The Beatles recorded 'Act Naturally' June 17, 1965 for release on the "Help!" LP. The song was recorded in 13 takes with takes 1 - 12 being rhythm tracks only. Ringo's vocals were added on take 13 - the final take. The mono and stereo mixes were prepared June 18 and were used for the UK releases. This track appeared in reprocessed stereo on the US stereo LP "Yesterday... And Today," released on June 15, 1965. On April 30, 1987 the album "Help!" was released in both the US and the UK on the CD format. George Martin remixed the album in stereo for this release.

The Beatles performed 'Act Naturally' when they appeared live on UK TV's "Blackpool Night Out" on August 1, 1965. They also recorded an appearance for "The Ed Sullivan Show" on August 14, again playing 'Act Naturally'. This appearance was broadcast September 12. Both of these 1965 performances are available as bootlegs.

On January 22, 1969, during rehearsals for the aborted "Get Back" film/album project, John and Paul performed a short duet of this song (22.4). This performance has been bootlegged.

Ringo appeared live on the "Cilla" TV show on April 25, 1971 and did a duet of this song with Cilla Black. This appearance has been bootlegged and can be found on "Rizz Off!" Ringo also recorded a new version of this song with a special intro for the NBC-TV special "Ringo" which aired April 26, 1978. This recording has been bootlegged and can be found on "Ognir Rrats Greatest Hits." Ringo appeared on the "Saturday Night Live" television show on December 8, 1984. During this appearance, he joined Billy Crystal in a medley, which included this song. This medley has been bootlegged and can also be found on "Rizz Off!."

Ringo recorded a new version of this song with Buck Owens on March 27, 1989 at Abbey Road Studios. This recording was released as a single in the US on July 5, 1989.

Ringo performed this song during a concert with his All-Starr Band at the Pacific Amphitheater in Costa Mesa, California on September 2, 1989. This performance has been bootlegged and can be found on "Live From The Pacific Amphitheater."

Ringo Starr's performance of this song with his All-Starr Band at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on September 4, 1989 was released on a bonus 5-inch CD single. This single, released October 12, 1990 in the US only, was included with the US deluxe limited edition CD "Ringo Starr And His All-Starr Band" album.

Ringo also performed this song with his All-Starr Band during his concert in Copenhagen, Denmark on July 18, 1992. This performance has been bootlegged and can be found on "Ringo Starr And His All-Starr Band Live In Copenhagen Denmark" (CD).