Historian and author Gary Astridge provides an in-depth analysis of Ringo Starr’s Beatles-era drum kits, gear, and Beatles history. The information is based on decades of research, documentation of Ringo’s kits, and firsthand conversations with Ringo and others involved at the time. In April 1963, Ringo Starr and Brian Epstein purchased a new drum set for the Beatles from Drum City in London. Ludwig Drums manufactures the black oyster pearl kit that Ringo played on the 1963 Jazz Festival.
The Beatles’ recording studio is no longer standing, but the building it was located in has a history Blue Plaque on its exterior. During his time with The Beatles, Ringo Starr played six different drum kits. One of these was the Premier Mahogany Duroplastic drum kit, which Ringo used during their first recording sessions. The Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl drum kit, which Ringo Starr used to record some of the Beatles’ early hits, was sold for $2. 2m at an auction to Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay.
Ringo Starr bought a set of Premier drums in 1960 and visited the Ringo Starr exhibit at the Grammy Museum in June 1963. The location of Ringo’s Premier kit today is unknown, but he still has a cymbal stand and the snare drum stand. Another original Beatles’ drum kit is on display at Bloomingdales in Midtown Manhattan, featuring three of Ringo’s four. Kye Smith, a drummer based in Newcastle, Australia, recently hauled his drum kit to a nearby rooftop, an homage to The Beatles’ 1969 rooftop.
| Article | Description | Site |
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| Another Ringo Kit on Display | Another original Beatles’ drum kit is on display, this time on the east coast at Bloomingdales in Midtown Manhattan. It’s a mixture of three of Ringo’s four … | drumforum.org |
| Got to go to the Ringo Starr exhibit at the Grammy Museum. … | Got to go to the Ringo Starr exhibit at the Grammy Museum. Seeing his legendary drum set was a dream come true. | reddit.com |
| “They loom large in his legend…” – Ringo’s drums | The location – or existence – of Ringo’s Premier kit today, is unknown. Ringo does however still have a cymbal stand and the snare drum stand, … | arrivewithouttravelling.com |
📹 Ringo Starr’s Beatles’ drum kit sells for $2.2m at auction
A drum kit played by Ringo Starr on recordings of some of the Beatles’ early hits has been purchased by the owner of a National …
Did The Beatles Remove Drumheads From A Hard Day'S Night?
After their first US visit, the Beatles returned to the UK and prepared for the filming of their debut feature film, "A Hard Day's Night." All original drumheads were replaced, except for Ringo's Jazz Festival head, and a new Beatles Drop-T logo head was installed. The film was inspired by the band's real experiences and featured scripted dialogue influenced by Ringo's humorous sayings. "A Hard Day's Night," the song, was released in 1964 as part of the album of the same name.
Primarily written by John Lennon, it marked the fifth of seven Beatles tracks to reach number one within a year, solidifying their status. The recording session for the song was conducted quickly, taking only three hours. Known for their unique sound, the Beatles self-provided instruments for the film, which raised curiosity about their recording process. Notably, the film features an iconic opening chord, whose technical breakdown was discussed by Giles Martin with musician Randy Bachman.
The Beatles filmed press interview scenes at the Scala Theatre in London, with dialogues reflecting their real-life events. All four members contributed to the recordings without separating vocal tracks, showcasing their collaborative energy. The film and album combined iconic music and groundbreaking filmmaking, highlighting the Beatles' prolific creativity during a frenetic era in their career.
What Drum Kit Did The Beatles Use?
During The Beatles' first US visit, a second Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl Downbeat drum kit, matching the one used by Ringo Starr, was procured. This arrangement allowed one kit to be utilized for filming while the other supported performances and studio recordings. The Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl kit, acquired by Ringo in 1963, became particularly iconic following their Ed Sullivan Show appearance in 1964, inspiring numerous American admirers to emulate the "Ringo kit." The second, 3-piece Ludwig Downbeat kit was sourced from Manny's Music Store in Manhattan before the Ed Sullivan performance on February 9, 1964.
