Ringo Starr’s Songs Helped Him Earn a Rare Honor in France
It’s hard to argue that Ringo Starr didn’t make significant contributions to classic rock music. He put the beat in The Beatles and found fame and fortune because of it, but living a life of luxury was never his intention. Ringo and his wife lived like simple people in their mansion; the money, honors, and awards were just side benefits of making music. Yet Ringo’s songs helped him earn a rare honor in France years before the British recognized his greatness.
Ringo Starr’s songs helped him find success after The Beatles broke up
Ringo probably could have retired at 30 years old when The Beatles broke up in 1970, but that wasn’t his way. The drummer felt the need to keep going. He found success when he did.
Several of Ringo’s solo songs found chart success in the United States and the United Kingdom in the early 1970s. His solo hits helped Ringo lead a jet-setting lifestyle that allowed him to flit between England, the U.S., and Monaco at a moment’s notice.
The drummer lived part-time in a luxury apartment in Monaco. The tiny European country was where Ringo received a rare French honor years before the English did the same.
Ringo made a joke as he earned a rare cultural honor in France years before Britain did the same
First, he made musical history with The Beatles. Then he continued his successful career with his solo work. Later, the drummer took up painting as a hobby outside of music. Combined, those artistic endeavors helped Ringo earn France’s highest cultural honor.
The French government made Ringo a Commander of France’s Order of Arts and Letters in a 2013 ceremony in Monaco, writes Michael Seth Starr in With a Little Help.
Being named a commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is France’s highest cultural honor. The drummer joined previous recipients such as David Bowie, Sean Connery, and Bob Dylan. Interestingly, Ringo earned the honor a year ahead of Quincy Jones, who once called out Ringo’s drumming and replaced him behind the kit while recording one of his solo albums.
Ringo being Ringo, he couldn’t help but make a self-deprecating joke during his ceremony. “I’m a drummer, but I can do other things, like painting, living, breathing,” Ringo said at the time, writes Starr.
France was five years ahead of Ringo’s native Great Britain in bestowing a cultural honor. The drummer was named a knight in 2018, no thanks to Sir Paul McCartney, who had a Ringo-like response when asked if he could help make it happen.
The drummer is the only member of The Beatles to earn the French cultural honor
Ringo might have been the least noticeable Beatle, but he is the only one in the Order of Arts and Letters. He earned France’s highest cultural honor several years after Ringo entered a hall of fame the other Beatles have no shot at joining.
Ringo Starr’s songs and other contributions to music placed him in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. His solo induction happened in 2015, years after he entered the hall with The Beatles. (Paul did help with Ringo’s solo entry, campaigning for his longtime friend to earn the honor).
Ringo Starr earned a rare honor in France when he became commander of the Order of Arts and Letters. He also displayed some of his artwork at a Monaco museum at the time, writes Starr. It took several years for Britain to catch up with the neighbors across the sea by bestowing a knighthood.
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