 Hey guys, welcome to the drum history podcast today is a really cool episode because This one is the gear of Ringo star this one originally aired in March of 2020 as just audio So this one is gonna be you're gonna hear the audio from 2020 but you're gonna see tons and tons of Historical photos videos everything that matches up to what you're hearing in the interview So it really brings it to life and gives this episode the kind of life that it deserves On YouTube as opposed to just being a normal audio podcast episode So a huge thank you to my friend niche who made this video for me. I hope you like this I'm gonna put niches social media handles on the description. You can check out his stuff Gary and Ringo's new book I'll put all that down there as well so you can check it out And I hope you enjoy this episode and learn about one of my favorite drummers Ringo star Welcome to the drum history podcast. I'm your host Bart van der Zee and today I am joined by Gary Astridge who is a historian and curator of all things Ringo Gary. How are you very well Bart? Nice to talk to you you too. Thanks for being on the show Ringo is one of those drummers that is just I mean He is one of the most well-known and famous and I would say best drummers in the world and I know that's Debatable when people compare him to guys like, you know, buddy rich or something But I'd say he is just he made drums what they are today. So this is great. Yeah Yeah, you know, I think I'm a little bit jaded but Being being a Beatles fan Ringo's fan from a very young age, you know, I grew up with them and Knowing him now, you know watching him play, you know, physically, you know standing behind him watching him behind a kit It's it's it's amazing. He has a magic touch. He does I think this episode can just be treated as all things Ringo. So why don't we just start with? Can you give us some history on Ringo a biography on on him? You don't need to go too crazy detailed, but I think it's it's really cool to learn more about him as a person all right, well, um, you know Ringo was a sickly child in Liverpool and Spent a lot of time in the hospital at a young age Almost died a few times in the hospital and While he was in there, you know, he he he said that he That's where he had an interest in drums. You know, he said that the nurse would come by with a little a cart with with different instruments in it and you know to give the kids something to do and he was just always attracted to towards towards the drums and When he was 15 his stepfather got him a used drum kit for Christmas and Ringo said that He went upstairs right a very small, you know, two up to down Flat and in which he lived with his mom and stepdad and it was like a row house You know, so his Ringo started playing and the neighbors were telling him to you know, keep the noise down So so so that really started him Of the mindset that just didn't like practicing, you know, so he just he just loved playing with with live musicians and Anyway, he got hooked up with Roy storm in the hurricanes They were a big band and in Liverpool and Ringo spent a lot of time in the summers They would have these three month gigs at these holiday camps and You know when Ringo would be there playing with the band they would play all kinds of music So he really learned a lot of different styles and from there he went on to the Beatles when he made up an offer in August of 62 and the rest is history now how old was he at that point when when let's let's say when he when he so Give me some ages here. So when he first got into music just help me get the time line 13 okay, and then the next kind of when he decided I'm gonna be a professional musician Yeah, 15 16, okay, and then how old was he when he started in the Beatles? Well, he went in at the August of 62. He's born of 47 be 22 years old Okay, and obviously he famously replaced Pete Best who was the drummer before who when the Beatles What's the story with that? What what happened there with Pete Best, you know, I guess there's a lot of different stories out there You know, I shifting through a lot of the information that then this is this is my interpretation You know when when the John Paul and George had an opportunity They needed a drummer. So they asked asked Pete and he obliged because he had nothing going on But John Paul and George am I well, it's pretty much factual. He had the drive They had the desire and obviously they had an overwhelming talent Pete was just along for the ride. So he didn't have that fire in the belly and I Think it was just showing time and time again and Ringo had it And then I think that that was the reason they wanted Ringo in the group is he had he was of the same mindset and had that makes sense Okay, so then he gets in the Beatles and as you said the rest is history where basically people see them on the Ed Sullivan show and Ringo has is one of those guys who have come up in I Would say, you know, every second or third episode of drum history Someone mentions the Beatles if it's about Ludwig if it's about vintage Japanese drums about how that just kind of you know, that boom of making kids want to play the drums and learn Basically stems from seeing Ringo play. So I mean I Feel that he has kind of responsibility of making the the drums become such a popular instrument because You know before him there was a lot of jazz guys, obviously, but it was just different, right? Oh, yeah, and I was one of the you know kids that had turned on by by the Beatles you know, I was Seven at the time when I when I saw them on the Ed Sullivan show and it was interesting for me because I was just a kid. I didn't have any interest in music at all and When they when they came on, you know, I just saw the way my family reacted and I Just the glade blocked on on Ringo and the following day my parents told me that I was banging on empty coffee cans and everything for me started right at that at that moment So that's so funny. Cool. Now Well, let's maybe pause here right in the middle and then you can kind of talk about we can go back and talk about the historical stuff but Then why don't you tell us what it is that you do and then we can go back and talk about some of his gear throughout the years and all that Good stuff. But so what got you into being? basically an independent historian and curator of of Ringo's gear okay, um as I said, you know, I Was attracted to the Beatles when when they hit the Ed Sullivan show and Even though at an early age, I didn't know anything about drums anything about music I just found myself fascinated with with