Jimmie Nicol was a well respected London session drummer living in relative anonymity until he got his lucky break. When Ringo Starr fell ill with tonsilitis in June 1964, The Beatles carried on with the first leg of their world tour, using Nicol as a temporary substitute. For 13 nights, Jimmie became the only person outside of John, Paul, George, and Ringo to really live as an honest-to-goodness Beatle during the height of Beatlemania - appearing in photos, at press conferences and as one of the four men standing on stage in front of thousands of screaming, adoring fans. Upon Ringo's return, Jimmie resumed his relatively quiet life...soon to retreat from the public eye altogether. What was his story? How was he chosen by The Beatles' camp? What did he do after experiencing the taste of fame? With no sightings for many years, is Jimmie Nicol even still alive??

These are the mysteries that our Third Lad, author, historian and Rock and Roll Detective Jim Berkenstadt seeks to unravel in his book The Beatle Who Vanished (https://thebeatlewhovanished.com). Jim has had a fascinating, multi-faceted career - from attorney to author to research and historical consultant for many music, film and TV projects for Apple Records and others. Jim shares stories of keeping it cool around Beatles (but not necessarily around Doors), jamming with a Beatle, and hearing Nirvana session tapes before they broke big.

And, of course, we've got our Top 5 replacement or temporary band members. Yowsah!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ep. 06 - Adventure 101