6 Biggest Beatles Mysteries

When Jimmie Nicol received a phone call from Beatles manager Brian Epstein asking him to fill in for an ill Ringo Starr on the Beatles world tour in 1964, he was just 24 years old. Nicol was chosen as he was a session drummer who had recently played on a Beatles tribute album, making him the perfect candidate to temporarily replace Starr for a number of gigs.

Imagine that you're going about your daily business when suddenly you get a phone call asking you to join up with the biggest group in music to tour the world on just a day's notice. After a successful audition, Nicol was forced to undergo a makeover, including having his hair cut into the famous mop-top style, and joined the band as they embarked on the tour.

Nicol would end up playing ten shows during his whirlwind period as a stand-in member of the fab four, including stops in the Netherlands, Denmark, Hong Kong, and Australia before a now-healthy Starr joined up with the rest of the group to play the remaining dates.

In the space of two weeks, Nicol had gone from total obscurity to unfathomable superstardom and then back to his regular life. Just one year after his foray with the group, Nicol declared bankruptcy and would later quietly retire from the music industry.

In the years since, details on Nicol's life have been scant, save for a rare interview in 1988 where he discussed his time with the group. The most recent information confirmed that the former drummer is still alive, and now living a secluded existence in Mexico.

Nicol's legacy will never be forgotten though. After all, it was his predilection for the phrase 'it's getting better' when asked how his time in the band was going that would later serve as the inspiration for Paul McCartney to write the song Getting Better.