Ringo Starr Said His Love Life Got in the Way of His Music

TL;DR:

• Ringo Starr said his career went downhill after one of his albums.
• He said he stopped caring as much about his music and more about his sex life.
• He felt one of his later albums was an artistic comeback.

Ringo Starr discussed the reason he had the chance to make albums. He said his career went downhill after he released one of his most famous albums. Subsequently, he said he was responsible for the decline of his recordings.

Why Ringo Starr felt he was able to make solo albums because of The Beatles’ music

Ringo released his album Time Takes Time in 1992. That same year, Rolling Stone asked him if it felt odd that two decades had passed since he started releasing solo albums.

“Yes, it is,” he said. “Not to mention 25 years since that other album by those other guys — the one about the sergeant. And thanks be to God. I suppose I got that chance because The Beatles became such monsters.”

Ringo Starr said he was often more concerned with going home with other people than he was with making music

The interviewer said Time Takes Time was the best album he released in nearly 20 years. The interviewer asked Ringo if he was confident he could make a great record again. “There’s two answers to that one,” he said. “For one thing this is the first time since the Ringo album that I put this much energy into making an album. After Ringo and maybe Goodnight Vienna, I started tearing it up and turning up less and less. 

“That’s going to show in anyone’s art,” he added. “For a lot of those albums, I was just in a hurry to get home — or, more often, someone else’s home.” 

He contrasted himself with the other surviving Beatles. “The other thing is that — unless you’re interviewing Paul or George — you’re talking to a guy who’s been in the business longer than most,” he said. “When you’re around this long, you’re going to have ups and downs. In my case, after the Ringo record it was downhill.”

The album produced 3 major songs, 2 of which topped the chart in the United States

Ringo became the singer’s biggest album in the United States. It reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for a total of 37 weeks. 

The singles from Ringo were popular as well. Two of the songs from the album — “Photograph” and a cover of Johnny Burnette’s “You’re Sixteen” — topped the Billboard Hot 100 for a week each. They became the singer’s only No. 1 singles. Meanwhile, the third single from the album, “Oh My My,” hit No. 5.

Ringo was a very successful album even if the singer felt his career went downhill after that.