Ringo and friends a delight

Ringo and friends a delight

The former Beatle brought a great deal of nostalgia to the show with his All Starr Band

By DAVID PENCEK
Norwich Bulletin; dpencek@norwichbulletin.com

Saturday, August 2, 2003

http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/...ws/571558.html
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It's an odd sight seeing Ringo Starr out from behind his drums and fronting a band. It just doesn't seem right.

Still, there was something special watching the former Beatle perform, whether he was behind the drums or out front.

On Thursday, Starr brought the eighth edition of his All Starr Band to the Mohegan Sun Arena. It became a two-hour trip down Memory Lane, not only for Beatles music but for Squeeze, The Baby's and a few popular tunes from the '80s.

For this tour, Starr recruited Sheila E.; Mark Rivera; John Waite from The Baby's and Bad English; Paul Carrack from Squeeze; and Mike & The Mechanics; and Colin Hay from Men at Work. Each performed a few of their hits to go with Starr's tunes.

The show felt more poignant, given the passing of George Harrison, who died in November 2001.

The band paid tribute to the quiet Beatle by singing "Here Comes The Sun," while Starr went backstage. When Starr returned, he performed his tribute song, "Never Without You," which is off his new CD,, "Ringo Rama."

Starr covered his usual set list including the opening number "It Don't Come Easy," "You're 16 (You're Beautiful and You're Mine)" and "Yellow Submarine."

He and the band took the unusual step of not going backstage and then returning for an encore.

After playing "Don't Go Where The Road Don't Go," Starr told the audience to just make noise like the band was back stage. Predictably, the night ended with a rendition of "With A Little Help From My Friends."

Overall, the All Starr members performed as just that, especially Sheila E. who became the spark plug for the night. She sang her hits from the '80s, "A Love Bizarre" and "The Glamorous Life." She also played a drum solo that proved she remains one of the top percussionists today.

Set list: "It Don't Come Easy;" "Honey Don't;" "Memphis In Your Mind;" "How Long;" "Down Under;" "Isn't It Time;" "A Love Bizarre;" "Boys;" "Overkill;" "Act Naturally;" "You're 16 (You're Beautiful and You're Mine);" "Yellow Submarine;" "Here Comes The Sun;" "Never Without You;" "Don't Pass Me By;" "No No Song;" "Tempted;" "When I See You Smile;" "The Glamorous Life;" "I Wanna Be Your Man;" "The Living Years;" "Missing You;" "Who Can It Be Now;" "Photograph;" "Don't Go Where The Road Don't Go;" "With A Little Help From My Friends."