"Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)" is a song by English musician

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

from his 1973 album ''

Ringo Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

''. It was written by

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

, Starr's former bandmate in

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

, and was one of several contributions Harrison made to ''Ringo''. Recording for the song took place in Los Angeles in March 1973, with

Richard Perry Richard Van Perry (born June 18, 1942) is an American record producer. He began as a performer in his adolescence while attending Poly Prep, his high school in Brooklyn. After graduating from college he rose through the late 1960s and early 1970 ...

as producer. In addition to Starr and Harrison, the musicians on the track include

Levon Helm Mark Lavon "Levon" Helm (May 26, 1940 – April 19, 2012) was an American musician who achieved fame as the drummer and one of the three lead vocalists for the Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. H ...

Robbie Robertson Jaime Royal "Robbie" Robertson, OC (born July 5, 1943), is a Canadian musician. He is best known for his work as lead guitarist and songwriter for the Band, and for his career as a solo recording artist. With the deaths of Richard Manuel in ...

Rick Danko Richard Clare Danko (December 29, 1943 – December 10, 1999) was a Canadian musician, bassist, songwriter, and singer, best known as a founding member of the Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. During ...

and

Garth Hudson Eric "Garth" Hudson (born August 2, 1937) is a Canadian multi-instrumentalist best known as the keyboardist and occasional saxophonist for rock group the Band, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. He was a ...

of the Band, and multi-instrumentalist

David Bromberg David Bromberg (born September 19, 1945) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. David Bromberg biographyat Billboard.com An eclectic artist, Bromberg plays bluegrass, blues, folk, jazz, country and western, and rock a ...

. Harrison wrote "Sunshine Life for Me" in Ireland while staying with Scottish singer-songwriter

Donovan Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter, and record producer. He developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelic rock and world mus ...

. In a contrast with the reconciliatory mood among the four ex-Beatles when the song was recorded, the visit occurred shortly after the London High Court's ruling on the dissolution of the band in March 1971. The composition reflects the influence of

Irish folk music Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a Music genre, genre of folk music that developed in Ireland. In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Irel ...

, as well as aspects of

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

hootenanny A hootenanny is a party involving music in the United States. It is particularly associated with folk music. Etymology Placeholder Hootenanny is an Appalachian colloquialism that was used in the early twentieth century U.S. as a placeholder name ...

and the

sea shanty A sea shanty, chantey, or chanty () is a genre of traditional Folk music, folk song that was once commonly sung as a work song to accompany rhythmical labor aboard large Merchant vessel, merchant Sailing ship, sailing vessels. The term ''shanty ...

tradition. In his lyrics, Harrison espouses an escape from modern life for the tranquility of nature. The "Raymond" named in the song title was a lawyer hired by

Allen Klein Allen Klein (December 18, 1931 July 4, 2009) was an American businessman whose aggressive negotiation tactics affected industry standards for compensating recording artists. He founded ABKCO Music & Records Incorporated. Klein increased profits ...

, the manager of Harrison, Starr and

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

, to represent the three former Beatles and

Apple Corps Apple Corps Limited (informally known as Apple) is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in London in January 1968 by the members of the Beatles to replace their earlier company (Beatles Ltd.) and to form a conglomerate. Its name (pro ...

in the High Court action initiated by

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

. On release, "Sunshine Life for Me" received a varied response from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

, some of whom dismissed it as an inauspicious track. Among retrospective reviewers, several commentators have admired its lightheartedness and consider the song to be a worthy example of Starr's work in the country genre. Harrison biographer Simon Leng describes it as "musically an homage to the spirit of the Band's ' Rag Mama Rag'".

Background and inspiration

wrote "Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)" while on holiday in Ireland with his wife,

Pattie Boyd Patricia Anne Boyd (born 17 March 1944) is an English model and photographer. She was one of the leading international models during the 1960s and, with Jean Shrimpton, epitomised the British female look of the era. Boyd married George Harri ...

