Although "Carry that Weight" is a Lennon/McCartney song, it always makes me think of Ringo. His drumming is wonderful in the song, but what makes it special for me is his vocals. It was rare to have all four Beatles singing at the same time and ironically, it's Ringo's voice that carries above everyone else's. It's the first voice you hear. It makes me smile every time. He has always said he would have stayed if everyone else had - if they could all stop fighting. When I hear Ringo singing "Boy, you're gonna carry that weight for a long time.." it gives me goosebumps.
One cannot simply listen to Carry That Weight on its own, however. It is sandwiched by Golden Slumbers and The End, and to really appreciate the song, you must listen to the three songs together. Ringo has an incredible drum solo in The End, though he was apprehensive about doing it.
"Ringo would never do drum solos. He hated drummers who did lengthy drum solos. We all did. And when he joined The Beatles we said, "Ah, what about drum solos then?", thinking he might say, "Yeah, I'll have a five-hour one in the middle of your set," and he said, "I hate 'em!" We said, "Great! We love you!" And so he would never do them. But because of this medley I said, "Well, a token solo?" and he really dug his heels in and didn't want to do it. But after a little bit of gentle persuasion I said, "Yeah, just do that, it wouldn't be Buddy Rich gone mad," because I think that's what he didn't want to do." ~Paul McCartney
A beautiful video befitting of the songs:
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