Historian Gary Astridge meticulously documents Ringo's Beatles-era drum kits, detailing features such as similarities in drum shell hardware among the Ludwig Downbeat kits. Notable elements include an 8" x 12" tom and a 14" x 14" floor tom, both outfitted with P-4067 "Baseball Bat" tone controls. Although Ringo is primarily recognized for playing Ludwig kits, his initial kit upon joining The Beatles was a mahogany drum set gifted by his mother in 1956.
Throughout his career, Ringo played a series of Ludwig kits, including the 1967 Ludwig Maple "Hollywood" drum kit, which featured prominently in albums like Let It Be and Abbey Road. He performed with this set at significant events, including the Concert for Bangladesh. Ringo once owned four distinct Oyster Black Pearl Ludwig kits during the Fab Four era, with photographic evidence confirming substantial usage throughout. The original Premier kit used before transitioning to Ludwig remains missing, while Ringo's collection has included several other unique kits, each playing a role in his storied musical journey.
When Did Ringo The King Get His New Drum Set?
Ringo Starr received his iconic Ludwig drum set on May 12, 1963, delivered by Gerry Evans and Mark Goodwin of Drum City to Alpha Television Studios in Birmingham, Warwickshire. This remarkable moment marked the beginning of Ringo's influential drumming career. Sir George Martin, The Beatles' producer, recognized Ringo's unique magical drumming style, which, while not technically perfect, was infused with intuitive soul. Ringo's decision to switch from a four-piece to a five-piece maple finish drum kit stemmed from his desire for a different sound.
His first set of Ludwig drums was purchased from Drum City in 1961 or '62, a transaction that would unknowingly touch millions of lives globally. Initially thought to have started using the Ludwig Hollywood kit during the Get Back project, it became apparent that he had it even earlier, with his first recording, "Matchbox," taking place on June 1, 1964.
Over the years, Ringo played various drum kits, including the renowned Ludwig Oyster Black Pearl, which became his signature. His first kit, the Premier 58 Mahogany Duroplastic, was acquired from Hessy's Music Centre in Liverpool in September 1960. On September 11, 1968, he obtained a new Ludwig Hollywood Thermogloss Maple kit, coinciding with pivotal moments for The Beatles. The kits Ringo used were often customized for different tours and projects, with one identical kit ordered for The Beatles' first US tour directly from the Chicago factory.
Furthermore, the uniqueness of Ringo's drumming extended beyond his equipment; he was known for his distinct left-handed playing style. A golden snare drum presentation from Bill Ludwig to Ringo and The Beatles further solidified his musical legacy, emphasizing the profound impact of his drumming on rock music history.
📹 How To Play Ringo Starr’s Most Famous Drum Beats
Join Brandon Toews as he breaks down some of Ringo Starr’s most iconic drum grooves from The Beatles’ classics! Discover the …
Silly price to pay for a drum kit… RINGO HAS 5 OR 6 IDENTICAL LUDWIGS (BLACK OYSTER WRAPED) SO WHICH WAS “HIS DRUM KIT…. 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 ? One interesting thing to do is to look at photos of the kit in the Shea Sgig and compare the patters on the drumm tom tom and see it it matches the pattern that shows on the 2.2 million kit.
People you must understand, peace and love costs money. I honestly think Ringo does dwell on those Days of Beatle Hysteria. He does not even sign autographs any more. He said in his article, he is warning us with peace and love. Since he is such a busy man LOL 😂 Pete Best was a much nicer person and not that bad of a drummer.
According to Bernard Purdie (famous studio drummer from the 60’s and 70’s and today) nothing was recorded on these drums. In fact he says Ringo Starr’s playing does not exist on even 1 recording? Look it up, check out the interview in DRUM. He says when he released “the truth” he was black balled by the industry and had death threats because it was supposed to be kept a secret. He says he overdubbed and overplayed all the Beatles tunes before they were released. I think he’s crazy. You be the judge. I am a big Ringo fan!
The Beatles were the very first band I heavily got into when I was a lot younger and a huge reason why I got into music (and why George Harrison became (and still is) the first guitarist I heavily looked up to and my first major influence) and you just can’t deny Ringo’s mix of simplicity and technicality is why so many people picked up drums because he did so many unique drum parts that a lot of people wouldn’t think to play in a rock or pop setting. Also, two other songs I’d like to shout out as some of his best drum parts are Helter Skelter and I Want You (She’s So Heavy), which are still just as badass and two massive examples in the origin of heavy metal with how powerful Ringo’s playing on those songs are
What a creative genius. No matter what level a drummer’s chops are at – it takes creativity and imagination to put them to use like this. BTW on the album recording to Ticket to Ride the drum flams are actually different after the bridge… but in live performances they are consistently syncopated (as you demonstrate)… I wonder why.