drums And and I was zooming in on Ringo's kit and I just remember, you know Looking at the album covers, you know getting magazines when I could and What had happened was I started noticing That there were some differences and Ringo's drum kits and the look of them is is the A year starting going by you know from 64 65 66 and I didn't realize till later when it when I was a young adult that wow Ringo actually had different kits it just wasn't one noise to black pearl kit and The I started doing more research and it became a passion and so along with research I started uh collecting vintage drum kits all specific to what Ringo used And over the decades I've managed to amass a collection of drum kits and gear all specific to what he had And by collecting that really helped with my research and in what 2002 I think gentlemen by the name of Andy Babu came out with a book called Beatles gear and When I went through the pages and was focusing on the drums. I realized that a lot of the information that I Researched was matching what he was saying I just went to a much deeper level With with drums and at one point I thought okay, you know what do I do with all this information? And I thought I'd like to share it You know because I knew there was other people that wanted a Ringo kit and I figured If I created a website Ringo's beetle kits calm that that would allow people to learn about His kits and the blueprint was there for them to go ahead and find what they they needed and For me what ended up happening. Here's where things go off the rails being a Beatles fan It was late 2012. I got a call from the Grammy Museum In Los Angeles and they said Hey, let me give you some confidential information here. We just signed an agreement with with Ringo and his wife Barbara We're doing a an exhibit on his life called Ringo peace and love And they said so they're loaning us a lot of personal things a lot of beetle memorabilia And among them two key components are The drum kit Ringo used on the Ed Sullivan show Just to indicate the beginning of his his career with the Beatles and then The maple kit the one that Ringo used on Part of the white album on let it be and on abby road to signify the end of his career with the Beatles They said but we've run into a problem They said they even though Ringo gave us approval when we contacted his people in in london To obtain the kits. They said, you know what? Nothing's organized. We just have all kinds of drums here And so the people at the museum were frantically looking for information online and all I kept finding was my website So that's that's how I initially got involved Working with Ringo. That's awesome. So um, you are very much amongst drum nerds and friends here Who are very interested? I think in all the details about Ringo's drums Including his involvement with Ludwig if that was always the case What particular drums and finishes and and all that stuff that I'm sure you know like the back of your hand So, um, why don't you kind of take us through through Ringo's drums through the years? Okay. Um, well What had happened was Ringo had a an ajax drum kit You know like a lesser type model made in england That that that he was using it was the first kit that he bought and in September of 1960 At a music store in liverpool. He went in and he bought a a premiere drum kit that had the color of A mahogany duro plastic and it was a four-piece kit, you know a four by 14 Royal a snare drum a 12 by 8 tom a 20 by 14 bass drum and a 16 by 16 floor tom So he bought that and the reason he did was because the beginning of october He was traveling with um, his band roi storm and the hurricanes to play in hamburg germany and they uh, when they got there, they ended up being on the bill Uh above the Beatles, but they were playing with them and that's where we got to Meet john pollin george and So ringo used that kit extensively and And he had it when he joined the Beatles in august of 62 and It served him well. You hear you hear that kit on the Beatles first album. Please please me album So when you hear twist and shout, um, you know, that that's that kit um So what happened was in april of 63 You know, it was decided that um ringo really needed to step up to a high-end kit and then he uh always had a passion for for wanting an american made kit and I talked to him about this and and and he he said that uh, he Went to a music store called drum city in in london uh with with uh the Beatles manager brian fstein And uh, he said that there was this oyster black pearl Ludwig kit there and he said that's what I want. Um, so it was a smaller size kit 12 by 8 tom it was a downbeat set of a four by Um 20 by 14 bass drum and a 14 by 14 floor tom so, uh Ringo gets the kit, but he doesn't take ownership of it right then and there um, I asked him about the snare drum because ringo had a a jazz festival snare drum and um, it was documented that ringo Got the kit um, you know from drum city uh in april of of 63, but I told him that Going over and documenting his drum kits. I said your snare drum is somewhat unique. You know, it's not a traditional jazz festival That's five by 14. I said, did you yeah, did you know yours is five and a half by 14? And he said no, I didn't And I says well, did you stick did you uh, you must have special ordered it? You know, I said, I don't know What kind of snare drum uh originally was with the kit when you bought it and I says but There's a stamp date inside your snare drum that says You know april 18th 1963 so the snare drum was made in chicago It's uh, you know, you you must have special ordered it, you know, and he said, you know, he goes. I wanted a deeper sized uh snare drum. I wanted uh Uh a deeper sound in the studio. So said wow, okay, so so he answered that yeah, and um with that particular snare drum it lands up that um Uh, he just he just bonded with it. That was like his snare So he ended up using that snare all the way through the end of uh the beatles even even though he had different drum kits He just there was his go-go to snare drum. So what happened was in um, uh, when that when when the Beatles were coming to the The states for the Ed Sullivan show It was decided that uh ringo would get uh Another kit just like the one that he uh, the love wood kit that he that he now had and the reason was They knew or brian knew that the Beatles are going to be filming a hard day's night in march of Uh 64 so they thought okay, what better than to get the kit when we're in the states So an order was placed through drum city To the Ludwig drum company and then the drum kit