5 Musicians Ringo Starr Has Praised
In his decades as a musician, Ringo Starr has received well-earned praise from a number of other artists. He has also celebrated his fellow musicians. Here are five artists who Starr has praised over the years.
Miley Cyrus and Billie Eilish
In 2021, Starr presented Billie Eilish with a Grammy for Record of the Year. Afterward, he admitted that he counts himself as one of her fans.
“It was a great pleasure for me to do the Grammys on Sunday and presenting the Best Record to Billie Eilish who I think is just incredible, and Finneas who came through for me on my EP,” he said, per NME. “It was great to meet her and musically she’s great. She’s a beautiful human being.”
He wished he had more time to speak with her but still found her impressive. He also tossed in a compliment for Miley Cyrus.
“I would’ve loved to hang out and say, ‘Hey, what’s going on?'” he told Rolling Stone. “But I got in the car, I got tested the day before — God, that’s the way of the world now. Got in the car, went right to the venue, got out the car, into a dressing room, onto the stage, then back in the car. There was no real time. But I love her anyway — she is so great. I love her attitude. And I like Miley Cyrus, too. I like the little rebels, you know.”
Bob Dylan
Starr met Bob Dylan with the rest of The Beatles in 1964 when the American musician famously introduced the band to marijuana. Over the years, they crossed paths many times, and Starr praised his friend’s songwriting ability.
“You just got to love Bob,” Starr told ABC News. “My old-time favorite lately is ‘When the Deal Goes Down,’ and it’s just a beautiful love song … It’s this beautiful love song, he’s very romantic in a lot of songs, everyone listens to his wacky dream stuff, which is great. He moves me on that record. That’s why I like it. If it moves me, it’s the sentiment of the record and how he says it. But no one else can say it like that.”
He added that it would be impossible to compile a list of his favorite songs without including Dylan on it.
Taylor Swift
It seems like everyone is a fan of Taylor Swift these days, but Starr liked her music over 10 years ago. He included “You Belong With Me” on his list of favorite songs.
“Taylor Swift. I love Taylor Swift, that’s just how I am,” Starr said. “I love her.”
The Band
In 1977, Starr appeared onstage during The Last Waltz, the farewell concert for the Canadian group The Band. He said he’d discovered their music through Eric Clapton and had fallen in love with it.
“I loved the Band,” he told Spin. “I was in New York, George was in New York in the same hotel, and Jimi Hendrix was in the same hotel. And Eric was in town, and he’d just been out, hanging out with The Band. He came with the acetate of the Band’s first album. He said, ‘Oh, you’ve got to listen to this, man.’ And, we played it, we all fell in love with it. It was a great record. It stands on its own.”
