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You'd think that being in the Beatles and playing to swelling crowds and swooning girls night after night would eventually cure one of stage fright. Unfortunately, that's not the case for Ringo Starr. The rock legend confessed that even after 50 years of performing, he is still in the grips of crippling anxiety.
"I have actually puked before I went on as all my nerves come to the fore," Starr said in an interview with Billboard. "It is part of what I am and it happens before every show. There have been times that I just wanted to go back to bed as I just get so nervous."
"Every night I just hope that tonight is the night when I am going to feel like Frank Sinatra," he continued.
So how does the drummer combat his nerves? By running! "I hope, 'You are just going to stroll on,'" he explained, "but I haven't made it yet -- I always run."
"That's why I always run on to it. I would love to coolly stroll on stage but I cannot." So do not interpret Ringo's swift entrance onstage as enthusiasm. Treat him gently, as he is actually scared of you -- and he might puke.
Watch "Learn About Ringo Starr"
