Brian Jones Death by Misadventure: Why Was Brian Jones ERASED From The Rolling Stones?

[Music] Brian Jones's death by misadventure why did the Rolling Stones fire Brian Jones and what events lead up to his untimely death in 1969 at the age of 27 this is the tragic story of a giant Talent who started off with the same traditional English upbringing as his counterpart Mick Jagger they cross paths begin their journey together yet at some point take different turns and their lives couldn't turn out more different however there are betrayals and deceptions along the way that come into play that are often overlooked while unraveling some of Brian's highs and lows there are some valuable lessons to take away as he seems unable to handle the pressures and unwilling to accept the changes of being a rolling stone was Brian Jones an intoxicated egomaniac that threw it all away or a musical genius pushed aside and then ruthlessly fired before his early death what will be doing before you joined um well just sort of buming around waiting for something to happen really I had quite a few jobs and uh I was trying to get a band going but it was unsuccessful until I met up with Mick and Keith and then where you that was a successful band well can you think back to your first engagement where was that um Marquee Oxford Street London and may I ask how much you get paid for that assignment 20 quid which was good because 6 months later we were still working for 10 quid there will never be another Brian Jones period he influenced music fashion creating the rebellious Bohemian anti-establishment figure of the 1960s that future Generations still emulate but most of all he was a brilliant musician a multi-instrumentalist musician who mastered the slide guitar harmonica flute sear saxophone marima recorder melron kazoo harpsicord Appalachian delamer and on and on he is described as a wizard of sound a troubled soul but for a flash in time he was a brilliant musician a leading figure of the British Invasion why would the Rolling Stones decide to fire such a brilliant musician that added so much depth to their music there were two Brians one was introverted shy sensitive deep thinking the other was a preing peacock gregarious artistic desperately needing Assurance from his peers he pushed every friendship to the Limit and Way Beyond Bill Wyman London 1962 Brian Jones is working odd jobs and playing in a band around London's blues and jazz clubs he is a father by age 16 and will go on to Father three more children by different women by age 23 Jones is highly intelligent yet has a rebellious streak that grows to dominate his life while playing in early bands such as blue Incorporated he uses an alias Elmo Lewis inspired from his Blues hero Elmore James nicknamed King of the slide guitar Brian is playing the slide guitar when Mick Jagger and Keith Richards spot him at eing Club completely mesmerized by his playing ability and approach him afterwards they discuss their love of American blues and soon Mick and Keith begin playing with Brian and Ian Stewart The Pianist for the band they get an apartment together while Mick attends London School of Economics soon Brian is calling and booking them gigs when asked the band's name Brian calls them the Rolling Stones which he gets From the Muddy Waters song Rolling Stone Brian is the embodiment of Oscar Wild's Dorian Gray paying careful attention to his attire and appearance a strong sense of style which sets him apart visually from his bandmates while playing a contrasting workingclass blues music this dichotomy earns him a local following and he is initially the most popular member of the band with the girls I remember a million things about Brian Jones He formed the band it was his band he started the Rolling Stones he was the first man to play slide guitar in England he was probably one of the first young kids to play harmonica um he loved blues and rhythm and blues that's why the band played that in the early days and he was the most popular member of the band with the girls fans they loved him you know Mick came second in those days baby used to stay out all night however mck Jagger begins getting a lot of attention when the audiences catch on to his unpredictable moves once he begins experimenting with what he picks up from Little Richard the never-before seen performances earn them disdain from the media and the parents but the young people cannot get enough Girls scream in delight at the energetic performances often described as sexual in nature Mick is engaging the audience in a voyerism into his unpredictable bad boy mindset pushing the limits like never before the electrifying Rebellion is felt everywhere they go as a singer and doing a performance you've got to be very finally attuned to what's going on in the B you Little Richard literally taught me in this St I watched him how he would Harang the crowd almost he would tease he about stand up I said stand up you know and they would he was outrageous they kept it all alive you know and you never quite knew it was going to happen their manager 19-year-old Andrew Olden who had been working for Brian Epstein comes up with a genius idea as their bad boy image the anti Beatles they would be the bad guys the antithesis of their merys side counterparts the guys pushed around by society and fighting back with bad attitudes and long hair Olden moves Stuart from piano to roie as he does not fit the image ironically it will be the Beatles who provide the anti Beatles with their first hit single with I want to be your man in 1963 we knew the Beatles by then and we were rehearsing and Andrew brought Paul and John down to the rehearsal they said they had this tune they were really Hustlers then I mean the way they used to hustle Tunes was great hey Mick we've got this great song so they played it and we thought it sounded pretty commercial which is what we were looking for so we did it like Elmore James or something I haven't heard it for ages but it must be pretty freaky cuz nobody really produced it it was completely crackers but it was a hit and sounded great on age Mick Jagger in 1964 the Rolling Stones released their debut album of mostly Blues covers the Rolling Stones with their version of Buddy Holly's Not Fade Away it is a reflection of the 60s British Blues movement and Brian's musical influence still felt on the band Alem recognizes that for the stones to continue they will need to write their own hit songs he assigns Jack Agger and Richards the task while Brian still sees himself as the Quasi