I was in a Beatles Tribute band as the drummer (Ringo) And I’m left handed and play a right handed kit. I picked up how to play all the albums songs until Sgt Pepper. The fills on Day in the Life and other songs…had me writing drum tabs so that I could keep up!!! It is so hard to remember all the fills in many of those latter songs…that you’d have to play them hundreds of times to get the right!!! It’s not just 4/4 time!
I’ve been playing rock and jazz since the 60’s. It didn’t take me very long to realize Ringo’s creativity and skill. I’ve always said that not only is he good, but is the reason reason the Beatles had their unique sound. Had they kept Pete Best, they would not have had that sound. Each of them were perfect for their music recipe to be good. In my opinion, non-drummers or poor drummers were the only ones to criticize him. The better the drummer, the better the opinion of Ringo. He is not a jazz drummer or a rock drummer, he is a one-of-a-kind wonderful drummer and a human metronome.
I am 75 so I’ve been listening to the BS about Ringo being not so good for a long time. It was always wrong and I knew that in 1964! Ringo was and is great! So natural and musical. A real genius. Does anyone really think that the others would have chosen someone subpar? My favorite drummer in my favorite band for over 60 years now. Thanks for the great article and your explanations are right on the mark.
Ringo… What an absolute lovely human being. Guy doesn’t seem to age. Ive covered a few Ringo parts and they’re so out of left field that it takes a decent amount of concentration… You can’t just sit back on auto pilot. Also as a blues drummer feel is so important to me and Ringos got that down… He can swing with the best of them and his wiper technique is genius. I use it exclusively on all my slow blues numbers
Nobody articulates like Ringo. After listening to abbey road once I thought… the drums were perfect. Just listened to “Long, Long, Long… ” all-time, monster arrangement. Damn near cried. What the hell is he doing on Strawberry Fields? The Beatles were notorious for the voluminous number of takes and experimentation just honed him. I feel… Ringo is truly to be considered with the all time greats.
I’ll preface this by saying I am absolutely not a Beatles fan nor would I call Ringo one of my influences. But you cannot deny that the guy played an important part in music history and started a whole generation of drummers by his “simple” playing. I swear, if in this day you’re not chopping out with typewriter double kick you’re just no good. The older I’ve gotten, the more I realize Ringo’s simple playing was perfect for what it was. I’ve heard drummers in bands over the years cover Beatles tunes and it’s never just right BECAUSE of the drummer.
Medley. Don’t think it needs more explanation. 🙂 Including his only sort of drum solo. If you haven’t watched it, check out the Fab Faux’s cover of this. Amazing. Will Lee bassist from Letterman’s/Shafers band, Jimmy Vivino (Conan, Johnnie Johnson, and others), Rich Pagano, Frank Agnello, and Jack Petruzzelli.
That “In My Life” beat sticks out to me because it’s a take on the year and a half earlier release by Zombies She’s Not There beat. But then if you go back to Feb 11th 1963 there’s ol’ Rings playing virtually the same beat for Anna!!!! Go finger !!!!! If I’m lyin’ I’m dyin’ !! To me the “standard” NEW beat Ringo brought to the table starting in early ’64 that I hadn’t heard before in Pop was the beat he uses on You Can’t Do That, A Hard Day’s Night, I Call Your Name, When I Get Home and more…. those dbl pops twice on kick separated by a snare pop – that’s Ringo V1. 👀
Brandon I am going to sound like a broken record but you have done it yet again. Great analysis and playing. Several Commenters have suggested other songs for Part 2. My choice would be Strawberry Fields. I think what makes this tougher for me is the slower tempo and space between notes. Cheers. Bill.