was delivered to mani's music store in new york city And uh, so when ringo came across with the Beatles, you know, he brought his snare drum On his jazz festival like brought his cymbals and um, and they brought a new bass drum head That's you know with the the Beatles drop tee logo and uh So on february 9th the same day that they performed on the Ed Sullivan show is when ringo took possession of that a kit And um, so it was just used for a short period of time And it was it's the same kit you see on the uh the movie a hard day's night The drum head was changed For another Beatles drop tee logo and um In may may 31st of 64 Ludwig provided ringo Free of charge with his first drum kit and that was a super classic model You know 13 by 9 times 16 by 16 floor time and 22 by 14 Bass with a with another jazz festival traditional 5 by 14 Man, that was a uh good move on uh Ludwig's part there. Yeah, and and one thing that I found out um about that um, there was a gentleman by the name of dick shory who was an executive at Ludwig and um He's in his 80s, um, and we've become friends and in fact there was at his house Last summer asking him a lot of questions and interviewing him and and I learned some interesting things. He said that um When after the Beatles were on the Ed Sullivan show, uh, uh, bill Ludwig Uh, uh the second gave Dick the job of being the liaison working with Drum City and uh, brian eppstein uh to provide whatever ringo Would need so he said that um, uh They were trying to figure out at that time, you know, uh, uh What kind of kit can we give ringo, you know, they're going to be playing and and uh Uh venues that are so unique at that time How are we going to get the volume out, you know, and as you know or Maybe know that you know when the Beatles performed they didn't have monitors. They just had amps and you know It was very very simple, you know, and it was ringo, you know Just pounding away in the background. So he said that, you know, he even uh, he was sending different drums for ringo to try and and he says one of them was even like a uh, a 24 by 14 bass drum and um It sounds like things got too complicated. So ringo just just just settled on a super classic kit So um, so the one that he had was made in 64 And he used that predominantly until he got his maple kit in uh 68 Wow So so that was his that was his go-to drum kit on the majority of the albums. Now. Is he a gear head? No, is he a no no none at all. Okay interesting Yeah I kind of like that, you know, it's like he's like give me the drums and I'll play them and I don't really care, you know Yeah, you know, he knows what he wants sound wise. Um, but but he's been but he's not he's not a drum geek at all Um, you know, a little side note because even a lot of times if if I'm not a lot of times What if I'm with him and somebody brings up something about his gear or whatever? He'll just he'll just point at me and just say ask him. I don't know It was kind of cool. That's awesome. You can speak for ringo. That's you burned that, right? Yeah, so um, but anyway We're getting close to the end here. So in 65 when the Beatles did their Uh, uh summer tour of Ludwig supplied ringo with another Super classic hit and it was really just used for the tour and then After the fact maybe in the studio just for double, you know double tracking But ringo has a fondness for that kid He calls it his shade kit because that's the one he used, you know, chase stadium in front of seven thousand people and In in 1968, uh, it's kind of a cool story that I unearthed Uh Beatles the Beatles go to uh, india ringo's only there for a few weeks Um, and he comes back early, but the other three are there and uh, donathan Um, do you know of him? Yes. Yeah, thanks. No sunshine superman. I like it. So he was influential Uh in in giving the Beatles a lot of inspiration, you know, he taught john and paul like the claw hammer technique of guitar playing And um, he he mentioned to them That if they sanded the finish off their guitars, uh, they would have more of an organic sound and uh, So what what they did was I think with with paul pushing a little bit. They uh, they experimented where ringo Was took his one super classic kit that he was using from 64 and then he and then he uh, um mixed in his Maple kit, you know, so he was trying double bass and I guess it's cool. Yeah, but it just didn't work out. So so that was that was scratched But uh, um ringo used that kit With with the jazz festival once again, and he used it both with calfskin heads and with mylar heads or plastic heads You know, and and I think they changed up, you know, like when ringo was playing on the rooftop, you know that obviously the calfskin would have been, uh Uh, um difficult to deal with because constant tuning. So sir, well, they just went with the uh, Plastic heads man, and it's it's funny because it seems so like like now if someone says Oh, I went to the studio and recorded a major Album or major songs with calfskin heads. I'd be like that's insane. No one does that But I guess if you think about it, this isn't that long after The mylar synthetic heads had been invented. I mean that was what like 57 Ish 56 that I think evans and Remo were going at it. So this really isn't that far after that where I guess they were still sort of You know in vogue a little bit Yeah Yeah, and actually when ringo went to the calfskin It was almost like going back to what he originally started with because his premier kit according to ringo had calfskin heads So um, I found I found that very interesting. Yeah from there take it. What else did he use? Uh, that was that was uh, predominantly it so but what happened was so ringo um as of what? 2015, you know ironically he still he still owned Five of his Six original beetle drum kits the one that that is lost to history was his premier kit when they made the deal To take with drum city to purchase his first Ludwig kit They took his premier kitten on trade and um So what had happened was it was may 12th of 63 the beetles were Performing on a tv show up in Birmingham, England and it was a sunday So um, his kit was delivered then, you know, it was so so he actually technically bought it in April But but he took possession of it on May 12th And so so his kit came back to the shop. I met and know the guy who Detailed the kit before it was sold and um his ma is his name Is escaping me unfortunately, but the cool way that I got uh in touch with this guy I was when I was documenting the The 1964 super classic kit of ringos. I took off the uh Top head off of his saw tom and it was a