Oh My My: In 1974, Ringo Starr Became the First (and Is Still the Only) Ex-Beatle to Achieve These Hot 100 Feats
UMe’s announcement today that it is reissuing Ringo Starr’s first four solo albums on colored vinyl on Oct. 24 puts a spotlight on his celebrated 1973 album Ringo, which enabled him to set a pair of Billboard Hot 100 records that he holds to this day.
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Starr is the only ex-Beatle to land two No. 1 singles from one studio album and the only one to release back-to-back singles that both reached No. 1. Starr topped the Hot 100 in November 1973 with “Photograph,” which he co-wrote with his former Beatles bandmate George Harrison. His follow-up, “You’re Sixteen,” a jaunty remake of a 1960 hit by Johnny Burnette, reached No. 1 in January 1974.
Both singles were released from Starr’s third studio album, Ringo, which was produced by Richard Perry, one of the hottest producers of the era. (Perry died last December at age 82.) Starr’s first two studio albums were Sentimental Journey, a 1970 collection drawn from the Great American Songbook, and Beaucoups of Blues, a 1970 country- and folk-shaded album recorded in Nashville. So Ringo was his first contemporary pop/rock album. On the album, Starr collaborated with his Beatles bandmates John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Harrison, as well as Harry Nilsson, Martha Reeves, Billy Preston, Marc Bolan of T. Rex and The Band’s Robbie Robertson, Garth Hudson, Levon Helm and Rick Danko, among others.
Released on Nov. 2, 1973, Ringo reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200. It was Starr’s highest-charting album, which makes him the only ex-Beatle not to top the Billboard 200. Ringo was kept out of the top spot by Elton John’s classic double album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. (There were no hard feelings: John contributed to Starr’s follow-up album, Goodnight Vienna, co-writing “Snookeroo” and playing piano on the track.)
For a few weeks, it looked like Starr might be headed for a third No. 1 hit from Ringo, but the vibrant “Oh My My,” the album’s third single, peaked at No. 5.
Near-Misses: Two No. 1 singles from one album
McCartney’s band Wings nearly had two No. 1 singles from its 1976 album Wings at the Speed of Sound. “Silly Love Songs” logged five weeks at No. 1; “Let ‘Em In” peaked at No. 3.
Five years later, Lennon nearly achieved the feat with his 1980 album with Yoko Ono, Double Fantasy, which was released three weeks before he was shot to death. “(Just Like) Starting Over” logged five weeks at No. 1; “Woman” reached No. 2.
Near-Misses: Back-to-back single releases that hit No. 1
In addition to the two instances noted above, McCartney came close four more times:
- In 1973, he followed the No. 1 “My Love” (credited to Paul McCartney & Wings) with the soundtrack single “Live and Let Die” (credited to Wings), which reached No. 2.
- In 1974, Paul McCartney & Wings followed the No. 1 “Band on the Run” with the non-album single “Junior’s Farm,” which reached No. 3.
- In the early 1980s, McCartney hit No. 1 with both “Coming Up (Live at Glasgow),” which he recorded with Wings, and “Ebony and Ivory,” which he recorded with Stevie Wonder. But he released a single in between them, “Waterfalls,” which reached No. 6 on Billboard’s Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart.
- In 1983, McCartney and a red-hot Michael Jackson followed the No. 2 peaking “The Girl Is Mine” with the No. 1 smash “Say Say Say.”
UMe’s Re-Release Plans
UMe is planning to release limited-edition pressings of Starr’s first four albums on colored vinyl. All will be available via Starr’s official store.
Sentimental Journey, produced by Beatles producer George Martin, will be issued on Buttermilk Yellow color vinyl. Beaucoups of Blues, produced by Peter Drake, will be issued on Baby Blue color vinyl. Ringo will be issued on Molten Lava color vinyl. His 1974 follow-up, Goodnight Vienna, also produced by Perry, will be issued on Psychedelic Waves custom color vinyl.
“These reissues highlight [Ringo’s] depth, his creativity and his lasting cultural impact,” Bruce Resnikoff, president and CEO of UMe, said in a statement.
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