What real country music could sound like in 2025.
Life is full of surprises, and while a new album from 84-year-old Ringo Starr after a three-year gap is surprising in itself, the fact that it is a country music record does up the surprise factor. However, nobody should jump to any conclusions about “Look Up”, it is a serious country music album that plays to Starr’s strengths, something not all of his solo records have done over the years. Once you get over the initial surprise then it is maybe not quite such a radical departure when you remember that all four of the Beatles showed country influences and that Starr’s first song, ‘Don’t Pass Me By’ written in 1964 and released on “The White Album”, had a country flavour. There is also their 1965 cover of Buck Owen’s ‘Act Naturally’ which featured his vocals. “Look Up” can also be seen to be a direct descendent of Starr’s second album “Beaucoups Of Blues” which was recorded in Nashville by Pete Drake and the then-cream of Nashville players with songs specifically written for him.
Jump forward 54 years, and this time the producer is T Bone Burnett who wrote 9 of the 11 songs especially for Starr, and the musicians and guest artists are the cream of roots and country music in 2025 and include Alison Krauss, Billy Strings, Molly Tuttle, Lucius, and Larkin Po, Again the fact that T Bone Burnett helmed the album isn’t too surprising when you remember that he has been friends with Starr since they both appeared with Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Review in Houston in 1976. Starr also guested on Burnett’s Alpha Band’s “Spark In The Dark” in the ‘70s, and they have remained friends ever since. Burnett knows Starr well enough to appreciate the quality of his voice which is perfect for rockabilly tunes and country ballads, and the songs he has written fit Starr like a glove. The songs, musicians, and arrangements also also a benchmark for what real country music in 2025 could sound like.
T Bone Burnett’s first solo album “Truth Decay” brought rockabilly into the ‘80s, and the opening track ‘Breathless’ is pure rockabilly for 2025. Ringo’s drums perfectly capture the feel of the track which features Billy Strings on a timeless tale of the effects of love. Ringo is joined on the title track by Molly Tuttle who fits seamlessly into this tune on the need to remain positive no matter what current problems you are experiencing, on a song that has a more modern soundscape. The pedal steel and strings are in evidence on a country weepie ‘Time On My Hands’ about lost love that sees Ringo matching the sentiments of the song with his vocals and drums. Billy Strings is back for the country rock of ‘Never Let Me Go’ which sees Ringo declaring undying love. Molly Tuttle helps Ringo bring a more country-folk sound to ‘I Live For Your Love’ which was co-written by Billy Swan and Burnett, The past and present are merged on ‘Come Back’, a song that features whistling and dobro echoing the history of country music with Lucius supporting Ringo’s vocals with their modern indie take on country pop.
Molly Tuttle helps take ‘Can You Hear Me Call’ back to the mountain, and Billy Strings helps take ‘Rosetta’ down to the deep South with assistance from Larkin Poe and a more pronounced rock beat and electric guitar. The ‘40s and ‘50s when the blues and country music were still influencing each other are brought to mind by Starr’s take on Billy Swan’s ‘You Want Some’, and you can’t help but wonder what John Lennon would have thought as he was reputedly a big fan of Billy Swan’s ‘I Can Help’. Starr’s drums are to the fore on ‘String Theory’ with support from Molly Tuttle and Larkin Poe which suggests that everything in life is linked. The final song ‘Thankful’ is written by Starr and Bruce Sugar, and it is a testament to its quality that it blends seamlessly into the overall feel of the album as Starr is joined by none other than Alison Krauss as he sings his thanks to the the love that helped get his life back on track.
In the ‘70s Starr achieved his greatest commercial and critical success by redefining pre-Beatles pop music for the rock era with the help of his musical friends who provided tailormade songs and arrangements that played to his musical strengths. “Look Up” is more than Ringo Starr’s best record since his ‘70s heyday, because by repeating the model of his ‘70s success, it is also a statement of what real country music can and should sound like. T Bone Burnett has again shown his awesome production and songwriting capabilities by crafting a record that brings out Ringo Starr’s genuine love of roots and country music while ensuring it also reflects the best of the current crop of artists who have added pop and rock influences to their own roots and country music identities. All in all, this is a complete package that enhances the reputations of everyone involved, particularly Ringo Starr who has proven that his mid-’70s peak was not a fluke, and that “Beaucoups Of Blues” was not simply an idiosyncratic solo album but a true glimpse of his country heart.
