Brian Jones, founder of The Rolling Stones, was born today in 1942. He is my inspiration for playing guitar, and in my opinion the best member of the band until his tragic death in his swimming pool in July of 1969. Brian is responsible for the sitar on Paint it Black, piano and recorder on Ruby Tuesday, etc., and he also played rhythm guitar on almost all of the other Rolling Stones songs from 1963-1969. He also played sitar on some Jimi Hendrix songs.

Happy birthday and RIP.

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1995 Fender Mustang

The Doors #2? Really?

?

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1995 Fender Mustang

I agree fully with Mike,Brian was my favourite Stone and was by far the most talented and musical.Brian was solely responsible for forming the Stones and took the trouble to rent out the back rooms of a club to hold auditions.Richards and Jagger showed up and Brian wasn't going to hire Jagger because he didn't like his voice but Richards refused to join unless Jagger was allowed too.Richard's version of the formation of the Stones in his book "Life" is pure fabrication-basically out and out lies.Richards wasn't the guitar ace that he purports himself to be in his book but learned most of his blues chops under Brian's tutelage.In the early days the band was officially billed as" Brian Jones and his Rollin' Stones" (sic) and remained as such until they released their first album.As time went on Jagger and Richards undertook a cynical and concerted effort to distance and finally ostracize Brian from the Stones and have the control all to themselves.Their efforts sent Brian into a downward spiral of depression and consequently his alcohol and drug use escalated.
Jagger and Richards add insult to injury when it comes to the last months of Brian's life by saying that he had little to contribute to the last album that was recorded in his lifetime-Satanic Majestie's Request-when in fact he had just about single-handledly saved it from being binned by record company execs.He had put the Mellotron parts into what had been a lacklustre "2000 Lightyears From Home" Bill Wyman's "In Another Land" and just about every other cut on the album was enhanced and changed for the better by Brian.
At the time of his death he was the happiest he had been in years as he was now once again his own boss and free to embark on projects that he had been planning for years. He was fascinated by the music of other cultures and was planning to bring it to the world stage.He also had plans in the works of collaborating with one of his closest friends-Jimi Hendrix.There are many stories going around about Brian's death but it definitely wasn't a suicide as many have speculated and it is almost a certainty that he was murdered due to the deathbed confession of Stone's ex-employee Frank Thorogood who said that after a night of heavy drinking-him not Brian-he held Brian's head under the water as he was sure that Brian was about to fire him.

I urge anybody who has read Keith Richard's "Life" to read Laura Jackson's biography titled "Brian Jones The Untold Life and Mysterious Death of a Rock Legend". I have delved deeply into Brian's life story and have read many accounts of his life and Laura Jackson's biography is about the most true to life one that has been written.Andrew Loog Oldham-the Stone's original manager- has recounted many first-hand stories of the early days of the Stones and it differs completely from Keith Richard's so'called recollections of those days.

Happy Birthday Brian-some day thhe world will know the real truth about you,and I'll certainly continue my part to bring it out.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Sources to backup your silly claims?

These aren't silly claims,Laura Jackson has done exhaustive research on the subject ot Brian Jones,and Andrew loog Oldham has verified a lot of what I have stated here .I have many accounts of Brian's life and the Rolling Stones as a group and many have come forward and said that there is an awful lot of flights of fancy in Keith Richard's book,especially his account of how the Stones came to be.It is absolutley common knowledge to anyone who was on the go in the London music scene at the time that Brian put out the call to start a blues bansd and Laura Jackson quotes accounts of it all from Oldham and Giorgio Gomelsky especially who were deep into the Stones and Brian's inner Sanctum.

Try reading other accounts of the inner workings of the Stones,I found Richard's book hard to read, as much of it didn't come close to accounts of it that I had heard from and read by people who were in the know about what went on and had no reason to stray from what really happened.Richards and Jagger had everything to lose, as if people really knew how they worked on their cynical,mean-spirited plot to usurp control and leadership of the Stones from Brian,they wouldn't be so star struck and adoring of them.Laura Jackson's book is a great start as it brings together accounts of the Stones from unbiased people who were close enough to see what was really happening and confirms what myself and thousands of others have known all along.Just because what I have written doesn't jive with what you've likely believed to be the truth for years doesn't make it silly at all and I find that statement bloody offensive and insulting.Everything that I have written has been validated by credible and knowledgable people,many of whom worked either close to or within the Stone's inner circle.I don't find any of what they say the least bit silly.

