The song was written for and sung by Beatles drummer Ringo Starr as the character `` Billy Shears '' ; it is ranked # 304 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time . The song was written for and sung by The Beatles ' drummer Ringo Starr as the character `` Billy Shears '' ; it is ranked # 304 on Rolling Stone 's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time .