Happy 80th Birthday, Ringo Starr! Ex-Beatles drummer says he's “aiming for 100”

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Credit: Scott Robert RitchieWould you believe Ringo Starr turns 80 today?! The legendary drummer became one of the most famous and beloved musicians on the planet after joining The Beatles in 1962, and went on to enjoy a chart-topping solo career in the 1970s.

For the last 30 years, Ringo has mounted many successful tours with his All Starr Band, a group made up of various fellow rock stars that back Starr on versions of his classic Beatles and solo tunes while also showcasing some of their own hits.

As previously reported, since he isn’t able to play live or host his usual annual public “Peace and Love” birthday celebration this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Starr will be presenting an hour-long special tonight called Ringo’s Big Birthday Show that will be streamed on YouTube and broadcast on AXS TV at 8 p.m. ET. The event will feature a mix of newly created video performances and unseen archival concert footage featuring Ringo and the All Starrs, Paul McCartney, Joe Walsh, Dave Grohl, Sheryl Crow and many others.

During a recent Zoom press conference, Ringo was asked, as he approached the big 8-0, how old he actually felt.

“I feel like I’m 24,” Starr said, explaining that he picked that age several years ago when one of his sons was about to turn 40.

“He was like…’I don’t feel 40. I feel like I’m 27,'” Starr recalls. “And I said, ‘You cannot be 27. I am only 24.'”

As for how he feels about reaching the milestone age,” Ringo said, “[H]ow should I feel?…[N]ow it seems [that] there’s a lot of people a hundred out there. So I’m just aiming for a hundred.

He added with a laugh, “I’ll still be playing.”

By Matt Friedlander
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