Former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist - the last of the four bandmates to earn the honour - in a ceremony in Cleveland celebrating some of the biggest stars of rock music.
Starr was inducted by onetime band mate Paul McCartney.
Among the 2015 honorees joining Starr were singer Bill Withers, punk-pop band Green Day and Lou Reed, the force behind the Velvet Underground.
“After the things I’ve sat through tonight . . . ” Starr joked as he took the stage as the night’s final inductee. “Blah, blah, blah. I’ve got some stories.
“Finally, I’m invited and I love it,” he said.
The event, which sold out in minutes and is due to air on May 30th, marks the 20th anniversary of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, and the 30th induction ceremony.
Performers at the ceremony included Beck, Foo Fighters front man Dave Grohl and former Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello.
Inducting Withers, who gained fame with the melancholy hit Ain't No Sunshine in 1971, was pianist and singer Stevie Wonder, while John Legend played in his honour.
“Who else can say they came here with a legend and a wonder?” Withers joked.
Patti Smith also paid an emotional tribute to her friend Lou Reed, who died in 2013 of liver disease.
Joan Jett
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts were also inducted, by pop star Miley Cyrus, who recounted smoking marijuana in a hotel bathroom with Jett upon meeting her for the first time.
Blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan, who died in 1990, was honoured by guitarist and singer John Mayer.
For his part, Starr (74) has released 18 solo studio albums since the breakup of The Beatles, including his latest, Postcards From Paradise, earlier this month.
Starr has been a Hall member since 1988, as a part of The Beatles.
Artists are eligible for induction 25-years after the release of their first record. Green Day was inducted in their first year of eligibility.
The ceremony is the fourth hosted by Cleveland, which most recently had the honour in 2012, with the event usually being held in Los Angeles or New York.
Reuters
