The Venue at Horseshoe Casino had a very special guest recently. “Oh what’s his name” played a show with a group of very worthy musicians performing some rock hits while the crowd chair danced the night away. Ringo Starr (A.K.A. Billy Shears) and his All Star Band was just an absolute joy to see. The former drummer of ‘Rory Storm and The Hurricanes’ and that other group he was with has been a band leader for the last four decades.

The band started to play “It Don’t Come Easy” and out walked the main attraction, Mr. Richard Starkey. This 1971 single got people pumped up and ready for the evening. The song referring to the breakup of The Beatles delighted everyone. The night started on a high note and never came down.

As the night continued, Ringo and the boys pressed on with great songs such as; “I Wanna Be Your Man” and “Photograph.” The crowd had a sing along with the well known song that children still sing today like it was a nursery rhyme, “Yellow Submarine.” His baritone vocals in the song and comical bridge make this just a wonderful ditty for people of all ages.

The band would play a few of Ringo’s songs and then he would take a backseat during parts of this show while the other members of the band stepped forward and took the lead. Each member of the All Star Band came to the center of the stage for two songs of their own.

Guitarist Rick Derringer played his fingers down to the bone on every guitar piece during the night. During his presentation the first song he played was “Hang on Sloopy” from his days with the McCoy’s. He did the original version with parts of the song that never made it to the record. As he talked during the middle of the song explaining how the record company had cut out a verse, he proclaimed, “I’m here tonight to set the record straight.” For his second song he made the most obvious choice, “Rock and Roll, Hoochie-Koo.” During this song Rick was just on fire. He ended the song with a flashy guitar solo that included fast runs and tapping that would make the 1980’s guitar shredders look on with amazement. One of the most under-rated guitar players in the world had taken the lead role in this band.

Wally Palmar from the Romantics completed the guitar rhythms and some great background vocals for this group. He played a variety of different guitars, but it was quite obvious that he was in some way influenced by the Beatles. At some points he was playing a Rickenbacker guitar and his amp of choice was a Vox. He impressed the crowd with an updated version of “Talking In Your Sleep.” For the people in the audience the show kept rocking out when he did the jam “What I Like About You.” His amazing abilities and sweet vocals were definitely a tremendous addition to this band.

The bass playing done by Richard Page from Mr. Mister was a complete shock. This man really knows his way around the lower register of the music staff. His expertise was provided on every piece, but when he presented his number one singles to the audience no one was sorry to hear them. The songs “Kyrie” and “Broken Wings” were a nice fit within the other songs chosen for the concert performance. His vocal and musical contributions were very well received.

Gregg Bissonette filled out the night on drums completing the rhythm section. On most of the songs Ringo played alongside him, but Gregg was definitely the main drummer for the evening. He held the rhythms and kept them tight. His timing could not have been knocked off beat with a wrecking ball. His dynamic range on the drums was perfect and he knows how to hit hard or with finesse.

Gary Wright filled out the band on some great keyboards and vocals as well as the rest of the band. One of the most memorable moments or the concert was when he stepped up to the front of the stage for his first number and sang “Dream Weaver.” The song that had been played on every classic rock station for years was being played before the eyes of the concert goers and most of them couldn’t believe how flawless it was. There was no lip syncing being done during this performance; this man was just that good. When it came time for his next song “Love is Alive” his performance was just impeccable as well. Two smooth songs with a crooner of a voice that has remained polished over the years.

One of the jam band masters Edgar Winter had his time during the show as well. His first song he did was the awesome riff jam “Free Ride.” The song rocked just like the record! His contribution was complete when he played one of the coolest instrumental jams ever, the song “Frankenstein.” The man made an impressive jump from keyboards, to drums, to sax and back again. He was the very first keyboard player to put a strap on a keyboard and walk around the stage with it. He stated during the show, “I got tired of being stuck behind a piano.” This night would not have been the same without hearing this awesome man play everything that he did. Winter is truly one of the greatest musicians to ever take a stage.

The night continued on passing the torch from Ringo to the band and then back to Ringo again. The mix of songs from the 1960’s to the present was just a great combination of music for everyone. Ringo did a few songs from his new album Y Not. “The Other Side of Liverpool” was a great song to bring out for the night. It fit the classic Ringo writing style and was accepted by the crowd that didn’t know the new material.

Another song that was done was “Act Naturally” which he explained it was almost a biographical song, making fun of himself. He played a great piece from the early days called “Back off Boogaloo” that was sang around the room. He then introduced a song that he described as not going over well the previous nights before and he wasn’t sure if he was going to continue to play it. He asked the audience to be the judge. They then started in singing the opening line “Billy Shears” to one of his most popular songs “With a Little Help from My Friends.” The place went nuts!

At the end of the night as Ringo takes his bows the band went into a few choruses of “Give Peace a Chance” which sent chills up and down the spines of the members of the audience. Everyone throughout the room could almost feel the presence of John Lennon. Goose bumps were everywhere!

Ringo gave his goodbyes, the band continued on with a few more bars, and then it was over. Billy Shears and the All Star Band galloped off into the sunset to the next town. What a fantastic evening as “Oh what’s his name” got by with a little help with his friends.