BTW: Your name didn't look familiar to me and I see that you are fairly new to the forum.There are certain rules of behaviour and forum etiquitte and it would certainly behoove you to read them.You don't make insulting remarks about what someone else has written,even if you don't agree with it in the least.There is a way to answer and state your point without offending or insulting someone else.If you don't adopt these simple rules of forum decorum and courtesy you won't be welcomed with open arms nor will your opinions hold any weight.Just a word to the wise-if you will.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Sources buddy, sources!!!

Certainly Brian made his contributions, no doubt...

But the Stones seem to have gotten along pretty well the past 44 years without him, arguably producing some of their best work in that time.

cheers!

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'11 FSR Am. Vtg. Ltd. Ed. CAR '57 Stratocaster (SN# LE02639)
'14 American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
'12 Telebration Empress Telecaster
'99 Deluxe Nashville Telecaster
'12 FSR Telecaster HH
'10 Heritage H-535
'99 Martin DC-1E
'13 Lanikai Tenor Ukulele

I gave sources when I gave details of people in the Stone's inner circle who Laura Jackson interviewed for her book.These people were right in the middle of things as they were happening and they give unbiased and credible accounts of what happened.A lot of what I have written are accounts that I've heard from people like Oldham,Brian's family and such from interviews etc. and have been pretty well common knowledge to people who have been into the inner workings of the Stones.I have read many articles from different publications over the years but I can't remember from which books or magazines I garnered each and every bit of info.I have always read reports from credible sources and although I read it long ago some of it may have come from Bill Wyman's "Stone Alone" will I do know is that the accounts that I have alluded to are accurate and the people who made the statements had no reason to fabricate any of their memories.

Anyone who has been a Stones fan since the early 60s such as I have most likely has amassed a broad knowledge of what went on in the early days of the Stones and it would be impossible to recall who wrote what in which book.Just as I know that 7 X 8 = 56,I can't tell you when and where I learned it but I know that it's correct and the same goes for my info on the Stones.I haven't fabricated any of this as deceit and mendacity are not something that I engage in but I accept it all as fact until the people who wrote or said it recant what they stated or wrote.As I wrote in the previous post Laura Jackson confirms just about all that I have known about Brian's life and eventual demise by interviewing some of the very people that I have relied on for info over the years and she manages to bring it all together in her book.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

First of all I apologize to the OP for taking part in hijacking his thread.
Yes indeed, Happy Birthday to Brian Jones.

guitslinger, just because you read something in a book doesn't make it true.
Was Laura Jackson more on the inner circle than Ian Stewart?
I have big doubts. http://www.amazon.com/Laura-Jackson/e/B001HOW9IE
She seems more like a groupie than an author to me.
You must know as well as I do that Ian Stewart was as much if not more of a founder of the Stones than Brian Jones was. How come he didn't call Brian's death a murder???

As far as Mick & Keith having everything to lose if he lived, look at the Hyde Park concert honoring Brian Jones. When Mick Taylor joined the band they truly were "The Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World". When he left, the band died as far as I'm concerned.

And as far as my behavior and forum etiquette goes, I've broken no rules.
If I were to agree with you we would both be wrong.
You guys and the good ol boys club here crack me up.

Best regards,
Mike

Ps...I had to edit this into two posts for the submit button to work.

Laura Jackson didn't fabricate these stories,she interviewed the people who were most associated with the Stones .Although Ian Stewart was deeply involved with The Stones all along,the Stones were actually Brian's baby hence the billing in the early days of Brian Jones and his Rollin' Stones" Ian was a very close friend of Brian's and had played with him in previous groups so Brian,already being fully aware of Ians considerable music ability,asked Ian to join his group before he considered anyone else and hired out the audition space.

