Ringo’s 1998 comeback album Vertical Man is loaded with famous friends, and Steven Tyler is all over the sessions—just not always where you’d expect. Across mid-November 1997, Tyler cut harmonica for “I Was Walkin’” and Ringo’s remake of “Love Me Do,” flying in on 17 November 1997 and re-doing the “Love Me Do” part on 18 November at Ringo’s request to nail a more Beatles-era feel. He also sits at the drum kit on “Drift Away,” the Dobie Gray cover that anchors the album’s back half.
Originally, “Drift Away” also carried a Tyler lead vocal cameo, but it was pulled late in the process. On 23 April 1998—with Vertical Man headed for a June release—Ringo’s label removed Tyler’s vocal because Aerosmith were gearing up a major push around the Armageddon soundtrack. To avoid cross-label headaches, the part was swapped out; Tom Petty re-cut the vocal on 6 May 1998 and the track was remixed and remastered on 12 May. The album landed in the US on 16 June 1998.
Crucially for collectors, that early Tyler mix still escaped “officially.” A June 1998 Mercury Records Japan radio-station sampler went out with the Steven-Tyler “Drift Away,” pressed just before the changeover. Because the swap happened at the last minute, warning stickers were applied to the disc and liner notes—“Do not play this tune! (prohibit to on-air).” That sampler’s “Drift Away” matches the early promo configuration but with a tiny quirk: a trimmed intro (you hear the second stick count rather than the first). Separately, an advance US promo CDR of Vertical Man also circulated with Tyler’s vocal intact before the retail version locked.
Where to listen for Tyler on the finished album
- “Love Me Do” — harmonica (re-cut 18 Nov 1997 to mirror the 1962 vibe).
- “I Was Walkin’” — harmonica (tracked 17 Nov 1997).
- “Drift Away” — drums on the released album; early mixes carried a Tyler vocal later replaced by Tom Petty.
It’s a neat late-’90s what-if: the album we got still brims with star power, but the Tyler-sung “Drift Away” adds a different shade—one that briefly slipped out through official promo channels before the last-minute label pivot.
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