.Clayson, p. 242. The couple stayed with Scottish singer

, a friend of

since the mid-1960s and a fellow student on the band's 1968 Transcendental Meditation course in India. The visit took place over the

Easter Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...

holiday weekend in April 1971, when Donovan, a

tax exile A tax exile is a person who leaves a country to avoid the payment of income tax or other taxes. The term refers to an individual who already owes money to the tax authorities or wishes to avoid being liable in the future for taxation at what they ...

in Ireland, hosted a party for his musician friends at the Castle Martin estate in

Kilcullen Kilcullen (), formally Kilcullen Bridge, is a small town on the River Liffey in County Kildare, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Its population of 3,473 at the 2011 census made it the 12th largest settlement in County Kildare and the fastest growi ...

, County Kildare.Damian Smyth
"George Harrison's Irish Easter Egg Hunt!"
i96 Radio, 19 March 2016 (retrieved 2 September 2016). While discussing the song in his autobiography, ''

I, Me, Mine ''I, Me, Mine'' is an autobiographic memoir by the English musician George Harrison, formerly of The Beatles. It was published in 1980 as a hand-bound, limited edition book by Genesis Publications, with a mixture of printed text and multi-colour ...

'', Harrison recalls composing the melody on an open-tuned guitar; he says he wrote it "like an old Irish folk song, a bit like

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

". The holiday provided a respite for Harrison in the aftermath of

the Beatles' break-up From August 1962 to September 1969, the Beatles had a lineup that consisted of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. Their break-up was a cumulative process attributed to numerous factors. These include the strain of the ...

. According to Boyd, despite the freedom he now enjoyed as a solo artist, and the acclaim afforded his 1970 triple album ''

All Things Must Pass ''All Things Must Pass'' is the third studio album by English rock musician George Harrison. Released as a triple album in November 1970, it was Harrison's first solo work after the break-up of the Beatles in April that year. It includes the h ...

'', Harrison was distressed at the hostility that prevailed among the four former bandmates.David Cavanagh, "George Harrison: The Dark Horse", ''

Uncut Uncut may refer to: * ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship * ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997 * '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...

'', August 2008, p. 41. On 12 March 1971, the High Court in London had ruled in

's favour against the other three Beatles and their manager,

, resulting in the group's company,

, being placed into

receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in ca ...

. During this time, press reports from the court case had conveyed the full extent of the acrimony that existed between Klein's clients Harrison,

and

and McCartney. Having expressed his frustration with the legal proceedings in another recent composition, "

Sue Me, Sue You Blues "Sue Me, Sue You Blues" is a song written by English musician George Harrison, released on his 1973 album ''Living in the Material World''. Harrison initially let American guitarist Jesse Ed Davis record it for the latter's ''Ululu'' album (197 ...

", Harrison addressed one of the Klein-appointed lawyers, named Raymond, in the parenthetical subtitle of "Sunshine Life for Me". In ''I, Me, Mine'', Harrison says that Raymond was "in my mind at the time", hence the instruction for him to "sail away".

Composition

"Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)" is in

4/4 time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

and in the

musical key In music theory, the key of a piece is the group of pitches, or scale (music), scale, that forms the basis of a musical composition in classical music, classical, Western art, and Western pop music. The group features a ''tonic (music), tonic ...

of E. Rather than using formal chord changes, the melody is established through a modal

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

over a constant E major chord."'Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)' (by George Harrison)", in ''Ringo Starr ''Ringo'': Sheet Music for Piano, Vocal & Guitar'', Charles Hansen (New York, NY, 1973). Harrison biographer Simon Leng considers the song to be "musically an homage to the spirit" of " Rag Mama Rag" by the Band, who epitomised the

counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Hou ...

's embracing of pastoral values in the late 1960s.John Harris, "Into the Woods", ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: *Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * '' ...