business card inside Dave Golding was the guy's name Dave Golding drum city and I'm going oh my god, this has been in there for 50 years Um, so It did I land up finding I track him down I called him and it was funny because with him having the uh, you know Like a british accent and me trying to explain who I am and what I found and him being in his 80s It took a while to For it to click but once it did The sky was very sharp very articulate and then so he started telling me a lot of details, you know and uh He said I remember taking that kid in and and he said uh, he was I remember cleaning up He was and I remember that he was there was uh, he was a felt sash in the front that said the beetles And he says I was it was just dirty and filthy goes. I threw it out You know and uh, thank god. Yeah, so it was just an amazing story and this guy had so much information You know, he where he started out in 63 and drum city working in the um Service department. So he would he would be, you know, working on the kits setting things up, you know, making the deliveries and things like that And so so he was the the gentleman that installed the like rogers suvamatic tom mounts on on ringo's kits and uh, uh, so He landed a believing uh drum city in 1967 and and when he left he left as the store manager um, so so so the the the information that he had given given me was just um uh, so detailed and uh Precise and and I landed on meeting other people that worked at drum city that worked under him And those three other gentlemen all said Dave Golding said it It's true man. Yeah. So so it was great to uh to to learn that history Yeah, well, and I think everyone owes you a debt of gratitude for actually taking these kind of oral histories like that and literally, uh You know taking drum heads off and finding cards and getting to the bottom of it and uh, then being able to You know put it all into one place now I'm assuming because you didn't say anything about it And you said it was lost to history that premiere kit is just I mean realistically it could be in someone's garage or attic somewhere ringo's original premiere kit Yeah, it could be there was a story that that that it landed up in australia You know, you said i'm the guy who bought it, you know, and uh I said please write down all the details getting the kit You know like where you were what you did, you know And so so he gave me a very detailed story And unfortunately some of the things that he said Don't match up with uh beetle history Yeah, um, uh, so it was like you know what I this isn't this isn't really Um, uh sounding like it's totally correct. So You know he had up he had up uh He goes like I have a photo of me with the kit that was in a newspaper, you know and in australia And he sent it to me But it was it was really hard to make out the image and you know, so if it was a clear image then then you could see the uh the The way the swirl patterns were or are on the uh The drums of you know, mahogany duro plastic finish and then mesh them up with pictures of ringos kit So no there is no real way to do that. No No, that's interesting. It's one of those things where Let's be realistic. Everyone wants to be a part of beetle's history So to say that you know, I've got the ringos original premiere kit is probably just you know It may be it but if you can't tell then you know who knows but You mentioned that he used roger swivemmatic hardware on there Which a lot of people did in that day because it was kind of the most advanced Hardware and I know Ludwig stuff wasn't the best At that era even up through the 80s and stuff. Uh, it Wasn't great. But um, what other so was he using like a speed king pedal? I would imagine Yeah speed king pedal and when when ringos started out early on with his premiere kit, you know, he had like, uh, Ajax symbol, you know, he had the zildjans And um and zen Yeah, we did or not, you know, which I'm anyone that I found was pretty crappy Yeah, you see those and like uh in just looking through catalogs. It's always like, uh, well, we we offer zen or whatever and these in these other Like gretch had some and it's just an interesting I guess you got to sell, uh, you know a starter kit with something so, um Well, that's really interesting so, uh Now Where are these kits now? You said, uh ringo had five out of six of them. The premiere is gone Um, where are they today? Okay, um, here's the story on those. Um, uh In out of the five kits that he had in 2015 He sold one in december of 2015 at auction through julian's auction And um a little bit of a little bit of a background just so all this makes sense I should Lie this in first when I was going through ringo's kits and putting everything back together, you know At that time majority of the hardware was all missing, you know symbols are missing and And I pitched the idea of you know what? You can't you can't just put these you know drum kits if you ever do and you know out for display in a museum or something with the The the Beatles logo drum head missing no stands, you know Yeah, like it's the Beatles. It's you, you know, so I said I I have An idea I want to throw by you And I said I go I have a collection of drum kits and gear all specific to what to what you use I said let me provide that The whatever is needed to bring your five drum kits back to life to make them whole again and um A little side note his maple kit was really really in bad shape. It was the hardware was oxidized It was it was the inside of the shells smelled like Mildew yeah, and um So I said, you know, we got to correct all this stuff. So so he gave me the go-ahead So, you know, I was able to to to have all his kits right now look As they did when he used them and so As part of the process working with Ringo's um drum tech Jeff Jonas, you know, we ordered custom drum cases road cases to to put every kit in And along with details of how to set them up. So like once I'm dead and gone, you know, everything is in the case to uh Give direction as to how to properly set up the kit the way Ringo used it, but um So that being said Going back to december of 2015. So Ringo has the auction And he sold off his first Ludwig kit And um, it sold for 2.1 million dollars Oh my god Yeah, and it did not include the snare drum the jazz festival that came with it the one that Ringo liked he did He just said that's not going anywhere. Oh my god He kept that so with with the inf with with the gear that I provided um, you know, that was all documented, you know for anyone that that Was looking to bid on the kit and uh, uh, so the gentlemen that purchased