Ringo & his All Starr Band in Israel, 23 June, 2018.
Ringo played his first ever show in Israel Saturday night, bringing joyful fans to their feet, singing along at the top of their lungs. Accompanied by his All-Starr band, Ringo made his Israel debut at the at the Menorah Mivtahim Arena in Tel Aviv in front of thousands of fans of all ages, the first of a two-night gig in the Holy Land.
More of Ringo’s classics from his Beatles days were peppered into the show throughout the night, each time instantly springing the audience from their seats. Israeli fans have been waiting a long time to see Ringo perform. The Beatles we scheduled to perform in Israel in 1965, but the performance was cancelled after the state deemed that the band’s music would corrupt Israeli youth. Paul became the first of the Fab Four, as the Beatles have also been called, to perform in Israel in 2008.
Ringo was originally slated to play only one night in Tel Aviv, but a second date was added Sunday, June 24th after the first sold out. “This is a once in a lifetime kind of thing,” says Liri, who as drummer, knew he couldn’t miss the chance to see Ringo perform. “My middle name is John, named after John Lennon,” he adds, explaining that his father is a big Beatles fan. “It felt like the right thing to do.” Yoni, a life-long Beatles fan who remembers when the band was at the height of popularity during his youth, reflects on how their music still resonates so strongly today. “It’s simple and it’s touching,” Yoni muses. “The lyrics are wonderful and the words are very simple. They talk about day to day problems that people relate to.”
When he landed Thursday in Tel Aviv, Starr sent a video message of “peace and love” to his fans, inviting them to come out for the shows. The stop in Tel Aviv is part of his global “Give More Love” tour. Some fans expressed disappointment that they didn’t hear more Beatles songs, but still enjoyed to the show.During the show Starr and his All-Starr band hailed the crowd’s energy and expressed their love for Tel Aviv, but made no comment directly relating to politics or the Israel-Palestine conflict. Following Starr’s mantra of peace and love, and perhaps planting the seed of an idea, the band closed the evening with a rendition of John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance,” before saying goodnight to the crowd.
