Episode 37: Jimmy Nichol part 2

After completing 8 concerts on a 13 day tour of Europe, Jimmy Nichol, stand-in drummer for Ringo Star, sets out to conquer Sweden, Mexico and Japan with his new and successful band THE SPOTNICKS! 

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Transcript

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Rock and roll, here we go, baby. We back. Rock and roll, welcome back. Hello there. Hello, welcome back to Jay's Rock and Roll Stories. I'm your host Jay. We're gonna do part two of our Jimmy Nichols story. Alright, so let's rewind a little bit. Where were we? 1964, Adelaide, Australia. Uh Jimmy has two last shows to do, but um Brian Epstein and Ringo Starr are on their way to meet them. Okay, June 12th. The first Adelaide concert, Jimmy plays his ass off. He's just really giving it his all. I mean, he literally only has two shows left until Ringo takes over. So the the the and the place is crazed, you know, there's screaming teenagers all over the place. Um one employee reported that after the show, after the show was over, the the whole place stunk of piss because all of these like teenage girls were peeing their pants. Yeah. Alright, so party time. Uh Paul and John are really enjoying this like rotating door of like fresh, like you know, Beatlemania fans coming in and in and out. They are like they're enjoying it. So there's from from the inexperience to the experience, they it's just a party. Um it's Beatlemania. And uh it's one after the next, and it was told, okay, it was told that some Virgin Beetle fanatic requested that she could take home the bloodstained sheets as a memento, okay? Yikes. George Harrison now. He's he's on his phone, he's calling uh Patty, his girlfriend's Patty Boyd. We'll uh have definitely do an episode on that down the line, but no. George is not doing it. That's just that's just the Paul and uh John and Paul thing. There's like these uh stacks and stacks of autograph books that are left um by you know Beatles fans for you know the Beatles to sign. But they're actually signed by Mal Evans and uh the Roadies doing their best impressions of Beatles autographs because the boys are way too busy. Um June 13. Jimmy finishes the the 6,000 plus fan concert and wraps up his duty as a fill and Beatle drummer. Um Paul McCartney on stage thanks Jimmy in front of thousands of fans for what he's done. Let's go to the Southern Cross Hotel in Melbourne where the three Beatles plus Jimmy Nicole are going to meet with Ringo Star and Brian Epstein. It's packed with people, man. It's so chaotic. So there's a shitload of fans, and the plea the police create like a little diversion. They have all these different cars, and they do like some little diversion tactic where they're able to have a car as a decoy where all the fans run after one car while the you know the rest of the Beatles escape in another car. Alright. So uh you know the fans figure it out, and but it really pisses them off that they chased after the wrong car. So they're all running back to the hotel, like like banging on like the flimsy glass windows of the hotel. Even some of these uh teenage kids like are able to get in, like hiding in laundry bags that the like cleaners bring in. Okay, so um Jimmy shakes hands with uh Ringo at the hotel. Ringo and Jimmy shake hands, and it's sort of like this changing of the guard, you know? A prend um a press conference is held, and Jimmy gets like way too many questions. He's he's like talking over the Beatles, and Brian Epstein gets pissed about this. So back at the Hotel, um Brian Epstein sort of kind of ad admonishes Jimmy for talking over the other guys, like the hell, who do you think you are? You know, Jimmy, but Jimmy's kind of fights back a little bit. He's like, Well, I I was a drummer, what do you think? So it's uh, you know, it there's a little tiff between um Jimmy Nickel and Brian Epstein, which uh which kind of goes to Jimmy's head. Anyway, so um Jimmy's done and Epstein, like this is still the this is still the press conference. Epstein is is announcing that there's rules for the Beatles where they need to turn in at midnight, you know, like that's it. There's rules for these guys. But at 2 30 a.m., Jimmy sneaks out. Like he's no, man, I'm out of here. Like no one knows me. I can get out and go have a good time. So he does, but um Mal Evans and Neil Aspinall are sent to go collect the guy, saying uh you can't go