it was Jim ursay owner of the indianapolis colts and uh You know, so he was well aware because in reality With what he bought for 2 million uh 2.1 million was uh The time which was original the floor time which was original The bass drum, uh, which was original, but what wasn't was the uh Front bass drum head the front hoop the the um, uh key rods and claws All of the stands the the speed king pedal the cymbals The stool all that was mine. That was your donor. Yeah, that was yeah Well ringo actually bought, you know, the things for me, but but really ursay didn't really get a lot You know original things From it, but he's a good guy. He's uh, I was at his office twice um Once to tweak the kit They haven't set up right and um The second time we're doing a documentary on something and I was asked to be there, but uh a little fyi um That drum kit is currently on display at the uh Creative artists agency in los angeles. You can you can google it, but it's it's you can see it in the lobby It's it's there free of charge to to to see it's encased and i'll be there Uh, I I installed it in November of last year and it'll be there until november of this year That's awesome. Yeah, everyone should go check that out if they if they're in that area Now is he a drummer who the uh colt owner who bought him? No, just a big beatles fan He also also owns i think four beatle guitars. Oh, wow this possession. Yeah. Yeah, cool So things you can buy when you're a billionaire Yeah, I mean you you it's funny because before you were like two million I mean 2.1 million and i'm like that point one Is enough is more expensive than any drum set that I could think of so yeah Yeah, it was most yeah, and so wringo loved me after that one You know knowing what he had before I got involved and and you know what else is interesting about jim ursay uh in november of 2015 a month before julians had an auction of a variety of rock and roll memorabilia and what went up for auction at that uh at that time was The beatles based drum head from the ed celibans show And jim ursay bought that for 2,050,000 dollars. Oh my god. Yeah So he's a big beatles fan No, man, that's crazy. Now did wringo I mean, there's no judgment either way now. Did he just keep that money or did he like donate that to you know Actually, it's pretty cool. What wringo did was um, he and his wife barba a number of years ago started a uh charitable foundation called the lotus foundation and um, uh, they both know, you know, meaning wringo and barba that they Had been blessed in in their lives. So They formed this foundation to help People long after they're dead and gone majority of their Fortune is just going to go. It's not going to the kids. It's going going into the foundation to help people and um, some of the things that that is going to is you know, there were certain things that that were negative and barba and wringo's life is you know, sorry the alcoholism Uh Ringo's daughter having brain cancer at one point So there's certain things where every year money is going to to to specifics And yet they they also allow people to email them write them to suggest Other charities. So so they'll take a portion of the money every year and give it to someone Give portions that they're to different Causes That's great. So yeah, so it's very very touching and so so he's really well grounded and um, uh, Just to be able to give back the way he is is just uh, uh, a nice thing because you know, when I first found out that wringo is putting his uh Drum kiddo for simple. Come on. I go I just I go I just I just put it all together. You know me On any of that, but once I understood, you know, they needed the wow factor and then once I would that uh What wringo's plans were so but that auction I think raised, um 9.2 million dollars Oh, man Yeah with other gear that he was selling and stuff like that. It wasn't it wasn't only gear It was just like, you know things from, you know Different houses because they even sold off some of their properties. They're just downsizing is you know Wow older So it's like, you know anything from like, you know, candle labras to you know, clocks and just just different different personal items wow Yeah, that's all it's all history. That's great. And then so the other drum sets. Does he did he keep his other original drum sets? So the other four he has they're all um, you know in uh, custom cases as I said and and they're in a uh um highly secured Uh fault, you know temperature and you control And uh, and it's you know kept in this fault with other beetle's memorabilia that he still has Wow Yeah, and that's so cool. It's good. He's keeping them and it's In a weird way. It's like it's just hopefully everyone kept their first drum set But I know personally I sold mine for like 50 bucks. It was just like a little kind of you know, junky percussion plus set But I'm every Couple months. I'm like, man, I wish I had that and ring goes no different I'm sure he's like I wish I had that premiere kit, you know I feel like that's just you you always it's your first love Oh, yeah, for sure. In fact, I can tell you a very cool story that that really nobody knows but um And this this just happened that it said it's bill related but not drum related, but it's still pretty pretty cool um, there was a gentleman that uh owned Ringo's crosswalk jacket and and what that is was the the black jacket that you see wringo wearing on the ebby road cover. Yeah, and um Uh brief story about that, you know ring go had it in in 1980 He was in a relationship and uh that ended and um The jacket was left behind in this this this uh in this woman's care And she just hung on to it and she auctioned it off on 2001 and uh, uh, a guy bought it and hung on to it and then he was planning on auctioning it Uh this year and uh, what happened was when he when he contacted the auction house uh The person that ran it uh runs it Knows wringo and he said to the guy because you know what he goes. Would you be interested in maybe, um offering this to wringo? He was i'm sure you'd like it back so so wringo did want it back and um, and I know the guy who owns it or owned it and um, so I get a call And it was like garrick and you call your friend and kind of massage this. Uh, I said, all right So what lands up happening the the the real short version? um Ring wringo felt you know what I shouldn't have to buy back What was mine? Yeah, that's kind of what i'm thinking. Yeah, and and and this guy, you know, um You know a very nice person great guy, you know His his his version is you know what I bought this as an investment, you