Ringo

Ringo was the least known/popular of the Beatles, right?  I think that's safe to say.  It wasn't that he was unpopular, but just that the others were more so.  I think, later, I read that Ringo was really a very accomplished drummer, not just some throw in, but technically and artistically quite good.  Last night we went to see Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band.  It was an enjoyable evening.

The All-Starrs are/were famous in the rock world themselves.  The only name I heard of was Todd Rundgren, although there were members of Santana, Toto, and Mr. Mr. (?).  They performed, along with Ringo's own and his Beatle songs, hits of their own.

It sure looked like the crowd, as one might expect, was an older one, at least most of it.  And it seemed people were having a good time.  People were really getting into the show.

The show itself, I thought, was OK, not great.  That's not a slam.  It's just that the music isn't my kind of music, either the old Beatle stuff or that of the All-Starrs.  I recognized most of the songs, but not all of them, not even all of Ringo's.  And the guitar solos, too many of them I thought, all seemed to morph into the same one, over and over.  Again, the crowd really enjoyed hit after hit, but the songs were not my favorites; if they came on the radio (then and now) I'd likely change the station and I'd never purchase an album of them.

I did really enjoy the Santana selections. There were three of them and were quite good.  They were, to me, the highlight of the show.

Mostly though, it was Ringo.  I'm not one to idolize folks, not athletes, not hippy-rock stars, not Hollywood-types, not even leaders.  For instance, I had a conversation last week with a guy who knows someone who met "every President since Nixon."  I remarked that I am not sure if any of the Presidents since Nixon had invited me to the White House, I'd have accepted.  Maybe I would have, if only to view the White House.  But I did have a chance for passes to see/hear President Obama and I opted not to go.  It wasn't a hard choice.  I didn't want to go.  I vaguely recall a similar instance with President Ford.  But I found myself last night watching Ringo and marveling, "He was one of the Beatles."  I was a bit surprised at myself. "He was one of the Beatles."  And, I was never a Beatles fan.  I think I only owned two of their albums, maybe one.  Still......

But it was a good, clean show.  Maybe it's my age, but I was extremely put off by the recent celebration in Cleveland over the Cavaliers' NBA win.  Michael was watching it on the boob tube.  Was there a reason so many of the players took off their clothes?  At least, their shirts?  Why did they have to be bare-chested?  It's bad enough with the smut on prime-time television.  That "Dancing" show's guys frequently remove their shirts.  Why?  We know why?  And consider many of the so-called "reality shows," which of course bear little resemblance to reality.  If not their dress, at least their premises are smutty.  But why undress in a parade and celebration for an NBA title?  Maybe it's just me and my age showing.  Maybe it's something else, a sign of the times, a change that's not for the better.