'', December 2003, p. 92. Having spent time with the group in

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

in late 1968, following the completion of the Beatles'

White Album White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, Harrison had drawn inspiration from the Band's focus on traditional song forms during the final year of the Beatles' career. Among other authors commenting on the song's musical style, Starr biographer

Alan Clayson Alan Clayson (born 3 May 1951, Dover, Kent) is an English singer-songwriter, author and music journalist. He gained popularity in the late 1970s as leader of the band Clayson and the Argonauts. In addition to contributing to publications such as ' ...

deems it "a

hoe-down", while Beatles scholar Michael Frontani writes of its "authentic country- bluegrass" mood. In Leng's description, notwithstanding the song's lighthearted qualities, the lyrical theme of "Sunshine Life for Me" is "escape from people, pressure, and society".Leng, p. 139. During the choruses, Harrison states that a "sunshine life" awaits him if he were only able to escape from "this cloud over me". In keeping with the rustic theme,Rodriguez, p. 35. Harrison says that he would prefer to associate with trees than with humans,Allison, p. 71. since "most folks just bore me / Always imposing ..."Harrison, p. 231. In the second verse, he dismisses Raymond, telling him: While recognising "cheerfulness" as the song's prevailing emotion, author Ian Inglis writes that Harrison's instruction to Raymond is "perfectly apt, given the song's likeness to a traditional

".Inglis, p. 55. The composition ends with multiple vocal parts, staggering the chorus lines. Leng compares "Sunshine Life for Me" with " The Pirate Song", a sea shanty written by Harrison and comedian

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. Idle was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band The Rutles, and is the writer of the music and lyrics for the Broadwa ...

in 1975, in which Harrison sings of wanting to be a pirate rather than a celebrity. Theologian

Dale Allison Dale C. Allison (born November 25, 1955) is an American New Testament scholar, historian of Early Christianity, and Christian theologian who for years served as Errett M. Grable Professor of New Testament Exegesis and Early Christianity at Pittsb ...

views the track as an example of how its composer's work "often revels in the natural world". According to Allison, the same "easy romanticism about nature" returns in "

Blow Away "Blow Away" is a song by English musician George Harrison that was released in February 1979 on his album '' George Harrison''. It was also the lead single from the album. The song is one of Harrison's most popular recordings from his solo care ...

" and songs from Harrison's 1982 album ''

Gone Troppo ''Gone Troppo'' is the tenth studio album by English rock musician George Harrison, released on 5 November 1982 by Dark Horse Records. It includes " Wake Up My Love", issued as a single, and " Dream Away", which was the theme song for the 1981 H ...

'', while also contrasting with the "ecological anxiety" he expresses in tracks such as "

Tears of the World ''Songs by George Harrison 2'' is a book of song lyrics and commentary by English musician George Harrison, with illustrations by Keith West and an accompanying EP of previously unreleased Harrison recordings. It was published in June 1992, in ...

", " Cockamamie Business" and the

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...

-influenced "

Save the World Save the World may refer to: Music * ''Save the World'' (Geordie album), 1976 * ''Save the World'' (Yolanda Adams album), 1993 * "Save the World" (George Harrison song), 1981 * "Save the World" (Swedish House Mafia song), 2011 *"Save the World", a ...

Recording

In March 1973, following the completion of his album ''

Living in the Material World ''Living in the Material World'' is the fourth studio album by English musician George Harrison, released in 1973 on Apple Records. As the follow-up to 1970's critically acclaimed ''All Things Must Pass'' and his pioneering charity project, the ...

'', Harrison offered "Sunshine Life for Me" to Starr for inclusion on the latter's first rock solo album, ''

''.Spizer, p. 306. The main sessions for ''Ringo'' took place in Los Angeles that same month and coincided with a spirit of reconciliation among all the former Beatles,Schaffner, p. 160. after Harrison, Starr and Lennon had grown disaffected with Klein as a manager. In addition to "Sunshine Life for Me" and individual contributions from Lennon and McCartney, Starr received co-writing assistance from Harrison on "

Photograph A photograph (also known as a photo, image, or picture) is an image created by light falling on a photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor, such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are now create ...

