ludwig - absolutely understood, I appreciuate that you dont share the general sniping at Ringo as a musician.
jno - if you have heard this song - then you have heard Paul drumming, and he is perfectly adequate on this showing. i think it was just John's sense of humour, which, as often happens, was taken too literally - although Ringo knew what he meant, and often re-quoted the remark with a big smile.
The Ballad Of John And Yoko was knocked off in a spare afternoon by John and Paul - George was on holiday, and Ringo was away filming The Magic Christian, so, as two premier musicians can do, they played lead and rhythm guitars and bass and drums respectively, both sang, and here is the result.