No wonder he’s smiling in this picture. Ringo Starr has reason to smile. I’ve listened to some of his solo work, and it’s terrible. (Sample lyrics: “Stop, and smell the roses — stop, and fill your noses.”) He’s a proficient drummer, true, but not in the same class as, say, Keith Moon (of the Who) or John Paul Jones (of Led Zeppelin). Unlike those two excellent drummers, though, Ringo Starr is still alive — more good luck.

His original, huge portion of good luck, of course, came when he was chosen to replace Pete Best in the early years of the Beatles, thus tying his name, in musical history, to three truly amazing musicians: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison. Pete Best, on the other hand, just might be history’s unluckiest person.