As I noted in my first post Laura Jackson wrote about incidents and happenings that I already heard or read from other sources,her book was the first time that the whole story was written in one concise work.As for the Hyde Park incident,many people close to Brian and the Stones as a whole were disgusted with the whole thing and deemed it as beinga cynical publicity stunt that was staged just to make them look like they were truly heart broken.On the day he died they spent the whole day in the studio working on their new album and carried on as if nothing had happened.Noel Redding later stated in an interview that he had been disgusted with the whole maudlin charade and had run into Denny Laine there who was equally disgusted where upon they both left and sat in a quiet pub and sat and talked about Brian.Phil May of the Pretty Things said that..."If Jagger had confronted reality and said,'Well,we fought like bastards,but we'll still miss him'more people in the know might have respected him,instead of expecting to swallow the bollocks he came out withHowever to some small extent it celebrated Brian."
Noel Redding also added"For me it was over....There ain't no Rolling Stones without Brian Jones."He also said that there was a complete lack of respec at thet after concert get together which added to not only his disgust but to that of others too.Pat Andrews,the mother of Brians first child stated her disgust with the so-called tribute to Brian knowing that it was just a PR exercise on their part and she too confirmed that many others close to Brian shared her feelings also.

As you said,you can't believe everything that you read-and I don't,and I'm quite frankly very doubtful of much that I read but this book merely echoes much that I have read from very credible first-hand report in the past and carries actual quotes and interviews from many of the people who were close to Brian and the Stones.The fact that in the intervening years nobody has come forward to dispute or discount anything that Ms. Jackson has written adds further creedence to my contention that she has written a well researched and factual account on the incidents she has written about.Cheers.

BTW:There isn't and never was an Good Old Boys club here as you so incorrectly surmised,a lot of us have been here long enough to have learned to respect the views of others no matter how much we may disagree with them,long term members adhering to the rules of proper decorum hardly constitutes being an "Old Boys Club".No matter what you may think it is still not proper to refer to someone elses views as silly etc. because that's actually a put down of the person moreso than their views.If you think that merely quoting what someone has written after gathering it from truthful and reliable resources as silly then you are sorely mistaken.Some of you know it all new comers crack me up.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

FYI... This is my LEAST cared for person on the Planet !!

And that includes ALL of the as-yet undiscovered Nazi War Criminals !!

cheers!

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'11 FSR Am. Vtg. Ltd. Ed. CAR '57 Stratocaster (SN# LE02639)
'14 American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
'12 Telebration Empress Telecaster
'99 Deluxe Nashville Telecaster
'12 FSR Telecaster HH
'10 Heritage H-535
'99 Martin DC-1E
'13 Lanikai Tenor Ukulele

Lightnin', maybe it's because I didn't sleep well last night and I'm a bit strung out this morning but the gist of your post sailed right over my head.If you were put out about my comment re Newcomers,I said "Some" most new-comers fit right in from the start and are well versed in what is proper and not proper forum etiquette-no offence was intended towards you.I was merely putting a reverse spin on what the previous poster had said about me and others who have been here long enough to know what and what's not acceptable rapport.Cheers.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

I take no offense...

It's just that when you describe a person based on the length of time they've been a Forum Member, such as "know-it-all new comers", you paint the perception, if not confirm outright, that the Good Old Boys club you claim "isn't and never was" does indeed exist and... that you're part of it.

Had you simply referred to 'them' as know-it-alls, I'd have no issue whatever.

Btw, I joined on 9/11/12 and have nearly 600 posts... when do I qualify for the Good Old Boys club ... ???

Like you, I don't believe such a network exists, though there are many Members who've been here a long time, some since Day 1, so naturally they are more friendly with one another. I think they're a great resource for the rest of us to have and most seem very willing to share their knowledge and experience.

In contrast, the 'older' guys on many of the car forums I belong to don't contribute as much, tiring of answering the same old questions time and again. They deprive other members of their knowledge and experience.

Thank goodness this doesn't seem prevalent here !

cheers!

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'11 FSR Am. Vtg. Ltd. Ed. CAR '57 Stratocaster (SN# LE02639)
'14 American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
'12 Telebration Empress Telecaster
'99 Deluxe Nashville Telecaster
'12 FSR Telecaster HH
'10 Heritage H-535
'99 Martin DC-1E
'13 Lanikai Tenor Ukulele