leader of the Rolling Stones this is where the shift in power begins in 1965 Jagger and Richards find their magic formula with their hit single the last time inspired by a gospel song by the Staples sisters it gave us a level of confidence a pathway of how to do it and once we had done that we were in the game there was no mercy because then we had to come up with the next one we had entered a race without even knowing it Keith Richards Brian continues to contribute musically by experimenting with a range of instruments that bring color to songs that might have felt like a typical pop song but he begins struggling to understand his place within the new direction of the sound his rhythm and blues band is taking my ultimate aim in life was never to be a pop star I enjoy it uh with reservations but um I'm not really sort of satisfied either artistically or personally I am so in 1965 while in Munich the band meets 60s it girl Anita penberg she is instantly drawn to Brian and they begin a tumultuous relationship living together while falling in love they begin to dress alike she cuts and dyes his hair to make him look more like her they begin a flamboyant creative 2-year journey and she becomes a fixture of the band behind the scenes having a big influence on the band's public Persona Brian saw her as his female C cpart and was able to use her strengths to lift up his weaknesses giving him more leverage with the public and more importantly The Band When Keith first meets penberg he describes the moment the first time I saw Anita my obvious reaction was what the f is a chick like that doing with Brian Keith recalled later Anita's incredibly strong a much stronger personality than Brian more confident with No Reservations whereas Brian was full of doubts meanwhile Mick and Keith are turning out hits they write together including satisfaction Get off My Cloud Paint It Black and Ruby Tuesday the dominant force behind the music is Shifting to the band's songwriters and Brian turns to harmful substances to escape the feeling of rejection which creates a further divide amongst the former Inseparable flat and bandmates during this period some of Brian's notable contributions include sitar on painted black most Rock Fans first heard proper sitter playing on painted black thanks to Brian Jones [Music] I recorder on Ruby Tuesday while fooling around with the recorder a fairly basic woodwind instrument he crafted a Melody that eventually became Ruby Tuesday Jones went [Music] uncredited Mel Ron on she's a rainbow Alternatives were sought out by bands looking to diversify their sound the melron was an early keyboard with different settings that could emulate different instruments Jones is on the melron contributing some of his finest work [Music] to Jones plays kazoo on cool Carman collected saxophone on dandelion and the Appalachian douer a folk instrument that gave lady Jane a distinct pastoral [Music] feel Alm later claims in his book stoned that Brian Jones was jealous and tried to desperately hold on to his power this fear of losing control sends Brian spiraling into depression some report his violent temper growing over the next two years there is no question that a storm is brewing inside of Brian in mywe short life have I been so sad before let's face it the future as a rolling stone is very [Music] uncertain 1967 the Rolling Stones leave to Morocco without Brian Jones the Fateful trip destined to derail Brian's future in the band it begins with Keith and Mick who are with a group of friends when they get raided and there is a media frenzy that surrounds the band's drug bus for months so oldum decides to send the band to Morocco until things calm down the original plan for Brian his girlfriend Anita and Keith Richards to drive to Morocco from France changes when Brian becomes sick and has to be hospitalized Keith and Anita take the trip together without Brian with plans to meet up with him there once he is better Anita who had been growing weary of her relationship with Jones who is abusive and difficult to live with as his drug use increases Falls right in into Richard's arms as he is a shoulder for her to cry on Keith and Anita meet up with couple Mick Jagger and Maran faithful once in Morocco Brian determined to not be left behind recovers from his illness and eventually catches up to the band and soon realizes that Anita has turned cold on him in a highly dramatic confrontation Brian Corners Anita who confesses that she has fallen for Keith Brian violently lashes out at her Keith Takes Anita and the band and they leave and return back to France leaving Brian behind Brian stays in Morocco and slips into a drug filled stuper as he comes to the realization that he has lost his girlfriend to his friend and bandmate and on top of that he is also losing his band the one thing he has to live for even though he is not in his right mind Jones could see the reality of the situation Jones broke down into uncontrollable tears and needed a sedative to sleep at night Keith and Anita end up moving in together they go on to live as a couple for 12 years and have three children when Brian returns he displays mood swing when with the band often treating people with cruelty the band continues to record but often times Brian is a no-show and they just continue and leave him out the band's producer Jimmy Miller described the rest of the band as workhorses but when it came to Brian showing up sporadically the others particularly Mick and Keith would often say to me just tell him to piss off and get the hell out of here flavor but his involvement in the band dwindled Keith and I took drugs but Brian took too many drugs of the wrong kind and he wasn't functioning as a musician I don't think he was that interested in contributing to The Rolling Stones [Music] anymore but Brian was not the only one up to Shenanigans when it came time to record Bill Wyman said the following of the band every day at the studio it was a lottery as to who would turn up and what if any positive contribution they would make when they did Keith would arrive with anywhere up to 10 people Brian with another half a dozen and it was the same for Mick they were assorted girlfriends and friends I hated it then again so did Andrew oldum and just gave up on it there were times when I wish I could have done too however on 1968's Beggar's Banquet Brian's contributions are plentiful and can be felt all [Music] over at the subsequent Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus Brian is not fully functional and creates a further