All Ringo Starr's 11 Beatles songs, ranked from worst to best

1 October 2026, 13:51

Ringo Starr and The Beatles. Picture: Alamy

By Mayer Nissim

Ringo Starr sang lead on 11 of the Beatles 200+ songs - and we've ranked them all the way to the toppermost of the poppermost.

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"Ringo wasn’t even the best drummer in the Beatles," joked Philip Pope in a Radio Active gag written by Geoffrey Perkins in 1981.

That was obviously a joke. Ringo Starr was not just the best drummer in the group but an all-timer behind the kit thanks to his impeccable rhythm and supremely intuitive and creative playing.

But although he's released 22 solo albums (more than George or John and second only to Paul), we won't argue that he wasn't the best singer or songwriter in the band, though.

With competition from Lennon, McCartney and George Harrison, it doesn't even seem fair to raise the notion. Still, he wasn't too shabby behind the mic on the rare moments he got the opportunity.

Ringo did write a couple of Beatles songs all by himself (with co-writes on a handful of others), and in total he took lead vocals on 11 of the 213 songs they released during his lifetime.

And below we've ranked all 11 up to the very best.

What Goes On – from Rubber Soul (1965)

What Goes On (Remastered 2009)

One of the few Beatles songs on which Ringo got a co-write, this Rubber Soul number is the only one in the whole Fab Four catalogue credited to Lennon–McCartney–Starkey.
The influence of country and rockabilly on rock 'n' roll in general and The Beatles in particular has often been understated, and on many occasions they gave the more country-tinged tunes to Ringo to sing.
That was true of their own attempt to write in that genre. Lennon had a draft knocking about since 1963 but George Martin was unimpressed, and Macca finished it off with a little sprinkling of Ringo's words (he claimed just a handful) to earn his name alongside theirs.
Knocked off in one short overnight session, it was a rare bit of filler on what would later be celebrated as one of the band's best albums.
Matchbox – from the Long Tall Sally EP (1964)

Matchbox (Remastered 2009)

Carl Perkins took some lyrical influence from Blind Lemon Jefferson (and maybe Ma Rainey too) for his 1956 rockabilly B-side, which featured then Sun-session player Jerry Lee Lewis on piano.
In the early Beatles set, it was Pete Best who sung the track in 1961 and 1962. When Best was axed, Lennon sung it in their set for a bit, before Ringo took over on stage in 1963, and he got the nod when they did ti in the studio for the Long Tall Sally EP.
Carl Perkins was actually in the studio, and poor Ringo battled a sore throat that developed into full-on tonsilitis that kept him off the world tour with Jimmie Nicol taking his place.
But throaty Ringo actually suits the song pretty well, and George Martin did the business on piano in place of Lewis.
Act Naturally – from Help! (1965)

Act Naturally (Remastered 2009)

Written by Johnny Russell, 'Act Naturally' was a US country number one for Buck Owens and the Buckaroos in 1963.
The Beatles recorded their version in 1965 for Help! and it being a country song made it an obvious pick for a Ringo number. Well, that was after a failed attempt to record 'If You've Got Trouble' to anyone's satisfaction, with that Ringo-sung number failing to make either the film or the album (it would later surface on Anthology 2).
With the Lennon-McCartney partnership blossoming (and Harrison stepping up too) 'Act Naturally' ended up being the last cover The Beatles recorded until they did 'Maggie Mae' during the Get Back sessions in 1969.
Don't Pass Me By – from The Beatles (aka The White Album) (1968)

Don't Pass Me By (Remastered 2009)

