Jimmy Nicol

James George Nicol (born 3 August 1939) is an English drummer and business entrepreneur. He is best known for sitting in for Ringo Starr in the Beatles for eight concerts of the Beatles' 1964 world tour during the height of Beatlemania.

Elevating him from relative obscurity to worldwide fame, Nicol had hoped that his association with the Beatles would greatly enhance his career, but instead found that the spotlight moved away from him once Starr returned to the group. In 1965 his subsequent lack of commercial success culminated in bankruptcy.

After having worked with a number of different bands which included a successful relationship with the Spotnicks, and several more while living in Mexico, he left the music business in 1975 to pursue a variety of entrepreneurial ventures.

Over the decades, Nicol increasingly shied away from media attention, preferring not to discuss his connection to the Beatles nor seeking financial gain from it. His son, Howie Nicol, is a BAFTA award-winning sound engineer.

Jimmie Nicol's career break came in 1957 when he was talent spotted by Larry Parnes whilst drumming with various bands in London's The 2i's Coffee Bar, a time that saw Britain's skiffle-dominated music scene giving way to rock and roll which was being popularised by its Teddy Boy youth. Parnes invited Nicol to join Colin Hicks & The Cabin Boys whom Parnes co-managed with John Kennedy (Colin Hicks is the younger brother of English entertainer Tommy Steele, whom Parnes also managed). After taking a temporary break from the group to be a member of the original pit band in the Lionel Bart musical Fings Ain't Wot They Used T'Be at the Theatre Royal Stratford East Nicol rejoined Hicks's band for their appearance in the 1958 Italian film documentary Europa Di Notte, breaking them in Italy and subsequently allowing them to tour there extensively. During the early 1960s, Nicol went on to play for a number of artists, including Vince Eager, Oscar Rabin and Cyril Stapleton, and was kept in regular work through Charlie Katz, a well-known session fixer during that period. Nicol has cited drummer Phil Seamen and saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley as being his main influences.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.