out. Jimmy's pissed off. He's saying I can do whatever the hell I want. I'm not a beetle. They say, You are a beetle until we put your ass on an airplane and get you the hell out of here. Um Epstein was kind of paranoid that Jimmy would uh you know drink, party, and just like talk shit about like you know the Beatles behind their back or anything. So he he couldn't he couldn't have like anything like that. So they grow, they grab him, throw him in the car, and and you know, take him back to the hotel. Alright, June 15, 1964. Jimmy goes back to London. Um he is no longer a Beatle, he did 12 days with the Beatles. Alright, so the Dave Clark 5, the band from the 60s, um, their drummer, Dave Clark, is out because of an ulcer, and they need a drummer. They were supposed to play um a few shows at this Winter Gardens in a little city called Blackpool. And so instead of doing the Dave Clark 5, they put in uh Jimmy Nickel and his uh band the The Shub Dubs. They they got back together. So it's on the top of the bill. The other bands that are are are playing at the same sp same place are just kind of like pissed off. Like, why the hell are we why is there like a drummer headlining? Like what is the big deal? So there's a lot of there's a lot of feelings, like like ill feelings toward Jimmy, like who the fuck do you think you are, you know? He's like, dude, I was a Beatle for 12 days. Who the f yeah I know who I am. Anyway, so um Jimmy was also quoted as at this time saying, Hey, they how come these guys never call me? Like, you know, he's like, the guys never give me a call. Never call to say hi. Alright, so Jimmy, Nickel, and the Shub Dubs got a few gigs opening for the Beatles in Blackpool. And Jimmy sees that George Harrison arrives in a Jaguar and sees, he's like, Man, I should get a Jaguar too. I should be driving a Jaguar. Um The Chub Dubs uh he introduces the Chub Dubs to the Beatles, and it's okay. There's there's no like there's nothing weird, it's all it's all good. It's like, hey, what's up, guys? It's pleasant. And uh Jimmy is uh he's still productive, and he's uh supporting a single out on 45. The Jimmy Nickel and the Chub Dubs have a song called Husky. Husky. It's kind of jazzy, it's kind of rocky, it's kind of it's cool. I just but it doesn't really get any attention. And um I heard the song, it it's it's interesting. Uh it's kinda I I like everything that he does, Jim uh Jimmy Nickel, after the Beatles. It's the production value is is is high. It's really good. Um it's kind of jazzy, it's kind of it's kind of the Booker T and the MGs kind of sound. Alright, so things are not so good at home. Uh he and his wife Pat are constantly arguing. Uh she's sick of the excessive spending. He's never at home doing anything with the family. Uh in September of 1964, he in September of 1964, uh Jimmy Nichol receives 5,000 letters uh from female fans from Australia. That kind of pisses off his wife, so that's like, yeah, I'm done. Um so, and also he gets a Jaguar, like you like George Harrison has. So he gets a Jaguar, and he likes to speed really fast, and he gets ticketed a lot. And and he he's in the paper, like ticketed again, Jimmy Nickel. Um he's not making any money, though. Uh he's just doing these flyby night shows, you know. There's not like a tour or anything like that. And uh he's a band leader, so for the shubdubs, he has to pay for their wardrobes, he has to pay for the hotel, for the food and everything. Um so eventually the the gigs for the Jimmy Nickel and the shubdubs just they they dry up. It's like, well, you know, he was the fifth Beatle, but the so what, you know. The group disbands. Um, Jimmy Jimmy Nickel becomes very bitter and believes that Brian Epstein, Beatles manager, had just blacklisted Jimmy. It's not true though. Um he played well with the Beatles for 12 days, he moved on, and they're like, Thank you for your work. Take care, see you later. On top of everything, Pie Records, who had signed with uh Jimmy Nickel and the Shove Dubs, they they are dropped, so they're no longer on a label. So January 1965, um, Jimmy Nickel decides to get a manager, and he works with a guy named uh Tommy Sanders and a producer named Ken Jones, who had some success working with the band The Zombies. The Zombies had that uh that song, Tell her, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. That's no, that's a good song. He also gets Jimmy signed to DECA, where his new band will be