Fan Fare

Ringo Starr: “I’m the greatest”

After more than 50 years in the music business — eight of them in the most scrutinized band on the planet — Ringo Starr would rather do anything than submit to even more questions. But the former Beatles drummer has a new solo album to promote, and that means more interviews — most recently at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on Tuesday, when he took part in a Q&A and mini concert for about 230 fans.

Dressed in black, including an Elvis Presley t-shirt and Nike tennis shoes, the 69-year-old Starr lived up to his reputation as the “funny Beatle.” The fans were eager to project a Beatles connection onto his every word, and Starr knew it.

It also helped that Paul McCartney played on the new album “Y Not,” the first time the pair have been in the studio together in 12 years. Starr told the audience — including E Street band drummer Max Weinberg, Edgar Winter and Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh — that he invited McCartney over to his house in Los Angeles for a cup of tea, his guest pulled out his bass and played along on two tunes. ”He understands my drumming because we used to play together,” Starr deadpanned.

It was hard to tell if Starr was being serious when he discussed playing with the revolving cast of A-list musicians who tour with him in his All-Starr Band. “I always say that they’re great, but I’m the greatest. The drums are holding it down, holding it together,” he said.

But at least it gave him the opportunity to segue into another Beatles anecdote. ”I learned a great thing in the ’60s in that band I was in that it doesn’t matter who has the good idea, let’s use it. It’s no use standing on that principle when it’s a sh—y chord.”

After asking his inquisitor, museum executive director Robert Santelli, to fire off one last question, Starr eagerly teamed up with Ben Harper to perform some new songs and old favorites. The “Y Not” tunes might best be considered an acquired taste, especially given Starr’s rough-hewn vocal stylings, but the fans lapped up “Photograph,” “With a Little Help From My Friends” and “Boys.”  Starr took to his Ludwig drum kit for the latter tune, a Beatles B-side he was singing long before he joined the Fab Four.

In fact, it ties in with perhaps the evening’s funniest — if not most politically correct — recollection. An audience member asked about Starr’s time with Merseyside skiffle stars Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, whose exuberant frontman was born with a stammer. ”He stuttered so bad, and we were teenagers so the game was get him angry then he wouldn’t say a word,” Starr recalled.

McCartney “in contact” with Lennon, Linda

Paul McCartney says he is “kind of in contact” with his late collaborator John Lennon and late wife Linda when he sings.

The 67-year-old spoke of what he felt when he performed at a Q and A session in London late on Wednesday. “If I’m doing something like ‘Something’ — the song — obviously I’m thinking of George (Harrison),” he said in comments quoted in the British press. He was promoting his new live CD and DVD “Good Evening New York City”.

“It’s great actually. I really like it. In a way I’m revisiting them … Similarly with John and Linda. In a way you’re kind of in contact with them again you know. And it’s sad, it’s emotional.”

John Lennon was killed in New York in 1980 at the age of 40. Linda McCartney died of breast cancer in 1998 aged 56.

from UK News:

Are The Beatles overrated?

A framed handwritten report card from 1950 on the wall of Mendips, John Lennon's childhood home in Liverpool, states:

"John has worked quite well this term. His oral work is very good, his written work is good, but he chatters far too much."

Lennon, born in 1940, had been living on Menlove Avenue with his Aunt Mimi and Uncle George for five years when that report was issued.

In retrospect, the remarks may have hinted at Lennon's later prolific songwriting talents.

Despite his aunt's academic encouragements, Lennon left Liverpool's Quarry Bank High School in 1957 without qualifications, but with the foundations of his musical career established in his skiffle group the Quarry Men.

He met Paul McCartney, who lived not far away at 20 Forthlin Road in 1957, and the two turned their talents to composing songs. The rest is history, as they say.

And the last Beatles song will be…

Help!

We admit we may be playing into the hands of a marketing campaign designed to eke out as much publicity as possible for the new Beatles interactive “Rock Band” video game on Sept 9. (Read the latest story here). But we couldn’t resist what is a rather intriguing question.

What will be the last Beatles song available for fans to “virtually” play from a list of 45 tunes for the new game? Today, the makers announced 19 more titles that will come with the game including “Ticket to Ride,” “Come Together,” “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” and “A Hard Day’s Night” – bringing the list to 44.

Other songs previously announced for the Fab Four’s first digital release after years of shunning websites like iTunes include “Yellow Submarine”, “Day Tripper,” “I Am The Walrus,” “Get Back” and “Eight Days A Week.”