know for my retirement and um You know what I just said a big tough just to just to you know, give it back so So without going into all the details with numbers and things Uh a friend of mine that also knows wringo steps in And um, he's a wealthy uh entrepreneur and he just said uh, I I shared him the dilemma I was in as I said I go I went from a guy that was uh told to massage the deal to Now it's my responsibility to try to talk this person into getting giving the jacket back to wringo and um, uh, and I said I felt like I never let him down with anything that I've done for him and I I go I just feel like I'm I'm boxed in I I don't know what I do so this person said um, uh, you know what call a guy make the deal and he goes and uh I go yeah, I go with what you know, and he goes I'll buy it He goes I'll buy it and I'll give it to wringo and he goes, you know what it actually he goes you're negotiating this he goes He goes we're gonna get it and he goes we're gonna give it to wringo so He's you know, we made the deal and then uh, so so you know, we're talking and I said well, how How um, how are we gonna get this to him? I said we do we want to wait to his 80th birthday in july And he said no, no, no, we got to get it to him sooner. Let's make it an early birthday gift so I said okay, so um wringo has no idea about this in effect when I keep getting asked. How you doing? I go, I'm working on the guy You know, it's He's not gonna auction it. So you don't have to worry about it. It's not it's not gonna it's it's not gonna go into those strangers hands and So we had the jacket we go to I call making an appointment to to go to wringo's house on february 22nd was a saturday and so I fly in and this other gentleman flies in and we meet and is so he's got the jacket in a Garment bag, which is what it came in You know from the uh this previous owner and I said I go can't just give it to him like that I go it should be gift wrap So we go into this uh store in Beverly Hills To to to get the jacket gift wrapped and and the woman said hey, you know what we're we're i'm short staffed We're busy come back in an hour and it's like you can't leave this, you know, so So we tell her he said here's what we got and here's who it's going to you know So boom they they took care of it So we go to wringo's house and um a little funny thing. I have to tell you We both get out of the car wringo's standing out in the driveway and He puts his arms out and he goes give me a hug brother. So I give him a hug And then this gentleman Who who does know wringo putting that well? He comes up to wringo with his arms out and then wringo backs up and throws out an elbow It goes elbow bump. I don't want germs I'm thinking of myself. Oh my god this guy just put a fortune. Oh my god So so we go we go into the house and um wringo opens The box when he takes the lid off, you know, it's it the jack was covered with really fancy tissue papers So wringo jokingly says Oh, you got me a box of tissue paper So he sees the the jacket and it doesn't click he just he goes Oh, you got me a black jacket and then he he pulls it out And me and my friend are saying that's history. That's your jacket and he's going like what they go That's your jacket and he goes heavy road. I go. Yes And he just went he just went speechless. He just he just was staring at it and he Put it on he puts his arm through the sleeve and he says I got short arms He goes this this fits. This is my jacket Your jacket and he really got uh emotional and he started to work down a hallway And so he started following him and then he goes let's walk like we're crossing the heavy road. Oh my god And but there was no pictures of that but um, but he got it He um, thank this and then he just disappeared And then I thought god, it's weird and um, because I thought he'd want to hear how he got it and things And then barba comes out and then she just said Um, thank you both very much. He just made my husband very very happy And wow then ringo came out and I guess he had to just compose himself and uh Um, and he just thanked us hugged us, you know, we had a nice conversation with him and um, but he was He was just he couldn't believe you know, I guess he just kept saying he goes I can't believe they did this for me. Hmm. Oh, um That that was a very special moment for me. That's unbelievable. I mean that you have the opportunity to do these things through Your passion for the beetles, which I mean from what I understand what you're saying You basically built this business Of you know being involved in this from the ground up and and look at where it got you I mean that's that kind of just goes to show that you're dedicated and passionate about anything you can You could hang out with ringo. You can hang out with the beetle. Yeah, it's a very it's a very fascinating story And and for me, this is all very normal. I found that I'm not a star struck person But but but I um Uh, I can see when I'm when you know when I'm around ringo or if other celebrities are there You know you and you see the way they respect him and treat him Yeah, you know, it just makes me realize, you know, like I pinched myself It's like, how did I get here? What are the what are the odds? But but the the the the life story for me is like Follow your passion because you you never know where it's going to lead and and I've never expected anything I never asked him for anything All I keep doing is even with this whole jacket and and and doing that It makes me feel good because the reality is You know, he's on my mind in my life the beetles him, you know every day, you know, since the time I saw them at seven So he's done so much for me and affected my life so much for me able to do something positive for him and not expecting anything in return is is very satisfying just to say Thank you, you know And and and and I think he respects me tremendously. I would say that with with confidence because I've never asked for anything and and he knows I have no hidden agenda. Yeah, really and and there was one time um After I put all this kits together and I did the auction and and uh, uh Some other personal things, you know, he he uh, you know, he would see me I would never, you know, try to start a conversation. I would just say hey, how you doing and um But just one particular time he just came in and sought me out and he came up to me and just said Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. He goes. Thank you for everything you've done And he said um because of your research. He said, um, uh, I've learned a lot of things I didn't