A Not-So-Perfect “Good Night”: The Ringo Starr Led Beatles Track That Was Never Performed Live
Plenty of Beatles songs never made it to the stage. Whether it’s because the band retired from touring before the song could get a proper performance or some other reason, plenty of fan favorites never got to be experienced live in concert.
One such song is the 1968 track “Good Night” from the band’s self-titled album, also known as the White Album. “Good Night” is one of the Fab Four’s most famous closers. It is the last song on that very album and one of very few that features Ringo Starr as the lead singer. In fact, he’s the only Beatle featured on the song, period. Starr sings his heart out against an orchestral arrangement conducted by the famed English composer George Martin. So, is there a deeper reason as to why The Beatles never performed this incredible closing song live?
The answer to this question is pretty simple: They had retired from touring long before the song was released. Specifically, the Fab Four quit touring in 1966. However, there is another question worth posing: Why didn’t Starr perform the song live throughout his solo career?
“Good Night” wasn’t written by Starr. It was originally written by John Lennon as a tribute to his then-five-year-old son Julian. It’s widely described as a “lullaby”. Even though Starr didn’t write it, he is the main and only Beatle to be featured in the song. It doesn’t make sense why he would avoid performing the iconic piece of work live with his All Starr Band.
Source: Em Casalena/americansongwriter.com
