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To mark the 50 years since he joined the Beatles, Ringo has released a sweetly nostalgic tribute to his early musical roots, including skiffle (“Rock Island Line”) and Buddy Holly (“Think It Over”). The album, featuring guests from the Eagles (Joe Walsh), the Heartbreakers (Benmont Tench) and Eurythmics (Dave Stewart), boasts one touching highlight: Ringo’s autobiographical “In Liverpool,” in which he sings “Me and the band/living our fantasies/breaking the rules, acting like fools/that’s how it was for me.”

Don’t feel sorry for Ringo. Although the man born Richard Starkey was always the sad-sack Beatle, the drummer with the large schnoz and puppy-dog eyes, Ringo Starr has always enjoyed a comical presence, coining some of the band’s most memorable phrases and often stealing scenes from John, Paul and George in the movies Help! and A Hard Day’s Night. Ringo’s own career, meanwhile, has been prosperous enough to contradict his image as the least talented member of the Fab Four. In fact, after Paul McCartney, Ringo was the most commercially successful solo Beatle. During the 1970s, he scored seven consecutive Top 10 singles, including “It Don’t Come Easy,” Back Off Boogaloo,” Photograph” and “You’...