called The Sound of Jimmy Nickel. Um, he records with a seven-piece band, and Jimmy borrows money from all over the place. Like he has to pay um the equivalent of about like 20 grand for like um studio time for the for these musicians, and like he's very dedicated, but he doesn't have he doesn't have anything, he doesn't have any money. So anyway, April 1965, um, the sound of Jimmy Nichol, uh, they have a show. Uh George Harrison comes to support the guy. Like, he thinks that the Beatles don't like him. Oh, they'll never call me. No, but they're like they're they're the Beatles, they're probably fucking busy, right? Anyway, George Harrison shows up and to check out the the Jimmy Nichol show. And uh George orders um orders a drink uh and has the has the waiter send it to Jimmy, like in between shows, they're doing a first set, second set. But Jimmy declines it. He takes it as like, oh yeah, you you you know, you're trying to buy me off like you like you because you screwed me over, because you blacklisted me. I'm not taking your drink. But no, it was George Harrison was like, hey buddy, man, let me get you a drink. Uh so poor Jimmy, you know, Deka uh eventually drops him um because it was a short contract. If if you didn't if you fail to chart, you're out, and he invested like 4,000 pounds in equipment, um, all the money to pay uh the band, it just kind of dissolves. Uh yeah, so in the papers at this time, there's an article called uh The Rise and Fall of the Fifth Beetle. So it's like they're really jumping on this. Um, they even have a quote from Jimmy saying, Jimmy says, uh, standing in for Ringo was the worst thing that ever happened to me. Alright, so um I went, I listened to the Jimmy Nichol sound. Um it's it's interesting, it's not bad. I I found it on YouTube. Go ahead, try Jimmy Nichol sound. Um it's the production value is really high. It's it's it's it's music is very lively. It you could say it's like period music because it sounds like um 1960s, like swinging London sound. Like it sounds like the Austin Powers soundtrack, it sounds exactly like that with whole, you know, with a lot of Oregon Booker T and the MG sound, that Moose Allison jazzy sound. If you have no idea what the hell I'm talking about, look up uh Green Onions by Booker T and the MGs. Look up Seventh Son by Mo'lison, and then to top it off, listen by Clementine by The Sound of Jimmy Nickel. That's the song. This uh the Clementine. That was like the hit that they tried to put out that failed. Alright. Another little quote by Jimmy. He says, the only honest way was to go bankrupt. And I admit I failed. What about the future? Nothing. There's nothing for me now. Calm down, Jimmy. Jeez Louise, you know. The word spreads. Everyone thinks Jimmy's a failure, and you know, even uh Ringo Star responds. He said, I didn't think he could fail. No, no one thought he could fail. So this is unbelievable. It's like, fuck, leave the guy alone, and the papers keep like having these articles on it. Like the fifth, the fifth beetle. Here's an article headline. The fifth beetle, job hunting. So, more detailed notes about it. Jimmy is uh in the article, Jimmy has signed on to the Labor Exchange, Britain's uh the British government's workforce program. It's uh intended to help the unemployed find work. Um poor Jimmy, right? On top of that, they also published that Jimmy owes about 30 pounds overdue to alimony to his his you know his his wife and child. Wow. So oh, Paul McCartney sees this and he anonymously sends some money to Jimmy and to pay off that little debt he had. Alright, Paul, good job. Um here's some good news though. Like everyone in everyone in England is seeing how like the jumping on you know, Jimmy like this. So Paul is dating Jane Asher. Jane Asher's brother is Peter Asher. It's one half of the vocal band Peter and Gordon, and they need a drummer. So thank you, Beatle Paul. Jimmy gets a very much needed gig. Alright, 1965. The Swedish band, the Spotniks, are very famous in Sweden, and they are in need of a drummer. They know all about uh Jimmy Nichols' story, and they contact him. Jimmy says, hell yeah, and they need a permanent member. He says, hell fucking yeah. Alright, so he joins the Spotniks, and they're quite successful in Sweden, as I said. Um at the time of the charts, uh, for example, uh, everywhere you went, the Beatles are number one, but in Sweden, um the Spotniks were number nine. Not bad, right? Alright, so