Nothing says “peace and love” like a capacity crowd singing along to every single selection on the set list. But, indeed, it was peace, love and a full slate of great vibes on the docket when Ringo Starr and his All-Star band rolled into the Windy City to play a sold-out show as they kicked off their fall tour at the historic Chicago Theatre on September 10th.
The crowd was on their feet from the start when the rock icon came onstage to perform his early 1964 Beatles hit, “Honey Don’t.” After that rousing opener, he asked the crowd, “Are you ready to hear some good music?” He then proclaimed that “every one of you in this building will know at least one song” before launching into “It Don’t Come Easy.”
Singing along certainly did come easy for the crowd since Ringo’s cohorts all have recorded their share of popular hits. The first example of this was the classic rock favorite “Rosanna” with Steve Lukather at the helm. The former Toto lead guitarist has been with the All-Star band since 2012 and said he was proud to be a part of “the greatest gig in the world,” before adding that it was “such an honor to be on the same stage with my hero and close personal friend, Ringo Starr.”
This was a sentiment shared with the other All-Stars on stage as Ringo continues to display the same affability and friendly demeanor at the age of 85 as he did during his early Beatle days. Despite the many Grammy awards, British knighthood, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductions, and a long list of other honors and accolades, he seems to be the ultimate team player and cheerleader for all who join him on stage.
In fact, shortly after his first two songs, Ringo stepped back to his familiar spot behind the drums to let the other All-Stars shine with their material. Hamish Stuart from the Average White Band took the multi-generational crowd back to 1975 with an inspired version of “Pick Up the Pieces” before turning the mic over to Colin Hay of Men at Work fame who performed the 1982 hit “Down Under.”
Ringo returned to sing lead on a few more tunes from his vast catalog including “Boys,” “I’m the Greatest,” and “Yellow Submarine.” These songs were interspersed with stories from his long and illustrious career as he shared everything from the fact that he has been singing “Boys” since the age of eighteen and that John Lennon penned “I’m the Greatest” but passed the song on to Ringo because Lennon felt silly singing it.
Following this trifecta of hits, Ringo then excused himself to have a spot of tea backstage while allowing his drumming mate to take center stage. After Hamish Stuart had the crowd dancing to “Cut the Cake,” Greg Bissonette showed his range with a medley of hard-hitting drum solos on a wide spectrum of classic rock favorites.
Longtime All-Star band member Warren Ham also showcased his versatility on everything from flute and saxophone to harmonica and backing vocals besides hitting the higher notes on Toto’s “Africa.” Recent All-Star band recruit and former Aerosmith member Buck Johnson was on keyboards and contributed backing vocals.
Another highlight of the night was when Ringo did “Look Up” from his recent country-styled release of the same name. This was followed by the “No-No” song where he looked back on the fact that if hadn’t embraced sobriety in the eighties, he wouldn’t be around to perform.
Lucky for us, the former Richard Starkey is still living his best life and surrounding himself with a cast of talented musicians as the All-Stars rolled along and played popular songs like “Who Can it Be Now,” a cover of the Isley Brothers “Work to Do,” and Toto’s “Hold the Line.”
The show closed out on a high note when Ringo and his All-Star cohorts joined together on the familiar lyrics of “Little Help from My Friends” before segueing into the Plastic Ono Band’s “Give Peace a Chance” as the final number. But, as the fans filed out of the Chicago Theatre, it’s safe to say that all were happy to have the chance to see a piece of musical history perform live.
