If you aspire to own a piece of Beatles history, and many a music fan wants just that, now you have the opportunity. The drum kit that was used when the Beatles recorded “Love Me Do,” their first No. 1 song in the United States, is up for auction. Now, you may be thinking to yourself, “Hey cool, with a lot of money and some luck I can own Ringo’s drum kit!” Well, not quite.
This particular version of “Love Me Do” did not feature Ringo Starr on drums. Three versions of the song were recorded in 1962 but this was the version that gave the band a proper breakthrough in the United States. Starr, who replaced Pete Best as the Beatles’ drummer, was technically with the band at the time of the recording but hadn’t had a chance to play with them yet. As such, alternate drummer Andy White was asked to play the drums on “Love Me Do” while Ringo played tambourine.
So yes, you can’t own a drum kit Ringo played on, but in a way this arguably makes for a slightly more interesting auction item. It’s a drum kit played on a Beatles recording that doesn’t feature any of the band’s members. It’s like owning a picture of Sean Connery autographed by Roger Moore. The bidding on the drum kit will begin at $150,000. Beatles fans, and Andy White fans, better start counting their pennies now.
(Via Rolling Stone)