know and more importantly You brought back fine memories of things that I had forgotten Then when he said that I mean I I couldn't help but cry so um, so so he's uh, he's he's a great guy He's I can't say enough about him and we're not even talking about his drumming No, but I think him as a person is just You know it he is drumming and I think that that is the opposite of the whole don't meet your heroes kind of thing Because they're not, you know, it might ruin it for you. It sounds like it was more than you ever Thought possible and and he just seems like such a great guy Yeah, you know what there's one thing that's interesting. It was there's uh one time, uh ringo was touring and uh Observe for soundcheck and I I know, uh, craig bisonette Who drums with ringo on tour? And greg and I are good friends so i'm standing behind ringo ringo's playing boys and um Uh, I look over at greg and greg's looking at me and he has his habit of like smiling and sticking his tongue out and stuff You know, so but but I just noticed certain things about ringo's playing and and I said to greg um I go hey, can we talk from it and just be serious? I said because I just really experienced something that that just was like so obvious And he said yeah, what's what is it? I said, um You know, well, I just noticed like, you know the little things ringo playing heal up all that kind of stuff I go but The point I wanted to make was He's got that it factor And you know and and I always say that you know if you took an example of you took one guitar Had it tuned you had three guitarists that all know the same song and you ask each one of them to play the song One of them that has the it factor is going to have everybody going like whoa Yeah, what do you exactly what are you doing ringo's got that? He's not it. He's got it. He's got it and and and greg just said Gary you're right. He goes it He goes every time I play with him. He goes I I you just feel it And and and that's a big part of what he's got, you know, he's he's just he's just got that magic touch Absolutely, that's a great way to put it and and it's just the right place right time the The even the the audio engineering technology The recording technology changing at that time with jeff emmerich and all of this stuff. It's just It's like a perfect concoction of of uh, everything is just right at that in that place I think ringo's the perfect drummer and it's just an absolute icon so Now as we kind of wrap up here You mentioned a little bit earlier about the bass drum head I heard a story and just maybe you can fill me in on it. Isn't there something where like Originally Ludwig didn't have their logo on the head And then he wanted it painted on there because he was so proud to play Ludwig You might have talked about it a little bit before but isn't there something with that? Yeah, the the the true story there is that when ringo Uh first saw his his his first Ludwig it did say Ludwig Ludwig There was a Ludwig um detail on on the head and and but the the little twist is that ringo said You know after he he buys the kit. He said the salesman starts trying to peel the the uh, the Ludwig Decale off and we go goes. What are you doing? He goes? No, no, no, he goes leave that on his slide week It's American. He goes. Oh, I want that on oh man So why was why was he peeling it off like what does is that something they did? I I have no idea ringo didn't didn't say I So funny. Yeah. Yeah, so but what happened was When you look at early pictures of ringo playing that kit And if you can kind of trace a timeline, you'll notice that you'll see you'll see that Ludwig Decale keeps, you know from from right to left. It just keeps losing letters and um The one story that I heard was that John would always pick at it and he got it down to her just said l u And then he would be making jokes on stage about ringo in the loo or you know bathroom jokes Oh, it's funny. So but but then the the decal was completely removed and um, uh, then it was uh painted on Wow cheeky john That's great any other um just little ringo stories. Well, let me ask you this too So is there any truth to the the comments that people will say that Hal Blaine played on certain beatles songs or bernard purdy played on beat? Yeah, you know, you know, it's it's all ringo. In effect, you know, it was a few years ago. I uh Did a talk at the Delaware drum show and then a bernard purdy was uh, also there as a guest to do a talk and um all I kept getting was you know Some of the people were coming up thinking it was going to be all right gary you're going to call him out And it's not doing that and you know and bernard is a very very nice guy But why he ever said that and why he sticks to it? I I have no idea. Um, that there's there's no proof. I mean, you know ringo's drumming is so distinctive Yeah, all the isolated tracks now that you can listen to They're you know, they're they're it just it just doesn't it just doesn't fit and and um interestingly at the at the drum show I was the first one to talk and then um about an hour later than bernard Did his session and then when he was finished You know, he see that there was packed, you know, so he but he set the table by saying, okay, I'll take questions But you know, it was basically I'm not going there. You know, he was like he knew, you know, and uh, Yeah, um, but but he just shut it down before it even got started and But but yeah, but he's he's a he's a very nice guy and very talented. It's just a gentleman Yeah, that's funny and and he's just known as being like that Like the boastful kind of like I'm the best kind of guy very nice But but maybe it was like a you know, it started as like a You know, I'm the man I could play with the Beatles and then it just turned into something crazy from there, but Cool. Well, I mean the Beatles are sort of surrounded with conspiracies and things obviously So that's also probably part of it with like, you know, the whole paul is dead thing. Maybe maybe that's that's ringo's conspiracy Yeah Well, any other fun little ringo tidbits you might want to share like, uh, I mean He seems like a great guy anything back in like the you know, the the the far out days of the uh mid 60s that that were Are worth sharing Um, well, there's a lot of things I you know, so I am working on a book So so there's a lot of cool things that they're gonna come out But what I found an interesting thing that that that I would note is that um Uh, normally if if people, you know, or have an opportunity to meet ringo They're they're normally told okay, you know what? Um, you meet