Ringo Starr gives first preview of forthcoming 'Y Not' album

     Ringo Starr (Photo: Rob Shanahan)

Ringo Starr has updated his website with a new video, recorded before Thanksgiving, that features Ringo talking about his forthcoming album "Y Not" and some of the players on it, including Dave Stewart, Joe Walsh and Benmont Tench. We also told the amazing Edgar Winter performs on it as well.

 Ringo, who looks relaxed and very upbeat, shows off the CD, both the cover and the inside, and is shown being interviewed and recording the album in the studio. A bit of the song "Y Not" can be heard.

From the brief except, you can hear that "Y Not" has a very distinctive beat, with a heavy accent on the drums. Tina Sugandh, who gave Ringo a tabla lesson in a funny YouTube video, is seen briefly playing that instrument during the session.

In a press release, Ringo says taking on his first time role as  producer of "Y Not" was a natural progression for him.

"I didn’t do it at the start,” Starr says in a press release. “I was the least involved in the production of the Beatle records. And then with my solo records, I worked with some other great producers like Richard Perry, Arif Mardin, and Don Was. So it just seemed like that’s the way that it goes. Then suddenly, it’s another point in your life, and you say, `I’m going do this now.’ So I’ll be producing anything I make from now on. That’s the good news. It’s a confidence thing, I suppose. And 'Y Not' is really another way of me saying, “Yes, I can.”

More news on Ringo's "Y Not" album:

• Ringo Starr's new 'Y Not' album, out on Jan. 12, has help from many friends including Paul McCartney
• Ringo Starr new album cover art revealed
• Exclusive: New Ringo Starr album coming in 2010