After 'What Goes On' and 1967's instrumental 'Flying' (attributed to Lennon, McCartney, Harrison, Starr), came Ringo's first sole songwriting credit.
Everyone got to stretch their individual limbs on The Beatles (aka The White Album) and even Starr was no exception. He wrote (and sang) this country-tinged stompy rocker that nestled between Macca's more frivolous 'Rocky Racoon' and 'Why Don't We Do It in the Road?'.
'Don't Pass Me By' actually dated from Ringo's earliest days in the group in August 1962 (and MccCartney gently teased him by singing a snatch of it on the radio a couple of years later.
"I wrote 'Don't Pass Me By' when I was sitting round at home," Ringo was quoted as saying in Anthology.
"I was fiddling with the piano – I just bang away – and then if a melody comes and some words, I just have to keep going. It was great to get my first song down, one that I had written.
"It was a very exciting time for me and everyone was really helpful, and recording that crazy violinist [Jack Fallon] was a thrilling moment."
It's not bad, and doesn't disgrace The White Album by any stretch, adding to the album's kitchen sink madness that makes it what it is.
Honey Don't – from Beatles For Sale (1964)

Honey Don't (Remastered 2009)

Like 'Matchbox', another Carl Perkins number – this one originally released a the flip of 'Blue Suede Shoes' in 1956.
The Beatles played plenty of Perkins on stage in their early days and this was actually one of John's on the stage, but was handed over to be Ringo's song on Beatles for Sale (which had five covers among its 14 tracks).
Recorded in five takes on the last day of sessions for the record, it's an enjoyable romp, elevated by Ringo's carefree shoutouts to his guitarist ("Rock on George, one time for me...Rock on, George, for Ringo one time!")
Boys – from Please Please Me (1963)

Boys (Remastered 2009)

The Beatles loved a US girl group. Written by Luther Dixon and Wes Farrell, The Shirelles recorded 'Boys' for the B-side of their massive 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow', which was released in November 1960.
Like 'Matchbox', it was Pete Best that originally sung The Beatles version on tour. Co-incidentally around about the same time Ringo was singing the track when in Rory Storm's band (sometimes with Cilla Black lending a hand).
Recorded in one take, It was Ringo's first lead vocal on a Beatles recording, and set out the idea that he'd have one song per record going forward.
"It was a little embarrassing because it went, 'I'm talking about boys - yeah, yeah - boys'," Paul was later quoted as saying in Anthology.
"We never thought we should call it Girls, just because Ringo was a boy. We just sang it the way they'd sung it and never considered any implications."
That said, they did change a few of the pronouns ("My girl says when I kiss her lips.").
I Wanna Be Your Man – from With The Beatles (1963)

I Wanna Be Your Man (Remastered 2009)

From their earliest days, Lennon and McCartney were gifting songs to other artists. Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Fourmost, Peter & Gordon and others.
Probably the most impactful was 'I Wanna Be Your Man', apparently finished right in front of The Rolling Stones and handed over to them to record as their second single.
"We were friends with them, and I just thought "I Wanna Be Your Man" would be good for them," McCartney later told Rolling Stone. "I knew they did Bo Diddley stuff. And they made a good job of it."

I Wanna Be Your Man (Mono)

They did, but waste not want not, and The Beatles recorded their own version for second album With the Beatles. And John Lennon was more dismissive than McCartney had been.
"It was a throwaway," Lennon said in his last major interview, to David Sheff.
"The only two versions of the song were Ringo and the Rolling Stones. That shows how much importance we put on it: We weren't going to give them anything great, right?"
It's much maligned by all these days, but actually a pretty enjoyable stomp with an important spot in Beatles history.
Good Night – from The Beatles (aka The White Album) (1968)

Good Night (Remastered 2009)

Much is made of the fact that 'Yesterday' only features Paul McCartney alongside some session strings players and was nearly released as a solo single.
So it's worth mentioning that 'Good Night' only features Ringo alongside George Martin, session players and The Mike Sammes Singers on backing vocals.
But, written by John Lennon (and credited to Lennon/McCartney of course) as a lullaby for his son Julian, it's a Beatles song through and through.
A little syrupy as a standalone, it has a perfect place closing out out what many consider to be their greatest album and providing a suitably sedate tonic after the madness of 'Revolution 9'.
Yellow Submarine – from Revolver (1966)

