History: Another EP from Ringo once again working with Bruce Sugar and Linda Perry.
My own personal history and initial prediction: With this one coming out so late in the year, I purposefully didn’t listen to it so that I could hear it in its proper order. I imagine this will be another short and sweet record, though that last Linda Perry song doesn’t make me feel so enthusiastic about this one.
Review: Because of their short length I listened to all three Ringo EPs in a row, and I mention that just in case there’s a little bit of fatigue setting in. Theoretically there shouldn’t be – if you add up all three you get the length of an LP. This one was 16 minutes. I just can’t help but feel that with one exception this just isn’t as good as the other two.
“World Go Round” is another attempt at others writing in Ringo’s style, and unfortunately it just doesn’t work as well as the previous incarnations. It means well, trying to be a song of hope for someone going through hard times, but it just feels full of platitudes rather than heartfelt sentiment. Musically it’s not super special either.
“Everyone and Everything” and “Let’s Be Friends” are largely in the same boat. There’s well meaning intentions behind the lyrics but the songs themselves are just kind of bland and nothing special. Something about the “ya ya ya” moments on “Let’s Be Friends” just didn’t work for me at all.
Fortunately the EP at least ends on a high note with “Free Your Soul.” The credit no doubt largely goes to Dave Koz playing saxophone and Jose Antonio Rodriguez on flamenco guitar, but it’s also just fantastically produced and I think the style also suits Ringo’s singing voice really well. He’s done Latin inspired songs in the past, but this one felt deeper and richer than most of them, and I hope he continues to collaborate with artists like these again in the future.
And that is a wrap for now for Ringo. I continue to think that the EP idea isn’t a bad one for him. I hope he continues to use them to work with others, as being one of the nicest guys in rock and roll has clearly worked well for him on that front. Going through this whole experience hasn’t really made me more impressed with Ringo as a songwriter, but that’s okay. What he is good at, his drumming and his charming nature, remain and are enough for me to continue to want to at least give these a one time listen in the future.
Next Time: Nothing! We’ve reached the end of After The End! Paul and Ringo will probably continue to release albums though, so if I have time I may come back to review more.
After The End 