", which became Starr's first number 1 hit on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart when released as the album's advance single. The Band -2005710053-

With

as his producer, Starr recorded the basic track for "Sunshine Life for Me" at

Sunset Sound Recorders Sunset Sound Recorders is a recording studio in Hollywood, California, United States located at 6650 Sunset Boulevard. Background The Sunset Sound Recorders complex was created by Walt Disney's Director of Recording, Tutti Camarata, from a collec ...

in early March. He later referred to ''Ringo'' as his "accidental album",Madinger & Easter, p. 501. since the project was planned at the last minute, and many of his collaborators were in Los Angeles for other reasons. In the case of the musicians on "Sunshine Life for Me", Harrison was there primarily to join Starr and Lennon for business meetings at

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

before producing

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North Ind ...

's '' Shankar Family & Friends'' album, while the Band were in Los Angeles to record ''

Moondog Matinee ''Moondog Matinee'' is the fifth studio album by Canadian/American rock group the Band, released in 1973. It consists entirely of cover material reflecting the group's love of R&B and blues music, with one exception in their interpretation of ...

''. The line-up on the track included four members of the Band

(on

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

(guitar),

(

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

) and

(

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

) and multi-instrumentalist

(on

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

and fiddle).Spizer, p. 307. A friend of the Beatles since their years in Hamburg,

Klaus Voormann Klaus Otto Wilhelm Voormann (born 29 April 1938) is a German artist, musician, and record producer. Voormann was the bassist for Manfred Mann from 1966 to 1969, and performed as a session musician on a host of recordings, including "You're So V ...

played

upright bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

.Castleman & Podrazik, p. 212. The Band in Hamburg, 1971

Pop culture author Robert Rodriguez describes "Sunshine Life for Me" as a song "custom-crafted" for Starr, who had previously demonstrated an affiliation for country music in his White Album composition "

Don't Pass Me By "Don't Pass Me By" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as the "White Album"). A country rock song, it was the first solo composition written by drummer Ringo Starr. The song w ...

" and in his 1970 country album ''

Beaucoups of Blues ''Beaucoups of Blues'' is the second studio album by the English rock musician and former Beatle Ringo Starr. It was released in September 1970, five months after his debut solo album, '' Sentimental Journey''. ''Beaucoups of Blues'' is very far ...

'', which he recorded in Nashville with producer

Pete Drake Roddis Franklin "Pete" Drake (October 8, 1932 – July 29, 1988), was a Nashville-based American record producer and pedal steel guitar player. One of the most sought-after backup musicians of the 1960s, Drake played on such hits as Lynn Anderson' ...

. Harrison recalls in ''I, Me, Mine'' that it was "a fun session and a good track".Harrison, p. 232. Robertson also expressed his enjoyment, saying that after Harrison showed them the song, he and his bandmates "went into our mountain-music mode". Both avowed fans of the group since the late 1960s, Starr and Harrison recorded with the Band for the first time on "Sunshine Life for Me". In Starr's case, the association continued with his appearance at

the Last Waltz ''The Last Waltz'' was a concert by the Canadian-American rock group The Band, held on American Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. ''The Last Waltz'' was advertised as The Band's "farewell concert a ...

in November 1976 and subsequent live performances with Helm and Danko in 1989.

Overdubbing Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...

on the songs recorded for ''Ringo'', including Starr's lead vocals, took place at Sunset Sound and other studios in Los Angeles from late March to July 1973.Badman, p. 98. The other vocal parts on "Sunshine Life for Me" were sung by Harrison and

Vini Poncia Vincent "Vini" Poncia Jr. (born April 29, 1942) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. Life and career The 1960s In the 1960s, Poncia formed a songwriting team with Peter Anders (née Peter Andreoli). An album of songs co-writt ...

, Starr's regular songwriting partner during much of the 1970s. Leng highlights these multiple harmonies as both a "shared inheritance" of the Beatles and the Band, and a precursor to Harrison's later work with

the Traveling Wilburys The Traveling Wilburys were a British-American supergroup consisting of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty. Originating from an idea discussed by Harrison and Lynne during the sessions for Harrison's 1987 album '' ...

