Nuggets II: You’re Driving Me Insane by The Missing Links

Aphoristical
August 16, 2026
Nuggets II

The Missing Links’ lead singer grew up in Naenae, Lower Hutt, New Zealand (the same suburb I live in).

You're Driving Me Insane—The Missing Links

Track 66, disc 3
Year: 1965
From: Sydney, Australia.

9/10

More about Nuggets II

Credits

3/12. YOU’RE DRIVING ME INSANE – The Missing Links (Australia)
(Baden Hutchins)

PERSONNEL/ANDY JAMES: vocals * DOUG FORD: lead guitar * JOHN JONES: rhythm guitar * CHRIS GRAY: organ * IAN THOMAS: bass * BADEN HUTCHINS: drums
An AM-RH Production
Recorded in Sydney, Australia
Philips single #BF-213 (1965) [Australia]

The Missing Links

The Missing Links released their debut single, ‘We 2 Should Live’, in May 1965. They took their name from their long hair – a venue owner said that “they looked like a cross between man and ape”.

The band briefly broke up in July 1965. When they released their only album in December 1965, their lineup was completely different from the lineup that recorded that March 1965 single.

The Missing Links were known for their wild stage antics. Lead singer Andy Anderson (aka Andy James) climbed walls, hung from rafters, then drove his head into the drums. Other band members smashed guitars into speakers. Early rock and roller Johnny O’Keefe barred The Missing Links from appearing on his TV show Sing Sing Sing.

This aggregation cut the rawest Australian garage/punk of the era, and indeed some of the best from anywhere, sounding at their best like a fusion of the Troggs and the early Who, letting loose at times with wild feedback that was quite ahead of its time.
Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide

You’re Driving Me Insane

‘You’re Driving Me Insane’ was the first single from the band’s second iteration. It features a tough, riff-driven sound, more like The Who. It’s not necessarily a great song, but it’s a great record with a charismatic lead singer accompanied by a churning arrangement. The early use of guitar feedback and the organ add different dimensions.

Billed as “Australia’s Wildest Group,” The Missing Links more than live up to that title on this track, first released as a single in August 1965. The song churns on a crude two-chord riff, with urgent Morse code organ, jungle drums, and swathes of feedback threatening to engulf the vocals.

Mike Stax, Nuggets liner notes

The Aftermath

Andy Anderson became an actor, starring in the NZ series Radio Waves. He’s appeared in numerous Australian and NZ shows, including Gloss and Xena: Warrior Princess. He won best actor awards for his work in the 2012 short film Honk If You’re Horny.