The Beatles Were 'Frightened' of Ringo Starr Before He Joined the Band: 'He Looks Like Trouble'
Ringo Starr’s affability made him well-loved amongst The Beatles and their fans. Before Starr was a part of the group, though, the other Beatles found him more than a little intimidating. He was slightly older than his future bandmates, but his reputation was the point of concern for them. Even John Lennon admitted that he had been afraid of Starr before he knew him.
Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison had been working together for several years by the time Starr joined The Beatles. They had been playing in Hamburg alongside bass player Stuart Sutcliffe and drummer Pete Best. At the same time, Starr was performing in the city with his group, Rory Storm & the Hurricanes. The Beatles got to know Starr, and they all had a similar first impression.
“We started hanging out with them,” Harrison said, per The Beatles Anthology. “I think we’d met Ringo once before, in England. I know we all had the same impression about him: ‘You’d better be careful of him, he looks like trouble.'”
Source: Emma McKee/cheatsheet.com
