Ringo Starr marked his 85th birthday on July 7 at a star-studded gathering in Beverly Hills, California. The event, which took place in Beverly Gardens Park, was the latest edition of the famed Beatles drummer’s annual “Peace and Love” birthday celebration.

Starr has just posted a recap video of the event on his social media pages. The four-minute-plus clip captures glimpses of some of the 

The guest performers included Jackson Browne, Molly Tuttle, Lucius singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, and Sam Phillips. The backing band featured longtime All Starr Band drummer Gregg Bissonette, veteran country/bluegrass multi-instrumentalist John Jorgensen, violinist David Mansfield, bassist Colin Linden, and guitarist Dennis Crouch. Tuttle, Wolfe, Laessig, Mansfield, Linden, and Crouch all contributed to Starr’s country-influenced 2025 album, Look Up.

The video starts with footage of a performance, appropriately enough, of the Beatles classic “Birthday.” Browne, Tuttle, the Lucius members, and Phillips all contributed vocals to the song. The rendition features a slight lyrical adjustment to acknowledge the birthday boy.

The clip also captures Starr arriving to the party in a limousine with Joe Walsh and their respective wives, who happen to be sisters. In addition, there’s footage of Starr chatting with various members of the press. He tells one interviewer from Access Hollywood that the 2025 gathering was “the biggest we had so far.”
The Other Performances

The recap then proceeded to show some of the various other performances. Tuttle played a countrified version of “Octopus’s Garden,” augmented by some fiddle from Mansfield.

Phillips then joined Tuttle for a duet version of Ringo’s chart-topping 1973 hit “Photograph.”

Browne took to the stage to sing the 1963 Buck Owens country hit “Act Naturally,” which Ringo recorded with The Beatles in 1965.

All of the performers joined in for a rousing version of the Starr-sung Beatles classic “Yellow Submarine.”
Other Interview Segments

The video also captured other snippets of media interviews with Ringo. One journalist comments to Starr about the fact that Ringo had recorded a special audio message that was transmitted to the moon on July 7. You can find out more about the transmission at IntuitiveMachines.com.

Another journalist asked Starr, “When you blow out the candles on your birthday cake, what will you be wishing for?” Quipped Ringo, “New lungs.”The “Peace and Love” Declaration … and Birthday Cake!

For the finale of the gathering, Starr came up on the stage, joined by the musicians and performers, as well as family members, friends, and celebrity guests. Among them were Walsh, ex-Guns N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum, and Toto and All Starr Band guitarist Steve Lukather. After the crowd sang “Happy Birthday to You” to Starr, a psychedelic-colored birthday cake was brought out. The cake was topped with a white cowboy hat like the one Ringo wears on the Look Up album cover.

Source: americansongwriter.com/Matt Friedlander

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John Lennon was well aware of his limitations as a guitarist. When asked how he rated himself during a December 1970 interview with Rolling Stone, he didn't hesitate or waffle.

“Well, it depends on what kind of guitarist,” he replied. “I’m okay. I’m not technically good, but I can make it fucking howl and move.

“I was rhythm guitarist. It’s an important job. I can make a band drive.”

There’s no denying Lennon’s rhythm guitar talents. From his chord voicings to his impeccable timing and sense of dynamics, he combined the skills, knowledge and drive that made him one of rock’s greatest rhythm guitarists.

One of his standout moments comes early in the Beatles’ catalog, on 1963’s “All My Loving,” where he pushes the verses along with steady triplet strumming. He does it while flawlessly navigating chord changes every measure on his 1958 Rickenbacker 325 Capri electric, making for a remarkable show of stamina and precision.

In his 1980 Playboy interview, Lennon called the song “a damn good piece of work,” before adding, “but I play a pretty mean guitar in back.”

For all his rhythm work in the Beatles, Lennon played only a few guitar solos. They include the first solo in “Yer Blues,” the lap-steel slide work on “For You Blue,” the bluesy solo breaks on “Get Back,” and the third, sixth and ninth solos on “The End,” among a few others.

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But there’s one solo of his that impressed Beatles guitarist George Harrison above the others. And it’s not even on a rock and roll track — it’s on one of Paul McCartney’s so-called “granny" songs, as Lennon dubbed his songwriting partner’s old-timey tunes.

The solo is on “Honey Pie,” from the Beatles’ White Album. It’s brief — just four measures — but, stylistically, it’s right on the money.

Source: guitarplayer.com/Christopher Scapelliti

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Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono's relationship was notoriously strained even before The Beatles split up, but it was what she later said about the legendary musician that hurt him the most

The legendary Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono, widow of fellow Beatle John Lennon, had a tumultuous relationship that persisted long after the iconic band went their separate ways.‌ The friction between them started when Lennon began inviting Ono into the studio, granting her an up-close view of The Beatles' creative sessions during the recording of their final albums. McCartney, in particular, was peeved by her presence, feeling his bond and musical collaboration with Lennon diminished as Ono became more involved.