them Don't freak out. Don't go bringing up the Beatles. You know, don't turn it into Grand you know inquisition and you know, it's just just just chill But but for me Ringo knows me is it's like this this beetle drum guy so so He likes to share information and it's sometimes if I you know, I'd never say hey I got a list of questions here. I'll just kind of say something during a conversation And one little thing I can tell you there was a gentleman, uh, that worked for zildjian named john de christopher. He was like artist relations and He he had sent me a text Ringo was on on tour and he said gary he was I'm gonna be seeing ringo and he goes check this picture out And it was a photo of a zildjian symbol and he goes I'm gonna give this to him so uh just So what happens is he gives it to ring or he gives it to ringo and um, uh They don't really connect ringo doesn't really play it whatever so a few weeks later I I'm with ringo and Ringo says hey he calls greg bisonet over and he goes What what's the name of that symbol and then you know greg says zen And he said gary he goes he goes what he goes What's a zen symbol he goes a guy gave me a zen symbol and he says I used it He goes I never used it. I never even heard a zen So I said well, I go actually it did And I said yeah, so so he tells jeff chonis his drum tech. He goes you got that symbol. Can you bring it here? You know, so jeff brings it and then so I said ringo I go I I knew in advance that that this guy was giving it to you I go So I I have a picture on my phone. I go it's from 67 You're sitting behind your drum kit in in abbey road studios and you can see a portion of the symbol You can see the zen symbol stamp and you could even it was it was a sizzle symbol. I said you can even see one of the rivets So unfortunately the zen symbol that this guy gave ringo that the john gave ringo Had like a more modern zen logo So ringo's looking at it and he goes I can't see it that closely on the phone I said well if it was on a tv screen you'd be able to see that it's a zen I go and and that's what you play So so he says well, what is this sound like I go every zen I go I I found was like not sounding too good I go I don't know how you got such a good sound out of yours. So ringo says well, let's try it So I I'm giving the symbol and I got my index finger through the center hole And then jeff gives me a drumstick to hit it and everybody's standing in a circle and also I go to hit it Now you look at ringo I go What am I hitting it for you? I mean, you know with the magic touch your ringo. Yeah, so it's really hits it And we all just look at each other. It was like, yeah, it does suck. Yeah so But it was this but the the the cute part is you know, uh Uh, yeah, he's not a techie. You know, I didn't even know what what brand symbols he was using. That's so funny I can't believe that he used that zen which again is just like uh I mean that's just Not sheet metal, but it's just like a you know Yeah, and you know, it's funny because it's it was like a five rivet Sizzle and so you hear it on songs like you know say that like the final hit You know on the symbol at the end of like in my life. Yeah, you hear it on With a little help from my friends. You hear it on something. Wow. It just sounds it just sounds good Well, it's got to be part of that could be the amazing recording techniques they were experimenting with and and uh And all that so that's unbelievable You know what else is the thing too is is with this is drunk at tuning especially towards the end with you know using a lot of the Uh, you know, uh teeth howls and things, you know that there was a person that I cannot remember their name You know just said that he was in the studio and he says and he you know, nobody was there So he said he was he was caring because I was hitting like the uh Bring those heads and he goes everything just sounded like out of tuning crappy So but but you know, however, they did it in the studio. It did work. Yeah, I mean that's like a That everyone kind of if you're experienced in recording You know that if it sounds sort of crappy in the room then you go in the control room and it's gonna be It's gonna sound great. You know, that's not always the case But it'll sound better in recording because you can you know, you kind of want that More flat sound as opposed to a way cranked snare. So man, you're like you you are ring goes Living memory. You know what I mean? Yeah, which is kind of it's an honor. Yeah, it really and truly is Yeah, I'm not a religious guy, but I am blessed beyond belief that absolutely this is a fan Well, it's it's your hard work and your dedication and um And I really appreciate you taking the time to uh share all this with us today and um before we wrap up I want to give a quick shout out to Andy Dwyer who reached out via facebook and was just recommending some people and uh, he helped get us connected So I really appreciate it. I love when all you guys and girls out there do that and um Can help out with the show. So, um Yeah, gary, why don't you tell people where they can find you tell them your website You said you're working on a book give us that whole run through and then we'll uh, we'll wrap it up Okay. Well, the website is ring goes beetle singular a kits plural.com And the contact information is there The book is uh, it's it's been a slow process but Too many distractions, but um, but but that's coming along. Um, right now. It looks like it'll it'll be coming out First quarter second quarter of next year That's great. You have a lot of yeah a lot of uh information that that um, uh, never been told That's cool. And you obviously do presentations on this like you mentioned at like the Delaware drum show with joey boom and uh It is the Chicago drum show. Hopefully that that's going to take place in may and um, yes I can go into the uk in october for the, um, vintage drum show There in coventry That's great. Um, yeah, and then I got a few other talks of i'll be doing around around the country while i'm in the uk like in london at I remember the name of the place but um, uh, but in you know, london wales So man, yeah follow your dreams. You know that you can tell you this this is what can happen Yeah, yes, everybody follow your dreams. Follow your passions. Did you never? Yeah Great. Well gary as ringgo says peace and love and uh I appreciate you being on the show. Thanks so much and and I uh, I recommend I'll put all your info on the show Notes and everyone should keep an eye out and go check out gary at a uh drum show near you. Thanks bark. I appreciate it