Ringo & Friends at the Ryman is a celebration of Ringo Starr’s music and legacy through the lens of country music performed at the Ryman Auditorium. I’ll be updating with a setlist as the CBS concert special airs on Monday night.

Ringo & Friends at the Ryman was taped over the course of two nights–January 14-15–at the historic Ryman Auditorium. The once-in-a-lifetime event features exclusive performances of Ringo’s solo hits, Beatles classics and tracks from his recently released country album Look Up, produced and co-written by T Bone Burnett. Performances from the all-star musical lineup blend classic rock with a country twist.

Proceeds from a one-time, all-star performance at The Ryman of “With a Little Help from My Friends” will support the American Red Cross and those impacted by the California wildfires.

Ringo & Friends at the Ryman Setlist

1. Matchbox with Jack White
2. It Don’t Come Easy with Molly Tuttle, Sheryl Crow, and Mickey Guyton
3. Boys with Sheryl Crow, Molly Tuttle, and Larkin Poe
4. Octopus’s Garden with Molly Tuttle (Ringo offstage)
5. I Wanna Be Your Man with Larkin Poe (Ringo offstage)
6. Look Up with Molly Tuttle
7. Don’t Pass Me By with Jack White (Ringo offstage)
8. Without Her with The War and Treaty (Ringo offstage)
9. Act Naturally with Rodney Crowell and Sarah Jarosz (Ringo offstage)
10. What Goes On with Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle
11. I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party with Sheryl Crow and Molly Tuttle (Ringo offstage)
12. You Don’t Know Me at All with Mickey Guyton (Ringo offstage)
13. Honey Don’t with Billy Strings (Ringo offstage)
14. Time On My Hands
15. Thankful with Larkin Poe
16. Have You Seen My Baby with Jamey Johnson (Ringo offstage)
17. Photograph with Billy Strings
18. Yellow Submarine with Emmylou Harris, Sheryl Crow, Brenda Lee, Billy Strings, Jack White, Molly Tuttle, Larkin Poe, Jamey Johnson, Sarah Jarosz, Rodney Crowell, Mickey Guyton
19. With a Little Help from My Friends with Emmylou Harris, Sheryl Crow, Brenda Lee, Billy Strings, Jack White, Molly Tuttle, Larkin Poe, Jamey Johnson, Sarah Jarosz, Rodney Crowell, Mickey Guyton

Ringo was backed by Dennis Crouch, Paul Franklin (steel guitar), Jim Keltner (drums), David Mansfield, Mike Rojas, and Daniel Tashian during the two-night taping.

During a video appearance on Ringo & Friends at the Ryman, Paul McCartney mentions that Ringo turned The Beatles onto country music. Buck Owens’ “Act Naturally” was a natural cover for Ringo when The Beatles released it as the B side to “Yesterday” in 1965. It wasn’t featured in Help! but was included as the first track of side 2 when they released the LP in the UK. In North America, it was included on Yesterday and Today as the last song of Side 1. McCartney adds that “Act Naturally” is his favorite Ringo song.

Interludes between songs allow Ringo to reflect on country music’s influence on his life, The Beatles and his solo career. Guest artists share their own personal stories of how Ringo had an impact on their music, adding onto his legacy. In addition to the aforementioned Paul McCartney, Dolly Parton also makes a few video appearances. None of them appear to take away time from other songs as the interludes did with Billy Joel: The 100th last year. Ringo’s showcase of his is extraordinary journey through a country music lens wouldn’t have happened without being inspired by T Bone Burnett.

There were 19 songs featured during the two-nigh taping of Ringo & Friends at the Ryman. However, their running order differs from how they appear during the CBS special. A few songs aired in the first hour were originally performed during the second half of the concert on both nights. Similarly, there are songs airing during the back half that are from the first half of the original concert set. Three songs in the setlist are from Ringo’s new album, Look Up, released on January 10.

“It is always a thrill to play the Ryman and this time we are going country!” said Ringo. “T Bone has put together a great show. It was two nights of peace, love and country music.”

“There is not a single person in the world who has generated more goodwill than Ringo Starr, and I write this without hyperbole,” said Burnett. “On Jan. 14 and 15, an extraordinary group of artists came together to help demonstrate that at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn. Ringo has been singing and playing country music since before he joined The Beatles, and many, if not most, of his recordings with that band were country songs – “Matchbox,” “Honey Don’t,” “Act Naturally,” “What Goes On?,” “Don’t Pass Me By” and even “Octopus’s Garden” is a country song. We don’t know which country, but a country song, nevertheless. Nashville is a town full of extraordinary musicians, and a killer band of some of Nashville’s most extraordinary musicians accompanied Ringo and the rest of the artists.”

“Ringo and his bandmates introduced me and countless others to timeless American rockabilly classics, reimagined with their unique Liverpudlian twist on Carl Perkins and many more,” said Van Toffler, producing for Gunpowder & Sky. “It’s an honor to produce this special with Ringo and T Bone, bringing together some of music’s finest who played the hell out of Ringo’s songs, including some Beatles classics. It feels especially poetic to be airing on the same network that introduced the Beatles to America 61 years ago.”

Ringo & Friends at the Ryman is produced by T Bone Burnett in collaboration with Van Toffler of Gunpowder & Sky.

DIRECTOR: Michael Lohmann

Ringo & Friends at the Ryman airs March 10, 2025 at 8-10 PM ET/PT on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

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