Whew! Beatles fans are collectively sighing a mass sigh of rock relief. Finally, the mystery of the carload of fans that Ringo Starr, the beloved drummer of the Beatles, snapped from his limo almost 50 years ago is solved. Unknown to many, Starr was quite the photojournalist during his time playing the drums for the Fab Four. During the Beatles’ first visit to America, Starr snapped the shot as oncoming cars passed on the freeway. This proved to be a tough nut to crack in terms of who these crazy kids where, because Starr admittiedly has a fuzzy memory on exactly where he shot this now legendary photo.
Well Beatles fans…mystery solved. USA Today, which recently launched a nationwide search to identify the fans, now has the answer. The gang of kids were from a New Jersey high school, and the five still living made an appearance on NBC’s Today Show this morning. Starr then posted a thank you to “the kids in the car for being so cool and smiling at me.”
This news received an extra boost of promotion because Starr has a new book coming out from Genesis Publications called simply Photograph. He recently held a press conference to promote the book and an upcoming tour.
Ringo and His All-Star Band are touring Latin America and winding up in Las Vegas at the end of November. At a recent Hollywood press conference, Starr played a mini set with his impressive rock mates including Todd Runngren, Toto’s Steve Lukather, Mister Mister’s Richard Page, Santana’s Gregg Rolie and touted musicians Mark Rivera and Gregg Bissonette. They all chime in and play on each other’s hits.
When asked why he still is on the road, Starr quipped, “I speak for myself when I say I have nothing better to do. It’s a dream for me and I still love it.” Will he still take photos? “I don’t take as many as I used too,” he replied. “I realized I was so busy taking photos and videos that I wasn’t at the party. Now, I’m at the party!”
Watch the documentary of Ringo and His All Star Band’s first tour via FilmOn.
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