The Beatles - The Beatles - Yellow Submarine (Official Music Video) [Remastered 2015]

For years it was assumed this "children's song" must have come pretty much entirely from the pen of Paul McCartney. "McCartney's 'Yellow Submarine'," the venerable Ian McDonald (RIP) called the song in Revolution in the Head.
The story of the song was turned upside down when an early demo of the verses, with very different lyrics ("In the place where I was born / No-one cared, no-one cared.") that sound more like an outtake from John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band than the perfect theme for a giddy 1960s pop art animation.

The Beatles - Yellow Submarine (Songwriting Work Tape / Part 1)

But Paul revamped the words, added his wonderfully silly chorus. There was a catch up with Donovan who pitched in too ("sky of blue, sea of green").
He wasn't the only sixties superstar to impact the song, with Brian Jones, Marianne Faithful (and Mal Evans, Neil Aspinall and Patti Harrison) among the backing vocalists.
Ringo's tone was perfect for what the song ended up as, helped along by George Martin's marvellous cutup sounds, which must have been aided by his pre-Beatles experience making comedy records for The Goons and Peter Sellers.
As well as giving its name and (sort of) story to the Yellow Submarine movie and album, it offered a moment of levity on the experimental Revolver.
With a Little Help from My Friends – from Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

With A Little Help From My Friends (Remastered 2009)

After the cacophony of the opening title track, It's unexpectedly a Ringo sung Lennon-McCartney number that further kicks Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band into gear with one of its strongest songs,.
"It was pretty much co-written," Paul later said. "John and I doing a work song for Ringo, a little craft job." John, never the most reliable at dishing out attribution, has said that the song was "50/50" him and Paul, but later just claimed to add "a little help".
Ringo vetoed the original opening lyric ("What would you think if I sang out of tune? Would you throw ripe tomatoes at me?") for fear that he would be pelted with fruit should he ever sing it live.

The Wonder Years (Extended Intro)

A rare Beatles song whose definitive version was performed by another artist, Joe Cocker topped the UK singles chart (and entered the Hot 100), with his 1968 single, and his performance of the song at the following year's Woodstock and Isle of Wight Festivals seemed to capture a generational moment.
That sense was underlined when the Cocker's performance (what sounds like his Woodstock version) was chosen as the theme for The Wonder Years.
"It has good memories, that song," Macca later said in Many Years From Now. "It became the theme tune to the very good American series about growing up in the ‘60s called The Wonder Years, so it’s been picked up and used a lot, that song."
Octopus's Garden – from Abbey Road (1969)

Octopus's Garden (Remastered 2009)

On a list with some big hitters (Carl Perkins, the actual John Lennon and Paul McCartney), it feels like a deserved pat on the back that the very best Ringo Starr song for The Beatles was actually written by Ringo himself.
Sure, you can see George Harrison lending a hand on the piano as Ringo pieces the song together during the Get Back sessions, with John jumping in on the drums, but he absolutely earns his sole songwriter credit.
Starr was inspired to write the song when he ordered fish 'n' chips on Peter Sellers's boat in Sardinia during his brief break from The Beatles and was served up squid instead ("It was okay. A bit rubbery. Tasted like chicken."). The boat's captain told Ringo all about how octopuses build their "gardens" at the bottom of the sea.

The Beatles - Octopus Garden George & Ringo (Get Back 1969) #getback

With waters in The Beatles getting increasingly choppy, it sounded pretty idyllic.
"It gets deep into your consciousness," said George. of the track."It is very peaceful. I suppose Ringo is writing a cosmic song without even realising it."
For the finished song, Ringo provided vocals and drums too, with John, Paul and George doing their bit to help make it a standout on Abbey Road, and Harrison also adding some bubbles blown through a straw into a glass of milk.