Nigel began his professional career in the London blues scene, drumming with The Cobras and Blast Furnace and the Heatwaves. They played regularly at The Marquee Club, Dingwalls and The Roundhouse.

In 1978 he hooked up with The Bliss Band. They were signed to Columbia Records. "Dinner with Raoul" was produced by Jeff "Skunk" Baxter at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles. In the early eighties Nigel was the tour drummer for Sheena Easton, Toyah and when he wasn't ill, Spike Milligan.

In 1984 he moved to America where he ran a recording studio and did session work before moving back to the UK in 2004 where he began teaching and playing in numerous bands.