Unreleased it may still be, the Memphis Demos are a legendary moment for Ringo Starr. It’s not just a chance to hear The Beatles’ drummer collaborate with Bob Dylan with the same intimacy that George Harrison had enjoyed, but because it serves as a glimpse into the comeback years for Starr. The Memphis Demos would not be released, but it is a chance to hear what Starr had been busy with in the nine years between Old Wave and Time Takes Time. Neither was an excellent album, and it would be some time before Starr improved on Goodnight Vienna. The Memphis Demos are hardly going to evolve Starr’s style or profile, but they do offer a link between his second album, Beaucoups of Blues, and his 2025 release, Look Up. Both are tied by the clear love of country music, and the shared feeling between them is a sincere love for the genre. The Memphis Demos shows that, too.
What becomes extremely clear from the first notes of The Memphis Demos is that this is an outstanding record. It has all the hallmarks of that 1980s production style, the hollow effect which comes through the vast array of instruments that never quite bring anything to life. But right at the core of that is a Starr vocal performance which has all the charms of his time in The Beatles, and all the sophistication of the odd great song he released before this recording session. Opener I’ve Changed My Mind is a fantastic example of this; there is method to the madness of recording a collection of country hits after all. Starr would showcase the grasp he has on country music decades after this session, but the fact is, some of these tracks are better than what featured on both Beaucoups of Blues and Look Up. Even the predictable notes of I Can Help are charming with Starr pushing for that fine line between romanticised living and contemporary country adaptations.
Most songs are romanticised in some way, and Starr plays with the heart in such obvious and awkward ways it comes across as moderately charming. You Better Move On has a remarkable quality to it because it features Starr pushing himself further than expected. A few vocal interjections, a real and confident attempt to use his voice as more than just a plodding, rhythmic service, as he had done on past songs. No, here is a chance to hear Starr perform, rather than play around. The Memphis Demos manages to avoid the latter style of creating altogether, actually. It’s not all solid work, of course, this is Starr we’re talking about. He will take a risk too far, and that’s exactly what he does on the bass-driven basics of Hard Times.
But then a Bob Dylan feature is just around the corner and gives listeners a reason, among many, to continue with the rest of the songs. Naturally the Dylan collaboration, Wish I Knew Now (What I Knew Then) is the song available in the lowest quality, but it does paint a picture of Dylan as an artist in decline. He would turn it around just a few years later, and to be fair to him, Down in the Groove is hardly a bad album either. But his collaboration with Starr is an indication of panic as an artist. But Starr is at the other end of that panic, accepting that he must simply have fun with what he’s working on, and that much shows across The Memphis Demos.
