Shafted Stone

In 1969, Mick Taylor was a fresh-faced 20-year-old guitar player. For the three years prior, Mick had played and recorded with the influential blues band John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.

That same year, Brian Jones was sacked by his band, The Rolling Stones. Not long after Mick received a phone call from another Mick, Mick Jagger, asking if he wanted to jam with the Stones. Taylor at the time thought he was just going to do some sessions and overdub a couple of songs. In fact, the first two songs he played on was ‘Honky Tonk Women,’ and ‘Let It Bleed.’ Much to Taylor’s surprise, he got a phone call from Mick Jagger the next day asking if he wanted to join the band. Although he was much younger than the rest of the Stones, and much more musically accomplished, he signed on with the band.

Taylor’s’ first live appearance with the Stones came two days after the mysterious death of Brian Jones, who apparently had drowned in his pool. The concert, held at Hyde Park in London, drew an estimated 250,000 people. On his first US tour with the Stones, he played at Altamont Speedway outside of San Francisco. The free concert turned into a disaster after the stabbing death of Meredith Hunter, who was killed  by a member of the Hell’s Angels after allegedly pulling out a gun. So much for peace, love, and coming to San Francisco with flowers in your hair.

From 1969, through 1974 Mick played on some of the best Stones albums ever recorded, including Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile On Main Street, Goat’s Head Soup, and It’s Only Rock’n’Roll. In addition he played on the classic live album Get Yer Ya Ya’s Out, which is regarded by this blogger as one of the greatest live albums ever recorded.

This was probably one of, it not the most creative periods in the Stones long career, and Mick Taylor contributed significantly. With his jazz, blues, and country influences he blended seamlessly with Keith Richards playing. Some of the best solos of that era were Mick’s. His slide playing on songs such as All Down The Line, and Dead Flowers, were masterful. You can also hear his excellent solos on a host of songs including Moonlight Mile, Sway, Can You Hear Me Knocking, and many others.

Although not a songwriter, Mick contributed to the creation of both Moonlight Mile, and Sway from the Sticky Fingers album. Keith wasn’t around at the time, so Jagger worked on the songs with Taylor. The pisser here is that Taylor, for whatever reason, was not given songwriting credit. The Jagger/Richards songwriting team was pretty tight at the time, and I guess no outsiders were allowed. Mick did get credit for co-writing Ventilator Blues on Exile On Main Street.

Along with the songwriting slight, Taylor found it was increasingly hard to work with Richards, hell, who wouldn’t? Keith’s increasing drug usage, hangers on, etc, was making it increasingly hard for Taylor, as well as the rest of the band to record and tour. Keith had probably been kicked out of more countries than he could get into.

By 1974, the drugs, lack of recognition, the difficulty in recording and touring were starting to take its toll. Taylor was easily and equal to the late Brian Jones in musicianship, and in my estimation far better than the man who would eventually replace him Ronnie Wood. No knock on Ronnie, but to me, the creative period that was Mick Taylor’s era surpasses anything that came before or since.

Although a great player, he never really fit in with the Stones. Not to say they didn’t like him, he was younger, he was different than they were. I’d even go so far as to say the Richards had a problem with the fact that Taylor was a better guitar player than he was. Keith had the brilliant open G tuning he played in, but Taylor’s virtuosity far outmatched Keith’s playing. To me, it’s no surprise that the bands greatest period of music coincided with the arrival of Taylor, and declined after his departure. Get mad Stones fans, but it’s true. They have recorded some great music since, but nothing since 1974 stands up to Exile, Let It Bleed, or Sticky Fingers, nothing.

When he left, Taylor left a legacy of great guitar playing with the Stones. The reasons he left are many. Some have to do with his drug use at the time, and fear that it would only get worse if he stayed with the Stones. It actually got worse after he left, but hey, that’s rock’n’roll.

Taylor has said many times that he has no regrets in leaving the Stones. He was the first to leave and survive. Bill Wyman left much later and is doing well.

The thing that really rubs me the wrong way in all of this is after he left, Taylor was still paid royalties for his performances with the band on the albums he played on. Well, in 1982, after a change in record labels, the band’s management used a loophole in their contract to have Taylor excluded from getting paid his fair share of the performance royalties. I don’t understand how a band as successful and wealthy as the Stones are would do something to someone who so mightily contributed to their success. Hell, Brian was still on the payroll when he got sacked. I’m sure the boys would have cut him off eventually as well. Funny, how a band once feared on nearly every developed county in the world, now has homes in those same countries, yet they screw Mick out of the money he so deserves.

Taylor isn’t exactly living in poverty, but he’s not living the good life either. After leaving the Stones, the great anticipation of what he might do never materialized either. I was always one of those who asked ‘whatever happened to Mick Taylor?”

Well, Mick continued to play and still does. He doesn’t play in arenas and stadiums, but in small clubs with small bands. He’s been in demand as a session player with many including Jeff Beck, Mayall, and others.

The road hasn’t been a smooth one for Taylor. He’s been divorced, had his drug and alcohol problems, been screwed by the band he helped make an even bigger success than they were, but he’s still out there. If he makes it to your town, go out and support what he’s doing. The guy can still play. He’s 62 now, and not the skinny, youthful guy that he once was, but he’s still a brilliant player.

Wish him well the rest of the way, he deserves it.