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Goodnight Vienna is the fourth studio album by Ringo Starr. It was recorded in the summer of 1974 in Los Angeles, and released later that year. Goodnight Vienna followed the commercially successful predecessor Ringo, and Starr used many of the same players, including Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Robbie Robertson, Harry Nilsson, and producer Richard Perry. The title is a Liverpool slang phrase meaning "it's all over".
While all three other former Beatles had contributed to Ringo (1973),[1] only John Lennon contributed to Goodnight Vienna as Paul McCartney was busy with his band Wings promoting the album Band on the Run and George Harrison was recording Dark Horse.[2]
On 17 June 1974, Starr called Lennon, who was about to record his Walls and Bridges album, and asked him to write a song he could include on his next album.[3] Lennon wrote what became the title track, "Goodnight Vienna".[nb 1][4] A demo of "(It's All Down to) Goodnight Vienna" was recorded by Lennon on 28 June,[5] with the session musicians from Walls & Bridges and sent to Starr in advance of the sessions. Besides writing and playing piano on the title track,[6] Lennon suggested Starr cover The Platters' hit "Only You (And You Alone)"[7] playing acoustic guitar and providing a guide vocal for Starr to follow.[3] Starr's versions of both "Only You (And You Alone)" and "(It's All Down to) Goodnight Vienna" were recorded at a session produced by Lennon.[5][nb 2] Elton John also contributed a track, "Snookeroo", co-written with Bernie Taupin.[2] Harry Nilsson gave Starr the track "Easy for Me", which he later recorded his own version of for his Duit on Mon Dei album.[8]