Release

Apple Records Apple Records is a record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mar ...

issued ''Ringo'' on 2 November 1973. The release coincided with Lennon, Harrison and Starr suing Klein in the High Court for payment of funds owed to the Beatles and for misrepresenting their interests. "Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)" was sequenced as the fourth track on the album, between "Photograph" and "

You're Sixteen "You're Sixteen" is a song written by the Sherman Brothers (Robert B. Sherman and Richard M. Sherman). It was first performed by American rockabilly singer Johnny Burnette, whose version peaked at number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100, ''Bill ...

". In his book ''The Beatles Solo on Apple Records'',

Bruce Spizer David "Bruce" Spizer (born July 2, 1955) is a tax attorney in New Orleans, Louisiana, who is also recognized as an expert on the Beatles. He has published thirteen books, and is frequently quoted as an authority on the history of the band and ...

describes the first five tracks on ''Ringo'' as "one of the strongest album sides produced by any ex-Beatle". The album cover consisted of a painting by Tim Bruckner in which Harrison, the four members of the Band and all the other musicians on the recording appear, alongside Starr. "Sunshine Life for Me" was published by the

Material World Charitable Foundation The Material World Charitable Foundation, also known as the Material World Foundation (MWF), is a charitable organisation founded by English musician George Harrison in April 1973. Its launch coincided with the release of Harrison's album ''Li ...

, which Harrison had set up in April 1973, and administered through his company

Harrisongs Harrisongs Ltd is a music publishing company, founded in 1964 by English musician and songwriter George Harrison, then a member of the Beatles. On 11 September 1964, Harrison created Mornyork Ltd, which, by 7 December that year, had changed its n ...

Don McLean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is best known for his 1971 hit song " American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early ...

covered the song on his 1974 album ''

Homeless Brother ''Homeless Brother'' is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Don McLean, released in 1974. It was reissued by BGO Records in 1996. Track listing All tracks composed by Don McLean except where indicated. Side One #"Winter Has Me ...

''. In what musicologist Thomas MacFarlane views as a possible "gesture of respect" towards Harrison and his love of Indian music, McLean's arrangement includes

tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

backing.MacFarlane, p. 89. London-based recording engineer

David Hentschel David Hentschel (born 18 December 1952) is an English recording engineer, film score composer and music producer who engineered on George Harrison's ''All Things Must Pass'' and Elton John's ''Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'', as well as for such a ...

covered "Sunshine Life for Me", along with all the other tracks from ''Ringo'', on his 1975 album ''Sta*rtling Music''. An experimental work featuring Hentschel on

ARP synthesizer ARP Instruments, Inc. was a Lexington, Massachusetts manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, founded by Alan Robert Pearlman in 1969. It created a popular and commercially successful range of synthesizers throughout the 1970s before de ...

, the album was one of the first releases on Starr's short-lived record label,

Ring O' Records Ring O' Records was a record label founded by former Beatle Ringo Starr in 1975. The label's formation coincided with the winding down of the Beatles' Apple Records and allowed Starr to continue supporting other artists' projects while maintai ...

Critical reception

In his album review for '' Disc'' magazine, Michael Benton said that "Sunshine Life for Me" represented "a somewhat subdued patch" between the obvious hit singles, "Photograph" and "You're Sixteen". While the critical reception to ''Ringo'' was generally highly favourable, the ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

''s

Charles Shaar Murray Charles Shaar Murray (born Charles Maximillian Murray; 27 June 1951) is an English music journalist and broadcaster. He has worked on the '' New Musical Express'' and many other magazines and newspapers, and has been interviewed for a number of ...

derided the album for its "dearth of good material", saying that the record's appeal was confined to the most committed Beatles nostalgics. He described "Sunshine Life for Me" as the best of the three Harrison contributions, but only due to the presence of the Band and Bromberg. Writing in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'', Ben Gerson called "Sunshine Life for Me" a "modal banjo tune" that "never manages to transcend its idiom, much less to fulfil it", while

Alan Betrock Alan Betrock (1950 – April 9, 2000) was an American music critic, publisher, editor, author and record producer. Initially a music critic, Betrock founded the influential ''New York Rocker'' magazine in 1976 and the publishing house Sha ...

of ''

Phonograph Record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...

