This All Starr Band Goes to Eleven

July 13th, 2010 by The Professor

Ringo Starr celebrates turning Seventy years young on tour

Radio RockonTour host Timothy Tilghman

The first All Starr Band Tour launched in 1989. Ringo Starr began employing a successful formula building his touring entourage comprised of noteworthy musicians who recorded their own popular releases. Ringo has claimed an enduring career of getting by with a little help from his friends to conduct his All Starr Band tours. Showcasing rotating musicians solidified a winning combination for his loyal audiences.

The Eleventh All Starr Band features Spinal Tap drummer Gregg Bissonette, guitarist Rick Derringer, Mr. Mister bassist Richard Page, Romantics guitarist Wally Palmer, keyboardist Edgar Winter, and keyboardist Gary Wright. Derringer, Page and Palmer are the newest members joining the 2010 touring team.

The All Starr Band played before a packed house in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Saturday, July 3, 2010. The diverse backgrounds of the individual musicians jamming together presents a wealth of chart topping material for classic rock fans to enjoy live on stage.

Each individual All Starr Band musician (excluding Bissonette) took a turn at the microphone to sing a memorable moment that scored high on the American hit parade. Winter led the crowd on a raucous “Free Ride”. Page sang the soaring single “Kyrie”. Palmer belted out the kinetic “What I Like About You”.

Derringer doubled as a pied piper lifting audience spirits with “Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo”. Wright was alright on his melodic “My Love Is Alive”. Among the many songs sung by Ringo, he performed “The Other Side Of Liverpool” and “Peace Dream” both from his latest album Y NOT. The surprise of the evening came at the end of the concert when Ringo segued into John Lennon’s 1969 anthem “Give Peace A Chance”.

The only glitch in Ringo’s infrequent touring schedule is that after 21 years of hitting the road during the summertime season, he is still only singing the same handful of songs from his tenure as a Fab. With the exception of “What Goes On” and “Oh My My” introduced on recent tours but neither of which appeared in the 2010 setlist, the only new tunes are those from the current album he is promoting on tour.

Ringo Starr has proven he is a capable composer after undertaking a solo career in 1971. Either Ringo does not have the fortitude to take chances with his audience and perform more of his own original numbers or he is slavishly repeating Beatles oldies to placate a baby-boomer demography incapable of tolerating Ringo to venture beyond his musical past as a former Fab into uncharted musical territory.

The All Starr band cast is a functioning musical family. Performers introduce each other providing harmonious backing vocals as a welcome bonus. The staging was visually exquisite and the sound was audibly perfect. Singers share stories about how their songs originated onto record. Plus, the in-between song banter reveals how the musicians interact among one another.

Who can deny the guilty pleasure of attending an All Starr Band concert? After cleaning up his act in the latter 1980s, Ringo Starr has been touring on an irregular basis during the last two decades. It’s a blessing that veteran British Invasion artists are still willing to mount extensive tours to entertain their committed fans.

Richard Starkey, M.B.E., is just about to turn Seventy years old on July 7, 2010. Ritchie has a birthday concert pegged for a party in NYC and rumors are circulating that Sir James Paul McCartney is going to join his fellow former Beatle on stage. Paul & Ringo previously hooked up on stage together in NYC on April 4, 2009.

Ringo Starr & All Starr Band, Atlantic City, New Jersey, July 3, 2010 setlist: It Don’t Come Easy * Honey Don’t * Choose Love * Hang On Sloopy – Rick Derringer * Free Ride – Edgar Winter * Talking In Your Sleep – Wally Palmer * I Wanna Be Your Man * Dream Weaver – Gary Wright * Kyrie – Richard Page * The Other Side Of Liverpool * Yellow Submarine * Frankenstein – Edgar Winter * Peace Dream * Back Off Boogaloo * What I Like About You – Wally Palmer * Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo – Rick Derringer * Boys * My Love Is Alive – Gary Wright * Broken Wings – Richard Page * Photograph * Act Naturally * With A Little Help From My Friends > Give Peace a Chance

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