Long Long Road is the second collaboration between Ringo Starr and T Bone Burnett, following the former Beatle’s chart-topping country album Look Up, released in 2025. With Burnett playing, writing and co-producing, as well as others, like Billy Strings, Sheryl Crow and St, Vincent along for the ride, this twenty-second studio release from the drummer is a solid and sweet album.
One might do well to remember Starr releasing his first Americana album back in 1970 with Beaucoups of Blues. With Look Up and Long Long Road, he seems to be completing a trilogy mining the same roots. He drums and sings all the tunes, occasionally with some harmony help or even dueting as he does with Molly Tuttle on the banjo flicky mid-tempo opener “Returning Without Tears,” with his voice sounding as good as ever. Mining moments like “I Don’t See Me In Your Eyes Anymore,” to little rockers like “It’s Been Too Long,” there’s a nice mix as the usual subtle touch of master Burnett sets these little gems up perfectly.
“You And I (Wave Of Love),”one of three that Starr had a hand in co-writing, is wonderful ballad featuring Tuttle on the background vocal, with Paul Franklin’s well-placed peddle-steel making this song a sure single if there ever was one. There’s plenty of songs about the drummer’s favorite subject — love. Even though his lyrics don’t land with lots of complexity, they do work for the tunes, especially on the album’s most psychedelic track, “Choose Love” with St. Vincent harmonizing.
The title track has Sheryl Crow providing the main female harmonies while the singer contemplates the “long, long road.” Being a legend and working with great musicians under the command of a T Bone Burnett, you don’t have to walk a long long road to get to something special.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