'' dismissed the song as "

muzak Muzak is an American brand of background music played in retail stores and other public establishments. The name has been in use since 1934, and has been owned by a division or subsidiary of one or another company ever since. In 1981, Westingh ...

without definition". By contrast, Loraine Alterman of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' deemed it "a dynamite bluegrassy number with a really sharp lyric about a guy who wants to get away from it all but just can't see that the problem is inside him". Comparing "Sunshine Life for Me" with the devout lyrical content of ''Living in the Material World'', Beatles biographer

Nicholas Schaffner Nicholas Schaffner (January 28, 1953 – August 28, 1991) was an American non-fiction author, journalist, and singer-songwriter. Biography Schaffner was born in Manhattan to John V. Schaffner (1913–1983), a literary agent whose clients includ ...

opined that with this song Harrison had "managed to be amusing for the first time in years".Schaffner, p. 161. Writing in 1981, ''NME'' critic

Bob Woffinden Robert Woffinden (31 January 1948 – 1 May 2018) was a British investigative journalist. Formerly a reporter with the '' New Musical Express'', he later specialised in investigating miscarriages of justice. He wrote about a number of high-profi ...

admired the track as "a sort of update of '

Mother Nature's Son "Mother Nature's Son" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as "the White Album"). The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney, and credited to Lennon–McCartney. It was ins ...

'" on an album that contained "excellent compositions" from Starr's former bandmates and conveyed "a zestfulness, an unashamed ''

joie de vivre ( , ; "joy of living") is a French phrase often used in English to express a cheerful enjoyment of life, an exultation of spirit. It "can be a joy of conversation, joy of eating, joy of anything one might do… And ''joie de vivre'' may be ...

''". Among other retrospective assessments, Chip Madinger and Mark Easter, writing in their book on the former Beatles' solo careers, admire the song as "a hoedown stomper which was as country as any of the tracks on ''Beaucoups of Blues''". Ian Inglis writes of "Sunshine Life for Me": "The result is a convincing piece of good-time folk-rock that would have been at home on

Fairport Convention Fairport Convention are an English folk rock band, formed in 1967 by guitarists Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol, bassist Ashley Hutchings and drummer Shaun Frater (with Frater replaced by Martin Lamble after their first gig.) They started o ...

's groundbreaking album ''

Liege & Lief ''Liege & Lief'' is the fourth album by the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. It is the third album the group released in the UK during 1969, all of which prominently feature Sandy Denny as lead female vocalist (Denny did not appear on ...

'', which was itself hugely influenced by the spirit of the Band's ''

Music from Big Pink ''Music from Big Pink'' is the debut studio album by the Band. Released in 1968, it employs a distinctive blend of country, rock, folk, classical, R&B, blues, and soul. The music was composed partly in "Big Pink", a house shared by bassist/sing ...

'' ... e impression lingers that the track was as much fun to make as it is to hear." In the 2005 publication ''

NME Originals The NME Originals is a collection of articles and reviews from the ''NME'' and '' Melody Maker'' magazines about one band or genre. The first issue was about the Beatles, published on 3 April 2002. Many issues in the series were produced by ''NME'' ...

: Beatles The Solo Years 1970–1980'', Paul Moody included "Sunshine Life for Me" among Starr's "ten solo gems", describing it as a "joyful hillbilly romp". Former ''

'' editor

Mat Snow Mat Snow (born 20 October 1958) is an English music journalist, magazine editor, and author. From 1995 to 1999, he was the editor of ''Mojo'' magazine; he subsequently served in the same role on the football magazine ''FourFourTwo''. During the ...

cites it as an example of how Harrison and Lennon served their former bandmate well with their respective contributions to ''Ringo'' in the case of "Sunshine Life for Me (Sail Away Raymond)", by "amusingly hark ngback to Ringo's songs of life beneath the waves while extolling his yachting lifestyle on the surface".Snow, pp. 44, 47. In ''The Cambridge Companion to the Beatles'', Michael Frontani describes it as "perhaps the most lively track" on a "remarkable" album.Frontani, p. 156.

