all-star Todd Rundgren charmed those assembled with his classics “I Saw the Light,” “Love is the Answer,” and his percussive masterpiece “Bang on the Drum,” which Ringo hilariously declared the best version he’s ever heard.
A Great Night of Music
Clearly, this show was more than a nostalgic trip through a long and winding career. The talented group of musicians, performing as if they were headliners on their own, added the spark to a great night of music. The performance should not be confused with a Beatles show, in fact, it was barely a Ringo show; but overall, it was a fantastic show.
Classic Summer at PPAC
It's a classic rock summer at PPAC with some great concerts planned. Crosby, Stills and Nash visit in July, Jackson Browne is here in August and Steely Dan arrives in September. And check out modern rockers Queens of the Stone Age on July 14th and Beck July 26th. Click here for all the details.
Ken Abrams reviews roots, rock and blues for GoLocal. Please excuse his lyrical Beatles references. Click here to e-mail him.
Related Slideshow: Mojo Photography: Ringo Starr at PPAC
Rick Farrell of Mojo Photography in Riverside was at the Providence Performing Arts Center to give GoLocalProv readers an all-access pass to Ringo Starr and his "All Starr Band" live in concert.
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