Been seriously learning drums for about a month. The Beatles are a long time favorite and I can play the bass and guitar stuff and can’t wait to try these out! Also very great article work that shows all the thing us learners need to see. Before I use the search, I hope there are some Dennis Wilson articles too! Or Hal Blaine for Pet Sounds.
A drummer that I feel perfectly captures this style of “very sparse but fundamental unique catchy rhythms that repeat through the whole song and are an integral part in it” is Thom Green from Alt-J. You can hear it in songs like ‘Tesselate’, ‘Fitzpleasure’ and many others. He’s also quite a unique drummer that doesn’t use any cymbals in his kit, just the hi-hats.
Great article, although a few things to note: On “I Feel Fine” there’s an extra (ghost) hit on the tom making the second phrase a triplet; even hearable on the isolated drum example! And, fun fact, the “In My Life” drumbeat Ringo also used (previously) on “Anna (Go to Him)” from their first album! Fab! 😉
“I Feel Fine” also has parts missing. In the second bar there is a variation of the tom tom part with it changing to it being played on the “and” & “ah” of beat 1 and then only on the “and” of beat 2, creating 3 hits instead of the usual 2 as in bar one. A similar idea to what he used in “Tomorrow Never knows”. The beat also has a slight swing feel. This is a good clip of his left hand doing the 3 hits: youtu.be/WpYT9NhU_ds?si=VZXd-TwoGGfWuaHQ&t=86
Thanks, Brandon. This was great. Definitely have a much deeper appreciation of Ringo after this. I do little more than dick around on a kit and I hear all these things happening but never know how to describe them or consciously think about moving around time signatures. I will never play in a band, so it doesn’t matter but it’s really great to make it all more cerebral. Cheers.
So… I’m an ameteur musician. I mostly make music in FL Studio. Analyzing these drum beats, I’m struck at how much they remind me of the drums I write in MIDI (I don’t know how to play drums, and suck at writing drums lol). They tend to have this stilted, disconnected feel, with the hits feeling confined strictly to the grid, not in the sense that they’re metronomic, but more just the specific feel of the hit choices (if that makes any sense at all). Like, the best example of the exact opposite of this I can think of is Bill Ward from Black Sabbath. Absolutely amazing drummer, just sloppy as hell but always on groove. It would take a week to get MIDI drums to sound like that, even for the kind of person who could actually do it (which isn’t me lol). Probably among my favorite drummers. Ringo might not be the best drummer of all time, but he’s easily one of the most unique.
Okay so Something is off (lol) that way you’re playing it, i think he was keeping time on the floor tom and alternating between the tom and hi hat triplet with his left hand. listen closely to the recording, there’s still time being kept with the floor tom while the hi hat triplet occurs. it’s not as smooth as the way you we’re playing it but its classic ringo and sounds great!
The descending tom part in “Come Together” is not correct. Three tom tom tones can be heard, there are some slight variations, but the main pattern and sequence used on the toms is this: L R L on tom one, R on tom two, L R L on tom one, R L on tom two and then a final R on the floor tom. Try it and compare it to the original and see if it sounds more musical and more like Ringo.
Ringo Starr said the reason for the delay timing on ticket to ride is because he was playing left handed on a right handed drum kit set up. No othet rrason. It wasnt written that way. When the other 3 heard the delay they liked it and wanted to keep it. They even changed the guitar part to match the syncopated delay from Ringo.
Not shown here is the tasteful rim shots Ringo incorporates which make his snare drum sound like a wound up piccolo snare on “Ticket to Ride” and ” In my Life “. This subtlety of Ringo’s adds just the right character to the overall attack of the instruments, which in the case of ” Ticket”, was a ” Hard Rock” song in 1965 !!!
You can tell the maturity and musical intelligence of a drummer by the “drummers” who laugh at Ringo and call him garbage. That says a lot about how advanced these “drummers” are. Thats the difference between a Pro and a Joe when you have these people laughing and famous professional drummers who praise and understand Ringo’s drumming. The unfortunate part is these drummers are the ones that belong to that old joke about……… so how many musicians are in your band? ” oh we have 3 musicians and a drummer” Well that pertains to these types of drummers
I think Ringo plays the drum fill so that it ascends, not how it is shown in this article. However, I can’t deny that this article sounds close to the original playing. It think that with the way the Beatles recorded the drums — with the tea towels and tons of compression, the fill mostly sounds even so it’s just hard to tell the difference between ascending or descending. Who knows? The Abbey Road engineers must have tweaked the drum track to get it to sound like it descends slightly.