Drift from reality and the band Brian purchases Co Farms the former home of Winnie the Pooh author AA mil he is enjoying the childlike atmosphere of the home and occasionally showing up for recording sessions Brian shows up for a photo shoot with the band on May 21st 1969 not in his right State of Mind the band is ready to go on tour but Brian's drug possession busts make him unable to travel with the band to the United States two weeks later on June 8th 1969 three of the band members including Mick Jagger Keith Richards and Charlie Watts go to visit Brian at cotchford farms they inform him that they will carry on without him and it is best if he departs the band he seemingly agrees that this is best for all of them Keith saying you we can't go on like this we need another guy and we did need somebody else do you remember what happened that day when you went over there no can't remember but I remember it wasn't very nice they all agree that Brian can issue a statement on the departure he releases the following I want to play My Kind of Music which is no longer the Stones music he goes on to say that the split was amicable and that he and the stones will remain close friends but as he restated the Music Mick and Keith have been writing has progressed at a tangent as far as my own taste is concerned the following day Jagger confirms that Brian has left the band stating he wasn't enjoying himself and it got to the stage where we had to sit down and talk about it so we did and decided the best thing was for him to leave it was a very very difficult decision to make this is someone that you've been to spent the beginning of the band with and I mean it was horrible we said to Bri this isn't working out and and he sort of said yes it isn't and it was very sad reportedly Brian began connecting with old music friends to form a band and start playing again over the next few weeks then less than a month later on July 3rd 1969 Brian and his girlfriend Anna Wen were hanging out at the pool Wen eventually goes back inside he had friends over at his house with copious amounts of alcohol and cakes baked with hashish by 9:00 p.m. Jones was found lifeless in his pool where everyone was parting just hours earlier Brian Jones one of the biggest rock stars of the 60s friend of John Lennon Jimmy Hendrick creator of The Rolling Stones revered by many was dead fans were devastated and tributes poured in Brian Jones death by drowning or death by heartbreak about midnight Jones went for a swim with his Swedish girlfriend anavan and another friend Mr Frank Thor good after a Time Mr thur good and the girl went back to the house when they returned they saw Jones at the bottom of the pool and they pulled him out Jones's death was ruled death by misadventure and he drowned due to heavy intoxication at the time of his death Jones also had a heavily enlarged liver the autopsy revealed that Jones died while under the influence of alcohol and drugs and that his liver was twice the normal weight upon Jones's death the who Pete townend wrote a poem titled a normal day for Brian a man who died every day printed in the times Jimmy Hendrick dedicated a song to him on us television and Jim Morrison of The Doors published a poem titled o to La while thinking of Brian Jones deceased coincidentally Hendrick and Morrison both died within the following 2 years with Jim Morrison's death falling on the same date as Jones's all three died at the age of 27 Charlie found me up phone went about 3:00 in the morning and uh I just like got off to sleep after about an hour Charlie pH me up and he just said Brian died I can believe it then Mick flew to Australia to do Ned Kelly was working in the studio Me and Charlie went to the funeral when we drove through chelham all the streets were packed with people I never SE anything like it it was like a coronation I think you know and like all his family and relatives are all like tranquilized and everything everybody's crying upset there's thousands of fans everywhere the sad thing was that he' left the band and suddenly he was phoning up people and getting a band together and he was coming up for the session sessions and telling us all about what was what he was doing and all that I mean he still a very good friend and then suddenly wh you know just two days after Brian's death on July 5th 1969 the Rolling Stones had been scheduled to perform a free concert in Hyde Park the concert had originally been promoted weeks earlier as the first public appearance of Mick Taylor as the band's newest guitarist for obvious reasons the band decided instead to dedicate their upcoming Hy Park performance to the memory of Brian hi Park was the funeral and the bit about burying and the shovels and all of that it's they important to me that was his funeral the hide Park concert was two days after Brian died in front of almost half a million people in London the concert had become in his memory when it obviously hadn't been planned like that but it had assumed that feeling he was the author of his own misfortunate really but I when you look back at it now you think well surely we could have done something you know that there something more than just [Music] [Applause] that he got much nicer to what just before he died you know the last few years of his life but I felt even sorrier for him for what we did to him then we took his his one thing away was just being in a band I that's my opinion today Brian Jones is regarded as one of the most talented musicians to emerge out of the 1960s a pioneer of sound and a fashion icon Mick took the lead on the band and eventually even managed the band for some time a lot of things could have been done differently it's easy to look back and have all the answers and wonder why they just didn't do one thing or another but rock and roll is filled with complex characters and took off during complex times we now know so much more about the trappings of substance abuse as an escape from our problems and the destruction it can cause hope you enjoyed the video and found value from the story please share and comment if you know someone who might benefit from this story

Channel: Freewheeling

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Keywords: rollingstones, brianjones, mickjagger, rolling stones, brian jones, mick jagger, keithrichards, brian jones fired, brian jones death, rocknroll, music, classicrock, beatles, hendrix, jim morrison, interview, 1960s, sixties, Brian Jones’s

Id: tyqimZHMGiM

Length: 21min 1sec (1261 seconds)

Published: Mon Jan 29 2024