Along with " Don't Pass Me By ," this was one of two songs Ringo Starr wrote for The Beatles. It came about when Ringo leftsessions in 1968 and went on a boating trip with his family in Sardina. The boat's captain offered him an octopus lunch, but he turned it down. It was then that the captain began to tell him everything he knew about octopuses, and how they travel along the sea bed looking for shiny objects and stones with which to build gardens. Ringo thought about how tranquil it would be to live down there amongst your friends in the calm waters - the opposite of the chaos and internecine conflict he was going through with The Beatles. With this idea, he wrote the song about living in the octopus's garden.Ringo did return to his post for, discovering his drum kit covered with flowers to welcome him back (George Harrison's idea). The Beatles completed that album and later included "Octopus's Garden" on