Boys by The Beatles - ****

First released: 1963

Originally recorded by the girl group The Shirelles, Ringo takes his first recorded lead vocal with The Beatles and doesn’t bother to change the lyrics. So, it is quite amusing to hear heterosexual Ringo singing the praises of “boys”. This was always a good crowd pleaser and was Ringo’s sole singing contribution on radio and in concert until Lennon and McCartney composed "I Wanna Be Your Man" for him the following year. A 1964 live version appears on "Anthology 1" in 1995. A 1963 radio version appears on the b-side of the 1994 single of "Baby It's You" and not on "Live at the BBC".

When Ringo returned to regular performing in 1989, Boys became part of his regular repertoire and the song has since appeared on many of his Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band compilations. Different live versions appear on "Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band Volume 2 Live From Montreux" in 1993, "Ringo Starr and His Third All-Starr Band Volume 1" from 1997, 2000’s "The Anthology…So Far", 2004’s "Live 2003" and 2007's "Live at Soundstage".