The Tragic Story Of The Drummer Before Ringo Starr: Who Was Pete Best And What Happened To The 'Fifth Beatle'?

The question of who was the drummer before Ringo Starr is one of the most enduring and poignant footnotes in rock and roll history. For a brief, pivotal period, a musician named Pete Best was a key member of the band that would become the biggest musical phenomenon the world had ever seen, only to be unceremoniously dismissed just as they were about to achieve global superstardom. The story is a complex mix of musical talent, personality clashes, and sheer bad luck that continues to fascinate fans and historians to this day.

The name on everyone's mind is, of course, Pete Best, the man often dubbed the "Fifth Beatle." However, the full answer is more complicated, involving a revolving door of musicians in the band's formative years. The narrative has been given a fresh, definitive closing chapter as recently as April 2024, when Pete Best announced his retirement from performing, bringing a decades-long career full circle after the heartbreak of his 1962 sacking.

The Full Profile of Pete Best: The Drummer Who Missed the $800 Million Bus

The most famous and longest-serving drummer of the pre-Ringo era was Randolph Peter Best. His tenure with the band, which spanned from 1960 to 1962, covered the crucial period of their grueling residencies in Hamburg, Germany, and their ascent in the Liverpool music scene.

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Pete Best Biography and Key Facts

• Full Name: Randolph Peter Scanland (later took his stepfather's surname, Best).
• Born: 24 November 1941, in Madras, British India (now Chennai).
• Role in The Beatles: Drummer (August 1960 – August 1962).
• The Casbah Connection: Pete's mother, Alice Mona Best, was a pivotal figure in early Beatles history. She founded The Casbah Coffee Club in 1959 in the cellar of their home, which served as the band's first regular venue (then called The Quarrymen and later The Silver Beetles).
• Key Recordings: He was the drummer for the band's infamous Decca Audition on January 1, 1962, a performance that led to their rejection by the label.
• Post-Beatles Career: After his dismissal, he recorded with other groups, including The Pete Best Four and The Pete Best Band, and later worked as a civil servant for two decades before returning to music.
• Recent News: In April 2024, at the age of 83, Pete Best announced his retirement from live performance.

The Real Reason Pete Best Was Fired

On August 16, 1962, just as The Beatles were on the cusp of signing their first major record deal and releasing "Love Me Do," manager Brian Epstein delivered the news: John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison wanted him out. The decision remains one of the most controversial moments in the band's history, and a definitive single reason has never been universally agreed upon.

Multiple factors contributed to the sacking, which was a consensus decision among the three core members:

• Musical Ability: George Martin, the producer at EMI's Parlophone, was reportedly dissatisfied with Best's drumming, especially on the early recording of "Love Me Do," and preferred to use a session drummer (like Andy White, who played on the album version). Some band members felt his drumming lacked the flair and consistency they needed.
• Personality Clash: Best was often described as aloof and quiet, failing to "gel" with the others' quick-witted, shared sense of humor. While Lennon, McCartney, and Harrison would spend time together outside of gigs, Best often kept to himself, creating a social and personal divide.
• Appearance: Best was known as the "handsome Beatle" and had a significant female following, which some sources suggest caused a subtle friction or jealousy among the other members.
• Ringo Starr's Availability: Ringo Starr, who was already a popular and respected drummer in the Liverpool scene with Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, was available and had a strong rapport with the other three. The consensus was that Ringo was a better fit both musically and personally.

The Forgotten Drummers: A Complete List of Drummers Before Pete Best

While Pete Best is the most famous pre-Ringo drummer, a number of other musicians held the drum stool during the band's earliest incarnation as The Quarrymen and The Silver Beetles. To truly answer the question of who came before Ringo, we must go back to the skiffle and rock-and-roll days of Liverpool.

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1. Colin Hanton (1956–1959)

Colin Hanton holds the distinction of being the first drummer for The Quarrymen, the group that evolved into The Beatles. He was a member of the band during their very first studio recording session in 1958, a private pressing that included "That'll Be the Day" and "In Spite of All the Danger." He left the group in 1959 after an argument following a performance.

2. Tommy Moore (1960)

Tommy Moore was a part-time drummer who played with the group when they were briefly known as The Silver Beetles in 1960. Moore was significantly older than the other members and also worked as a fork-lift truck driver. His tenure was short-lived, as he quit shortly before the band's first trip to Hamburg, Germany.

3. Norman Chapman (1960)

Norman Chapman was a short-term replacement for Tommy Moore in mid-1960. His time with the group was cut even shorter when he was called up for National Service, a mandatory military duty in the UK at the time. His departure led directly to the recruitment of Pete Best in August 1960 for the crucial Hamburg engagements.

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The Brief, Forgotten Bassist: Chas Newby

For a brief moment in December 1960, the band also featured another temporary member, Chas Newby, who filled in on bass guitar after Stuart Sutcliffe stayed in Hamburg. Newby declined the offer to join full-time to return to university, a decision similar to the unfortunate timing of the drummers before him. Newby passed away in May 2023.

The Other Temporary Beatle: Jimmie Nicol's 10 Days of Fame

While Pete Best is the answer to "who was the drummer *before* Ringo Starr," there is another drummer who temporarily replaced Ringo *after* he had joined the band, a lesser-known but equally fascinating figure named Jimmie Nicol.

In June 1964, at the height of Beatlemania, Ringo Starr was suddenly hospitalized with tonsillitis, leaving the band scrambling just hours before the start of a major world tour. Manager Brian Epstein and George Martin urgently called upon session drummer Jimmie Nicol to fill in.

Nicol had the impossible task of stepping into the shoes of the world's most famous drummer for a massive tour, performing a total of eight shows in less than two weeks across Denmark, the Netherlands, and Australia. He was given a distinctive mop-top haircut and a set of Ringo's clothes and told to keep his head down and play the songs.

His time in the spotlight ended as quickly as it began. When Ringo rejoined the group in Melbourne, Australia, Nicol was quietly paid off and sent home. His experience, though brief, perfectly captured the overwhelming, fleeting nature of the band's fame. The other Beatles would often ask him how he was doing, to which Nicol would often reply, "It's getting better," a phrase that is rumored to have inspired the Paul McCartney song "Getting Better" on the *Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band* album.

The Legacy of the Pre-Ringo Era

The early drummers of The Beatles, particularly Pete Best, represent a crucial, raw, and often overlooked chapter in the band's evolution. Their time with the group—from the dingy clubs of Hamburg to the historic Cavern Club in Liverpool—was the forge where John, Paul, and George honed their craft and developed the chemistry that would change music forever.

Pete Best's 1962 firing remains a harsh lesson in the brutal realities of the music industry, but he eventually found peace and recognition. His inclusion on *The Beatles Anthology 1* in 1995, where he received a substantial payout for the early recordings, offered a measure of closure and financial security. His recent retirement announcement in 2024 is a quiet, dignified end to a musical life forever linked to the world's biggest band, a life that, despite the heartbreak, has finally found its rhythm.