Personnel

According to Bruce Spizer: *

vocals, drums, percussion *

electric guitar, backing vocals *

electric guitar *

fiddle *

standup bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

backing vocals

Notes

References

Sources

* Dale C. Allison Jr., ''The Love There That's Sleeping: The Art and Spirituality of George Harrison'', Continuum (New York, NY, 2006; ). * Keith Badman, ''The Beatles Diary Volume 2: After the Break-Up 1970–2001'', Omnibus Press (London, 2001; ). * Harry Castleman & Walter J. Podrazik, ''All Together Now: The First Complete Beatles Discography 1961–1975'', Ballantine Books (New York, NY, 1976; ). * Alan Clayson, ''Ringo Starr'', Sanctuary (London, 2003; ). * Peter Doggett, ''You Never Give Me Your Money: The Beatles After the Breakup'', It Books (New York, NY, 2011; ). * Paul Du Noyer, "Champagne Supernova", ''

'', July 2001, pp. 48–54. * Michael Frontani, "The Solo Years", in

Kenneth Womack Kenneth Womack (born January 24, 1966) is an American writer, literary critic, public speaker, and music historian, particularly focusing on the cultural influence of the Beatles. He is the author of the bestselling ''Solid State: The Story of A ...

(ed.), ''The Cambridge Companion to the Beatles'', Cambridge University Press (Cambridge, UK, 2009; ), pp. 153–82. * George Harrison, ''I Me Mine'', Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA, 2002; ). * Bill Harry, ''The Ringo Starr Encyclopedia'', Virgin Books (London, 2004; ). * Levon Helm (with Stephen Davis), ''This Wheel's on Fire: Levon Helm and the Story of The Band'', A Cappella Books (Chicago, IL, 2000; ). * Chris Hunt (ed.), ''

: Beatles The Solo Years 1970–1980'', IPC Ignite! (London, 2005). * Ian Inglis, ''The Words and Music of George Harrison'', Praeger (Santa Barbara, CA, 2010; ). * Donovan Leitch, ''The Autobiography of Donovan Leitch: The Hurdy Gurdy Man'', St. Martin's Griffin (New York, NY, 2007; ). * Simon Leng, ''While My Guitar Gently Weeps: The Music of George Harrison'', Hal Leonard (Milwaukee, WI, 2006; ). * Thomas MacFarlane, ''The Music of George Harrison'', Routledge (Abingdon, UK, 2019; ). * Chip Madinger & Mark Easter, ''Eight Arms to Hold You: The Solo Beatles Compendium'', 44.1 Productions (Chesterfield, MO, 2000; ). * Patricia Romanowski & Holly George-Warren (eds), ''The New Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll'', Fireside/Rolling Stone Press (New York, NY, 1995; ). * Robert Rodriguez, ''Fab Four FAQ 2.0: The Beatles' Solo Years, 1970–1980'', Backbeat Books (Milwaukee, WI, 2010; ). * Nicholas Schaffner, ''The Beatles Forever'', McGraw-Hill (New York, NY, 1978; ). * Judy Slinn, ''Clifford Chance: Its Origins and Development'', Granta Editions (London, 1993; ). * Mat Snow, ''The Beatles Solo: The Illustrated Chronicles of John, Paul, George, and Ringo After The Beatles'' (Volume 4: ''Ringo''), Race Point Publishing (New York, NY, 2013; ). * Stan Soocher, ''Baby You're a Rich Man: Suing the Beatles for Fun and Profit'', University Press of New England (Lebanon, NH, 2015; ). * Bruce Spizer, ''The Beatles Solo on Apple Records'', 498 Productions (New Orleans, LA, 2005; ). * Doug Sulpy & Ray Schweighardt, ''Get Back: The Unauthorized Chronicle of The Beatles' Let It Be Disaster'', St. Martin's Griffin (New York, NY, 1999; ). * Bob Woffinden, ''The Beatles Apart'', Proteus (London, 1981; ). {{Authority control 1973 songs Ringo Starr songs Songs written by George Harrison Music published by Harrisongs Song recordings produced by Richard Perry