the Spotniks are about to go on a world tour, and uh they arrive in New York to start the tour, but due to like union rules, they can't play. Anyway, they they enjoy you know doing touristy things around New York. Um, they go to Mexico City and have some pretty successful concerts down there. They move on to Japan and they and they are like that that is Beatlemania in Japan, the Spotniks. Um the band refuses, they're they don't want to, but they're forced to wear these like little shiny aluminum foil astronaut outfits. The Japanese fans love it, they're like freaking out. Um Jimmy, Jimmy's digging it because uh he likes the fact that they play double their time on the stage versus what the Beatles were doing, like twice as much. And on stage they have a sweet rocket ship with the words Spotniks painted on the fuselage. So the show would begin, the band would land on stage, the astronauts would come out, and it's time to rock and roll. And then they would uh Jimmy gets to do these long drum solos, and um the cool thing is his like his Swedish bandmates they like Jimmy, they know his background, like he's we're we're all together. This isn't like your replacement, you're us, you're you're a spotnik like us. So during the Japanese tour, um the fans would go nuts. Spotnik's kicking it off with their Spotnik theme. You can see this on YouTube. Look it up. Spotnik theme. Uh the one that I watched was uh was on live Dutch TV, Spotniks, Spotnik's theme, and that clip is about 1964. So it looks like um the they wear these costumes, it it really looks like when David Bowie would do the Ziggy Stardust uh character, like these shiny outfits with the boots and everything. And the music um it sounds like early 60s, like surf rock instrumental stuff. Okay, the brand the band is pretty successful. Um, sold out concerts thanks to their hit, the little sweet surf rock slow ballad instrumental called Carolia. Um look that one up, it's a nice little song, Carolia Spotniks. Good news for our hero Jimmy. Uh he feels a part of this band. He is, he's an official Spotnik. So they're about to leave Japan, which they conquered, right? And they have sold one million copies of uh Corelia. The Spotniks finished their tour, the world tour, they arrived back in Sweden, where they are uh happy to find that they are like um they were bought a brand new uh Mercedes-Benz tour bus, like which they'll use for like you know, regional tours and stuff. Um, the billboard announces that the Spotniks are number one in Japan. And then they record their first album. They record a song uh on the album called Vostok Six. The title is the name of the spacecraft of uh Valent uh Valent Valentika Tereshkova. She is the world's first female astronaut, or I would say cosmonaut, since she's Russian. Um they play the song for her, she is deeply moved. She gives each member like the Spotniks, like a pin with like the Russian space emblem on it. It's like kind of a big deal, man. It's kind of cool. Um, I listened to their first album, Spotniks in Tokyo. That's their first one. Spotniks in Tokyo. It's really good. Great recording. It's like surf rock. If you like surf rock, check it out. Uh that summer, this that's that summer, the Spotniks record a Christmas album that they're gonna, you know, throw out there in December. It's 12 songs that they recorded in 95 degree weather, which they would take little breaks to jump in the pool. Uh, I like it. I like uh on that album, I like Here Comes Santa Claus. Put on this Christmas, put on um, you know, when everyone's listening to the you know Bing Crosby stuff, put on Here Comes Santa Claus by the Spot Knicks. Okay, it's you know, can't get better than that, but Jimmy gets a little bored. Um it's really not the type of music that he likes, you know. It's it's he's kind of more jazzy, he he likes it a little like more intricate, like um time signatures and things like that. So he gets a little bored. Um he is a spotnik, and on the the account of uh the immediate Attention, they take him in as well. Um, media is saying, No wonder he feels like he has finally come home. On his business card, he can write Jimmy Nickel or Spotniks. It does not matter which. Now the two concepts mean the same for him. Yes, but as I said, Jimmy's a little bored. 