Ringo Starr’s Beatles Fame Was Worth $7 Million to People Who Weren’t Even in the Band

Ringo Starr saw his fortunes change when he made it big with The Beatles. After growing up in a working-class section of Liverpool, missing years of school due to illness, and playing in a handful of middling bands, he became a celebrity overnight. The Beatles eventually inspired at least one cover so good Ringo once kissed a musician who played one for him. Before that happened, Ringo’s Beatles fame led to a $7 million windfall for people who weren’t even in the band.

The Beatles made it big in the United States thanks to Ed Sullivan

The Fab Four conquered England in short order after Ringo joined in August 1962. They had a top-20 single on the charts two months later (“Love Me Do”), put “Please Please Me” in the top-5 on the singles chart, and saw their debut Please Please Me album hit No. 1 in the United Kingdom.

The Beatles took over the U.K., but they were virtually unknown in the United States at the time. That changed when they crossed paths with Ed Sullivan.

When he saw the raucous reception the band received upon returning to London’s Heathrow Airport from a short tour, he booked them on his show. That lucky break changed The Beatles’ career and opened up America for Liverpool’s finest foursome. They weren’t the only ones who benefited. Ringo’s Beatles fame was worth $7 million to one very lucky group of people.

Ringo Starr’s Beatles fame was worth $7 million to Ludwig Drums

Ringo eventually became rich enough to afford any drum kit he wanted and famous enough to have nearly everyone except George Harrison join his All-Starr Band. Yet in 1963, Beatles manager Brian Epstein bought the drummer a new kit.

An oyster pearl black kit caught Ringo’s eye, writes Michael Seth Starr (no relation) in the biography With a Little Help. The kit, unknown to Ringo at the time, was a Ludwig. It soon became his brand of choice. The drummer made the unconventional move of keeping the brand’s name on his bass drum head, which meant the whole world saw the name Ludwig on his bass drum when The Beatles played in front of 73 million Americans on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964.

Ludwig had annual sales of around $6 million before The Beatles played Sullivan. CBC Radio reports the Ludwig factory started producing drums 24 hours a day and saw sales double to $13 million after the Fab Four’s appearance. Put simply, Ringo’s Beatles fame was worth $7 million in sales for the Ludwig company.

“Ringo put Ludwig drums on the map,” drummer Max Weinberg said, per With a Little Help. “Before Ringo, to play a Ludwig drum set in England was very unusual. They didn’t have a distributor over there … Ludwig was kind of the also-ran. And before Ringo, drummers didn’t typically have the name of the band on the bass drum. The name was usually shielded with the drummer’s initials. Suddenly Ludwig had space for advertising.”

Ringo’s Ludwig kit sold for $2.2 million when it went up for auction

Ringo eventually traded his oyster black pearl Ludwig set for a mahogany set. The upgrade gave him a self-centered reason for loving the Abbey Road sessions. Still, his first Ludwig kit produced some of the most iconic beats of the 1960s, including Ringo’s self-professed weird drum work on the B-side  “Rain.”

Reuters reports that it hit the auction block in December 2015 and fetched $2.2 million. Jim Irsay, an avid music fan and the owner of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, placed the winning bid. It was by far the big-ticket item in an auction or Ringo memorabilia that netted close to $10 million.

One drum kit the helped produce a slew of hit songs and records plus international exposure ensured Ringo Starr’s Beatles fame led to a $7 million windfall for Ludwig Drums. And a $2.2 million price tag for what might be the most iconic drum set in history.

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