Ringo Starr Hilariously Described Rolling Stones Drummer Charlie Watts’ Style in 11 Words
Written by on January 14, 2023
If Ringo Starr and The Beatles were the defining band of the 1960s, The Rolling Stones weren’t far behind. According to Paul McCartney, the rivalry between the two bands was more rumor than reality, and that appears true. If the Stones and Beatles didn’t like each other, would Ringo and his drumming counterpart Charlie Watts have hung out together? And would Ringo have felt comfortable describing Watts’ drumming with a hilariously accurate, 11-word quote? We think not.
Ringo Starr and Charlie Watts were friendly with each other
Ringo Starr and The Beatles wrote sweet pop tunes when they started. The Rolling Stones began life as a blues cover band, and that style never left their DNA. Any rivalry between the superstar groups was a fan creation. The members of each band respected and were friendly with each other. Stones frontman Mick Jagger was awed by the Fab Four the first time he met them.
Watts and Ringo developed a close enough friendship that The Beatles’ timekeeper invited his Stones counterpart over for a party on at least one occasion. Lucky attendees saw Watts, Ringo, and Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham sit and play Ringo’s kit.
The person born Richard Starkey paid tribute to Watts when the Stones drummer died. “God bless Charlie Watts; we’re going to miss you, man peace and love to the family,” he wrote on Twitter at the time. Years before that sad moment, Ringo hilariously described Watts’ style in just a few very accurate words.
Ringo described Watts’ drumming style in just 11 words
Ringo and Watts had something in common besides drumming for two of the most popular bands ever. In an era where some drummers became star attractions (Bonham, Keith Moon, Mitch Mitchell, and Ginger Baker come to mind), Ringo and Watts played understated grooves that anchored the musicians in front of them.
Both men were also named two of the greatest drummers of all time by Rolling Stone. As Alan Clayson writes in Ringo Starr: Straight Man or Joker?, Ringo needed just 11 words to hilariously and accurately describe Watts’ style on the kit:
“[He’s] the only drummer who leaves out more than I do.”
Ringo’s comment about Watts is also a self-deprecating analysis of his own drumming. At the same time, he secretly praised their timekeeping skills.
Ringo never got the credit he deserved while with The Beatles. Meanwhile, Watts’ tight timekeeping often got overshadowed by Jagger’s confident presence, Keith Richards’ inventive guitar riffing, and the overall debauchery for which the Stones had a reputation. Yet both drummers kept precise time and played only what their respective bands needed and nothing more.
Watts may have “left out more” than Ringo, but both performers succeeded by keeping time with understated drumming that perfectly suited each band.
The Beatles drummer palled around with other drummers
Watts and Bonham both sat at Ringo’s kit during a party, so we know The Beatles’ drummer maintained friendships with them. Even when Ringo relocated to Los Angeles in the mid-1970s, he was never safe from Bonham’s pranks.
The Who drummer Keith Moon once angled for his spot in The Beatles, but Ringo still developed an intimate relationship with him. The two were so close that Moon frequently babysat for Ringo.
Ringo Starr said Charlie Watts was the only drummer who played more minimally than him. Ringo hilariously and accurately described their respective drumming styles in just 11 words.
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