1966. Uh it's just more of the same and it's success, but it's just not enough for him. So, to uh I don't know, entertain himself or whatever, he just increases his marijuana intake. He likes it, he digs it. One night he introduces uh marijuana to his buddy, his roommate, his fellow spotnik, Peter Winsness. Peter says, here's Peter's quote Jimmy opened the window and lit up his joint, sucked on it, held the smoke deep down and blew it out. Blew out the window. Then he handed it over to me. He told me to hold the smoke deep down in my lungs for as long as I could. It was the first time for me, but the effect came immediately when we finally made it to Bill the Bill Haley show. So they went to a Bill Haley in the Comets concert. So he says, I had the greatest, happiest experience of swinging rock and roll. Alright, so Peter Wisnes uh likes it so much that he introduces it to the rest of the band, and Peter Wisness becomes um a quote unquote weed prophet to the band. Alright, so 1966, the Spotniks go on another world tour, and they get to Mexico City. Jimmy doesn't really bother showing up to rehearsals. Um he's kind of found like a group of buddies to go party with. Uh he likes to get fucked up with these guys. He doesn't really commit to being a Spotnik anymore, so they fire him. Uh and they fly in a new drummer from Sweden to finish off the tour. Jimmy says, fuck it, I'm gonna stay in Mexico City. Uh his weed buddy Peter says, uh is quoted saying, Jimmy Nickel just disappeared into the Mexico night. Wow. Alright, so Jimmy falls in love with Mexico City. He learns the language, he likes the nightlife. Um, he quickly starts up a band. He gets steady work, uh, he gets gigs. He's um but but interesting, it's interesting because at the moment the mayor of Mexico City is uh quickly shuts down any type of rock and roll nightlife, any type of rock rock and roll nightlife scene, shutting those things down, right? So Jimmy reaches out to uh his name is Luis Kutelec, who was the president of the RCA Victor Mexicana, the record label. He met him the first time they came out there for the the Mexico City uh tour, and they they they kind of bonded, and they kind of said, like, you know what, I'll see you next time. We'll do something together. So yeah, so uh Kutalek uh Kutalenk is impressed with Jimmy and it's perfect timing because Kutalenk is right now set out to find the next big thing. So let me explain here. So at the time of um the leading record companies in Mexico, uh they're only still only putting out like traditional music, and rock and roll really hasn't hit hard in Mexico yet, you know. And there is uh like an age, an age group of people, let's say like the book said 15 to 30 year olds who are not interested in the traditional, you know, Mexicans, they want rock and roll. So um, yeah, they want rock and roll. So Kutulenk enlists Jimmy to be an AR man and to find the next big thing. It's a race, it's a race, really, because there's a competition going on between RCA, um Victor uh Mexicana, CBS, and um no, RCA Victor Mexicana is one, CBS is another, and Capital the Mexico is another, right? There's three. Uh Armando de Llano, the president of CBS, is quoted saying, The principal problem today is we haven't been giving the teenage market the music it wants, but we are seeking the new Mexican soundmaker, the idol. There is there's no one now, but one of us is going to find him. Guess whose job is that? Jimmy Nickel. Jimmy Nichol's job is to find the next big rock and roll idol of Mexico. Wow, I'm gonna stop right here. Isn't it what a life this guy does? You know, first it's like, do you wanna be in the Beatles? And uh next he's the number one band of Sweden. And now it's like your job is to find the biggest guy for Mexico. It's just uh incredible story. That's it. That's part two, alright? So you're gonna have to stick around. Is he is Jimmy gonna find the next big rock and roll star from Mexico? We're gonna have to wait and see. Thank you for listening. Thank you for coming back to Jay's Rock and Roll show. Jay's Rock and Roll Stories. Um email to Jay's uh rock and roll stories at proton.me. I think there's a Facebook. Hey guys, did you make a Facebook? Sort of. Alright, I think they sort of made one. So if you look on Facebook Jay's Rock and Roll Stories, like sort of. Sort of? Sort of. Sort of, okay. Anyway, if you enjoyed this episode, if you enjoy this podcast, tell the world. Give me five stars and whatever you're listening to. Um Spotify, whatever, you know, do your thing. Anyway, uh, come back for part three. Come back for part three.