Ringo Starr - Liverpool 8
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Free Music Notes for Liverpool 8
Free Music Review: An album that should not be overlooked.
Hit: 4 Stars
(I'm actually the daughter of the owner of this amazon account. My mother bought this album for me, and asked me to write the review seeing as she hasn't listened to this album nearly as much as I have!)
This would happen to be the first solo album's of Ringo's that I've bought, and i can say I'm pleased. The title track "Liverpool 8" is moving and makes you want to sing along even if you don't know the lyrics. Most autobiographical songs seem to fail in a sense that they reflect on things about the artist that we already know about, but this song however seems to tell the story of how Richard Starkey became Ringo Starr, and it's a song that's hard to get tired of.
My favourite track, "For Love," is very intoxicating in every good sense of the word. I could listen to this song for hours, and I have! Really, if there's any treasure to this album it has to be this track. This song truly backs up Ringo in his explaination that this album is mainly about love.
Compared to Ringo's other solo albums, "Liverpool 8" might not come off as strongly as "Ringo" or "Ringorama" but this is an album that shouldn't be overlooked. There are slow-paced songs like "Pasodobles" and there are quirky songs like "Tuff Love." There are some country-rooted songs like "Think About You" that sounds more like the current rock-country sound of today, and "R U Ready" sounds a bit more country than the song previously mentioned that sounds religion-influenced. (though are not, as Ringo claimed.)
If you want a Ringo album that's diverse and changes mood as it changes songs, then "Liverpool 8" should be the one for you. Sure, I can say that there are songs that I don't happen to like but the songs I do happen to favour make up for it. All in all, "Liverpool 8" isn't much of a disappointment at all.
Free Music Review: An enjoyable outing with Ringo
Hit: 4 Stars
While Ringo has had a pretty uneven recording career, with most of his best work firmly planted in the 70's, every once in a while recordings like LIVERPOOL 8 just hit the mark. The title song is a nice bit of nostalgia with just a touch of defensiveness that creates something a bit different than the basic "Remember the good old days" types of songs that pop up periodically and there are a number of songs of interest here; all written by Ringo in conjunction with a group of collaborators like Dave Stewart and Mark Hudson. Focusing on his belief that love and peace will bring about a better world, the one note focus as a theme does limit the scope of the recording but it remains true to Ringo's professed philosophy.
There's a lot of fun numbers on this one. "Think about You" has that nice positive feel and a solid tempo that'll bring a smile to any face, "Gone are the Days," has a nice quirky vibe, a throwback to a more psychedelic sound in the beginning, with Ringo's positive spin and a reference to "It Don't Come Easy" thrown in. "R U Ready" sounds like it would have found a home with Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and "Harry's Song" has a nice jazzy rhythm that wouldn't out of place on a Leon Redbone CD (although I'm not sure about the heart sounds?)
Still weak choices like "Give it a Try," "Pasodobles," and "Love is" that put a bullseye on Ringo's vocal shortcomings remind this listener how important song selection is to the effectiveness of any Ringo recording. There has always been an endearing quality to his occasionally overreaching vocals, but that works better on songs that have other qualities of interest which these lack. All in all, it is a welcome addition to Ringo's recordings.
Free Music Review: Good Old Ringo, Rock Steady....
Hit: 4 Stars
Ringo Starr may not have created the peace-and-love aesthetic the Beatles put forth late in their run, but over the years, he's embodied it as none of his band mates could.
Despite his talent behind the drums, Starr was always the regular guy in a group of icons -- an affable foil to John Lennon's confrontational genius, Paul McCartney's pop ambition and George Harrison's mystical leanings. On "Liverpool 8," Starr again plays the good-natured everyman, making simple pleas for peace and understanding over the kinds of bouncy backing his old band invented.
Starr doesn't even pretend the Beatles weren't the best thing that ever happened to him, and on the title track -- named for his childhood neighborhood -- he retells the story of the Fab Four, insisting, "Liverpool, I left you/ but I never let you down."
Producer Dave Stewart heaps on the gloss, but his technique is similar to that of Jeff Lynne, who helped Harrison stage his '80s comeback and recorded the two "new" Beatles tunes the following decade. As a result, Starr's songs have an old-friend quality, and their familiarity overshadows their hokier moments.
On "R U Ready," the album's closer, Starr stages a hoedown while contemplating mortality. Looking toward the afterlife, he's as hopeful as ever: "It's good that you believe, but it's better if you know."
Free Music Review: Ringo Gives Something Back
Hit: 4 Stars
Well of course it's been almost 40 years since the Beatles broke up,but Ringo Starr isn't about to give up on music so easily. The title song alone talks about playing with Paul and George and "his old friend John" and that he never truely forgot about his roots in the port city of Liverpool,playing with The Beatles and beginning the adventure of a lifetime. Many of the other songs here are about The Beatles' old favorite subject:love. But gone is the Fab Four's exuberant naivity is replaced by a lot of somber reflection;Ringo muses about about the old question about people who'd rather fight eachother then "Give Love A Try". There are a number of surprises here too-"Harry's Song",which by the sound of it's shuffling beat and lyrics is a tribute to Harry Niellson. Another tune of note is the Spanish-style "Pasodobles" and the gospel hoe down of "R U Ready". While Ringo finds plenty of time to have fun here there's a also a sad tone to some of the lyrics,even if many of the tunes have great pop hooks and a lot of ELO-like vocal effects. It's a great album for any fan of Ringo,The Beatles or pop music in general and you can have a lot of fun listening to it,but some of it may make you ask a few questions about this generation too.Free Music Review: Ringo is a fun guy who plays fun music
Hit: 4 Stars
I never analyze the songs or the musicians and their performance or the production, I couldn't be bothered. About the Liverpool 8 reviews I've read things like "on this song his voice is strained at times"... or "he's trying to sound like the Beatles again" ... err... yes he does because he was a Beatle & that's his sound too; or "the brushes on the drums in this song don't sound good..." errr... Ringo is not, never was & never will be a great technical drummer which brings me to the main point about Ringo Starr & his music : like the individual himself it's meant to be enjoyed, it's played from the heart, it's simple & basic music played within his own limits which he has always recongnized. Remember when asked the question by a reporter when he first came to the States in '64 : "Are you a rocker or a moder" to which Ringo replied :"I'm a mocker". That's Ringo = fun. The same goes for his music. He keeps it simple & some people seem bent on analyzing & pointing out faults or what he could have done better. What a waste of time. Either you like this album or you don't... again because it's Ringo not Lennon & McCartney. I give it 4 stars because it's not a masterpiece... just enjoyable. Thanks Ringo.