But some of the band’s biggest hits are not on the list and could still sneak into the game, including “Hey Jude”, “We can Work It Out” and “Yesterday.”

So what do fans hope for, as they dream of the day they can strum their plastic guitars in their lounges and make all their troubles seem so far away?

Paul McCartney does not have his songs back from Jackson, but he feels fine

Paul McCartney has put to rest any lingering questions about whether Michael Jackson bequeathed to Macca his rights to songs by The Beatles. The reports began surfacing before Jackson died two weeks ago, but when the King of Pop’s will was released last week it contained no reference to any such transfer.

In a post on his website, McCartney wrote that it was all a case of the media getting it wrong.

“Some time ago, the media came up with the idea that Michael Jackson was going to leave his share in the Beatles songs to me in his will, which was completely made up and something I didn’t believe for a second,” McCartney said in the post. 

“Now the report is that I am devastated to find that he didn’t leave the songs to me. This is completely untrue. I had not thought for one minute that the original report was true and therefore, the report that I’m devastated is also totally false, so don’t believe everything you read folks!”

A January 2009 article in British tabloid The Mirror said that Jackson wanted to leave his share in many of the Beatles songs to McCartney as a peace offering. Of course, the will that keeps the Beatles songs with Jackson’s estate dates from 2002, so even if he had wanted to turn them over to McCartney, he would have had to revise that document, and clearly he did not.

Jackson snapped up the Beatles songs for $47.5 million in 1985 in a purchase of the ATV Music catalog, outbidding McCartney himself. When he died, he owned a 50 percent stake in the catalog with Sony, but his share was heavily leveraged.

McCartney famously called Jackson a “massively talented boy-man” after the King of Pop died at age 50 on June 25. But on his website Macca, who in decades past socialized with Jackson, said that even though he and Jackson “drifted apart over the years,” they “never really fell out” and that he still has fond memories of his old friend and duet partner.

Mandy Moore hypnotized on stage in Los Angeles

Mandy Moore was so nervous about premiering the tunes from her upcoming album at an intimate Los Angeles club that she sought help from a hypnotist.

The trick seemed to work, although the former teen idol did not take it to the next logical step and munch on an onion or remove any clothing.

“It is the most bizarre situation you can imagine,” a clearly relaxed Moore recounted at the beginning of her show on Saturday. “It’s almost like therapy.”

Music fans might have found the show bizarre — in a good way. The one-time Britney Spears wannabe took to the stage at the 280-seat Largo at the Coronet theater accompanied by a rootsy band that included a pedal-steel player. A string quartet also appeared.

That’s quite a step up from the days when the comely starlet cooed “Candy” with a menagerie of background dancers. But while Spears is still stuck in that role, Moore has moved on to the realm of Gram Parsons and Lucinda Williams.

The 25-year old singer, who married rocker Ryan Adams last month, unveiled most of the tunes from her sixth album “Amanda Leigh,” which is due in stores on May 26. She co-wrote all the songs, working mostly with indie musician Mike Viola, who played guitar at her show.

Upbeat tunes like the Fiona Apple-inspired “Fern Dell” and the infectious “I Could Break Your Heart Any Day of the Week” shared the spotlight with more introspective fare such as “Merrimack River.”

No Grammy, but Sir Paul goes backstage anyway

Even Sir Paul McCartney is a good sport when it comes to losing, pretending to weep but making light of the fact that he lost an early bid to get his first Grammy in 29 years on Sunday at the 51st annual Grammys. “I am really annoyed. That is why I didn’t come. I don’t come to win it, I come to be in it,” said McCartney backstage, sporting a t-shirt of the four Beatles with clown noses  designed by his daughter to benefit the charity Comic Relief. “It is a great thing and I am honored to be asked. I was watching the Golden Globes and I saw Mickey (Rourke) win for best actor. And in the audience there’s Clint (Eastwood), there’s Brad (Pitt) — they come to be a part of it, not necessarily win it.” McCartney is the most-honored former Beatle, with 13 Grammys, but his chance at topping that eluded him early on at the Grammys on Sunday. He was competing for two awards and was also scheduled to perform with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl. McCartney lost out to John Mayer on Sunday in the best solo rock vocal performance category. The former Beatle had been nominated for his cover of the early Beatles tune “I Saw Her Standing There,” a track from the 12-inch vinyl release “Amoeba’s Secret.” McCartney, 66, is also nominated for best male pop vocal performance statuette for “That Was Me,” another track from “Amoeba’s Secret.”

(Reuters photo by Mario Anzuoni)