‌After Lennon's tragic passing in 1980, McCartney often found himself the target of Ono's sharp words in media interviews, where she made some rather bold accusations and didn't shy away from expressing harsh criticisms about the Jet singer.

In the Peter Jackson-directed docuseries, The Beatles: Get Back, viewers witness a candid McCartney expressing his genuine sentiments regarding the impact of Lennon and Ono's partnership on the band.  Paul McCartney revealed Yoko Ono's harsh words about him

McCartney is captured saying to others in the studio, "See, but their point is that they're trying to like be as near together as they can," referring to Lennon and Ono's desire to remain inseparable. "They wanna stay together, those two. So, it's alright. Let the young lovers stay together. But it's not that bad, you know. We got a lot out of The Beatles, so that if I think John's thing now, if it came to a push between Yoko and The Beatles, it's Yoko."

Source: irishstar.com/Hannah Furnell

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In the early days of The Beatles, the Fab Four often modeled their work and their look after Elvis Presley. They covered several of his songs early on and didn’t hide their appreciation for him. However, after The Beatles broke up and Presley’s act had changed, John Lennon once expressed his dislike for The King.

Over a couple of decades, Lennon had seemingly changed his mind about Elvis Presley. Much of it came down to Presley’s theatrical movements, his over-the-top stage acts, and even the music itself. Lennon explained the lack of love to Rolling Stone in 1971.

“This is interesting: in the early days in England, all the groups were like Elvis and a backing group, and The Beatles deliberately didn’t move like Elvis,” said Lennon. Although The Beatles admired Presley, they apparently didn’t like his dance moves. “That was our policy because we found it stupid and bulls–t.”  John Lennon Once Explained Why He Fell Out of Love With Elvis Presley

The Beatles’ stoic stage act worked for them. At least, for a time. When The Rolling Stones burst onto the scene, Elvis-like movements became the big new thing. “Then Mick Jagger came out and resurrected ‘bulls–t movement,’ wiggling your arse,” John Lennon continued. “So then people began to say The Beatles were passé because they don’t move. But we did it as a conscious move.”

Lennon mentioned that in their early days, The Beatles used to move around the stage much more. “When we were younger, we used to move, we used to jump around and do all the things they’re doing now,” he said. But they quickly decided that wasn’t the look they were going for.

Source: americansongwriter.com/Lauren Boisvert

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Everybody, well, mainly everybody, seemingly knows the name George Harrison. He is one of the most famous guitar players of all time, and a former member of the most famous band of all time, The Beatles. Harrison was an innovator, a trailblazer, and a musician who extensively experimented with a plethora of different sounds. One decade of music that isn’t known for this type of musical experimentation—The 1980s.

By the time the 1980s rolled around, Harrison was well underway in his solo career. Specifically, Harrison had released acclaimed albums, All Things Must Pass, Living in the Material World, Dark Horse, as well as three others. Harrison was cranking out music, but in the 80s, he cut that number in half, as he only released three solo albums during the decade. Matter of fact, Harrison took a five-year hiatus between the albums Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine.

There is no definitive reason as to why Harrison’s musical production slowed down, and we aren’t here to assume. However, in a 1980s interview with Guitar Player Magazine, Harrison divulged his displeasure with the business antics and redundant musical tropes of the decade.

Source: americansongwriter.com/Peter Burditt

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Sometimes when you go to the record store and flip through an artist’s section, you’ll find some odd albums that aren’t typically included in their discography. Whether it’s an alternative version of a record or a compilation (official or otherwise), there is often a larger story at play in a musician’s catalog than a simple list of their studio albums. The Beatles’ catalog is one that is far more extensive than it may appear.

The Beatles have many alternative versions of their records, albums that excluded songs that weren’t accepted in specific markets, and several compilations. Their discography is usually boiled down to 17 studio albums (in the U.S.), but there is a wealth of material awaiting any fans who are willing to dig deeper.

If you dig long enough, you might come across the Beatles’ rarest (and weirdest) album, Yesterday… And Today. Learn more about this hidden Beatles record below.  Yesterday… And Today was released in 1966. The record is a hodgepodge of songs that are more famously featured on other projects. “Nowhere Man,” “Yesterday,” “Drive My Car,” and “Day Tripper” are all featured on this Beatles album. As the title suggests, the project was intended to serve as a bridge between one stage of their career and the next. It was also an effort to introduce certain songs to an American audience. Though it technically served a purpose, it still feels very random in the grand scheme of their time as a band.

Source: americansongwriter.com/Alex Hopper

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