On The Trail of "The Beatle Who Vanished" - in London

The Spotnicks circa 1967. Bad hombre Jimmie Nicol on the far left.

This is one of the last know public photographs taken of Jimmie Nicol, a drummer who started his career in London 1957. He is barely known except as a the guy who sat in for Ringo Starr in June 1964, as The Beatles were forced to start their first World Tour without their regular drummer.

How did Nicol get this gig? Why was he the only drummer that could have saved The Beatles from embarrassment or worse breach of contract actions, as they traveled to Holland, Denmark, Hong Kong and Australia without Ringo Starr? And what happened to Jimmie Nicol after The Beatles, when he left The Spotnicks in February of 1967 and vanished into Mexico without a trace?

The Rock And Roll Detective wants to know. This week, The Rock And Roll Detective travels to London to follow the clues of drummer Jimmie Nicol, before the trail ran cold.

Stay tuned for further developments...