To those who say ringo played simple to fit the music. That’s wrong. He literally couldn’t play complicated parts because the needle that carved grooves into the vinyl would skip if the drums were too busy. I’m tired of pretending he was a genius for making things simple when I know that he was forced to play that way
People always get the “Come Together” tom fill wrong, but this is actually one of the closest plays I’ve seen of it. I think Ringo starts on left hand (in classic Ringo fashion) and plays T1->T1->T1->T1->T1->T2->T1->T1->T1->T2 with the two T2 notes being right hand and not playing floor tom at all.
If you guys really want to learn how Ringo used to play, search for people who spent their lives trying to emulate him (and it takes a whole life to understand him, since hes the most unique and “strange” drummer in Rock history). For instance, here in youtube you HAVE to search for people like David Montis. Its not the first time that guy from drumeo pretends to know how Ringo played, and he doesnt. For instance: in I feel fine, its not always two hits on the tom; first, there are two hits, and then you have three hits, repeating it every single time. Im tired of drummers trying to teach Ringos drumming when they dont have a clue. They are the reason why people think that Ringo was a bad drummer.
“I Feel Fine” is not quite correct. 1. The tom groove is the same as the ride cymbal groove. You would need to play an extra beat on the tom every second phrase. 2. I’m pretty convinced the backbeat is not cross-stick but actually on the snare. It SOUNDS like it, but listen to his pick-up fills. It sounds like he’s playing a very tightly-tuned snare. Plus Ringo has NEVER played this song cross-stick live.
you played something wrong. Ringo just plays the floor tom on every single triplet the whole way through with exception of the 1 and 4 of each bar, until the run down the majoy scale. he also plays the kick on the every beat and the hihats were also overdubbed ringo played the main tom part which is why you can hear the toms still being played underneath
well already you have “I feel fine” wrong. But that’s ok because nearly everyone who plays it gets it wrong. I was acutally surprised because you isolated Ringo’s drum track but then you failed to play it like that. The hit on the mounted Tom alternates between 2 eighth notes and 3 16th notes (or perhaps 2 16th notes and 1 eight notes). You can slow down the playback at 2:08 to .75 and you can easily hear it. I find it exasperating that you are teaching this and then don’t play it.
Am I the only one who really believes Ringo when he says he goes from right to left in Come Together? Everyone always goes “yeah I know he said that but it doesn’t sound like that so he’s wrong”, I feel like people wanna hear what they wanna hear in this song, I clearly hear the lowest Tom being hit first just like he says.
I believe Norman Smith was the only one who recorded Ringo’s drums right. Ringo never touched another tea towel again when they broke up. They appear constantly on McCartney’s work. I often question why you would put a tea towel on a snare in a “rock song”. I did a remix of “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” on my website that was solely done to amend what I think was a disservice to his drumming. And that was how he’s mixed. They gave him 2 trackss to record to when making this song, and yet he still ends up Mono. Where Keith Moon is full stereo on Tommy. This is where I feel George Martin’s radio days and inexperience with “pop groups” were a long lasting way of doing things in Beatles productions. I also don’t think Geoff Emerick is “all that.” Ken Scott. Phil McDonald. Alan Parsons. John Leckie. They’re all that. Anyway, if you’re so inclined the remix is on my website. I believe the finale shows how KICK ASS RINGO STARR IS. Plus it’s him and Billy Preston making that song work.
You can’t play the tom-tom as well as 98% of other drummers, it requires a really good musical ear. That’s right..youtube.com/watch?v=7KRAVdHgJiM Ringo is hard to beat, that’s why he was such an excellent drummer for the Beatles, his smooth playing and precise fills are the main feature of the Beatles and 60s sound
Oh, please, stop trying to play like Ringo. You are making people believe he was not a great drummer. You cant play like him. For example, you missed the most special part in I Feel Fine: first, two hits in the tom-tom, and then, three. You guys from drumeo shoul call the Fab Four’s drummer to REALLY teach us how to play like Ringo.