The technical abilities of Brian Jones

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by MHP, Aug 11, 2016.

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  1. MHP

    MHP Lover of Rock ‘n Roll Thread Starter

    Location:
    DK
    See guys, you are doing it once again!
    In your constant mission to praise him, you are getting blindfolded and are once again ranting about his impotance in the group, and his creativity. I know all of that, and we have discussed it so many times over the years. My original post even stated that I know all about his creative abilities and his importance. I asked for your opinion on my thoughts about my observations regarding his technical abilities, and how people can claim he was technical superior by light years, when recordings shows otherwise.

    Firstly, I think you are being rude. That I am mistaking a sitar for a dulcimer, doesn't make it any different. The fact is that he plays it wrong! I know all about Jones being a "feel-player", which I certainly agree with. But to claim he was "light years superior" when it comes to technical abilities on the instrument, is to overpraise him, and that was the point of my whole post!
     
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  2. MHP

    MHP Lover of Rock ‘n Roll Thread Starter

    Location:
    DK
    Not true. Endless posts on here over the years, on how much more technical diverse and superior he was, compared to anyone else in british rock. It's simply not true.

    Again and again: I L-O-V-E the man's contributions. I am not trying to take it away. What I am asking is, if those who claim his superior abilities on instruments, has heard the recordings in honest or are they they just so blinded by his myth, that they forget to listen properly? Technically, he was no better than the others in the band.
     
  3. MHP

    MHP Lover of Rock ‘n Roll Thread Starter

    Location:
    DK
    His will to pick up any instrument, was impressive. But a lot of musicians can do that. Ask Paul McCartney or even Elvis Presley.
     
  4. the sands

    the sands Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    Yes but he did it his way. Many can play lead guitar technically or drums whatever but some musicians manage to add something personal that sets them apart. Go to karaoke and you'd be surpised at how many who can sing but music is a mystical thing. You have all these opera singers who practice eight hours a day but I often end up playing Bob Dylan records anyway. The Brian Jones era of Stones has devoted fans and I can understand why. It's distinctive and different from Wood and Taylor in the band. :)
     
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  5. Lightworker

    Lightworker Forum Resident

    Location:
    Deep Texas
    Brian was a lot earlier. Duane never mastered the bottleneck until after the Taj Mahal album came out!
     
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  6. Tom Campbell

    Tom Campbell Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    I'd like to see some of the "endless posts" you're referring to. I'm sure there are some, of course, but as others have pointed out, Jones is celebrated above all as a great "feel" musician as opposed to a technically superior one.
     
  7. Lightworker

    Lightworker Forum Resident

    Location:
    Deep Texas
    I never used the phrase "light years superior". You must have me confused with some science-fiction guy.
    I think it's kinda rude to insult the musicianship of a dead guy when you can't even identify the instrument
    that he's supposedly playing 'incorrectly'. Fail.
     
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  8. ssmith3046

    ssmith3046 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Arizona desert
    I'm not blindfolded or ranting. I said I love all the different eras of the Stones. Jones was the founder of the band though. I think that for a young musician he was very talented.
     
    Last edited: Aug 11, 2016
  9. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    [​IMG]
    How can you not like this guy? (Rhetorical question) :)
     
  10. MHP

    MHP Lover of Rock ‘n Roll Thread Starter

    Location:
    DK
    Why is it rude? I'm not insulting the man at all. Those 'insulting' him are those who constantly puts him on a pedestal as some beyond-human genius. Over the years his myth has grown so big that it's not for his own good. Even Jones himself had his fails, and I'm sure he would be the first to admit that. I have even seen him praised as 'The Prince Of Stones'. Please, calm down. He was human. And you can call it 'Fail' all you want. He plays the instrument wrongly, so he was human after all!
     
  11. MHP

    MHP Lover of Rock ‘n Roll Thread Starter

    Location:
    DK
    I DO!!!
    But some people treats him like a god. He was human, ya know?
     
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  12. mongo

    mongo Senior Member

    I don't think people here are putting him on a pedestal. Like a few others have said, on many songs Brian adds an unlikely instrument that really adds a special, often signature touch to it.
    Take Under My Thumb, certainly no exercise in technical prowess but Jones' marimba and Mick's singing make that song.
    Backstreet Girl. Certainly the accordion or concertina are stunning but also the simple vibraphone gives the song it's total feel.

    Not related to the music but being a kid in the 60's one thing differentiated bands was their look.
    Brian Jones embodied English cool.
    The different guitars he played and just his look onstage offset Jagger perfectly.
    That's my partial take and appreciation of Brian Jones, anyway.
     
  13. alchemy

    alchemy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sterling, VA
    Sorry I can't really discuss Brian's technical abilities as I'm not a musician and can't play an instrument. But I do know that, when the other day I played my Rolled Gold, Hot Rock, More Hot Rocks and Grrr! hybied compilation in anticipation of the new Mono Box, it struck me to the diverse musicality of all the different songs as each one rolled into the next, including the blues and Chuck Berry covers. The music has for a lack of a better term from me, a charisma factor that makes it highly appealing to me, even after all these years of repeat listening.

    So as Clara Bow was once an "It Girl", Brian Jones was an "It Musician" to the Rolling Stones for me.

    As for those stray bum notes, as I recall back when the songs were originally recorded, they were recorded fast and in some cases they lack the ability to do extensive overdubs.

    As the Stones, evolved in to a platform for the lead singer and principal songwriters, Brian interest, attention and focus drifted and not for his betterment. But when I listen to his last alleged contribution to the Stones, No Expectations, I find no fault with his slide playing. Which makes me sad that he did not make it out of the fog of the late sixties.


    .
     
  14. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    In all honesty, I think that you're exaggerating the Brian worship that occurs here, if there really is any. I have had plenty of heated discussions with people who think that Brian was unjustly persecuted and all-but-murdered by Mick and Keith (which I don't agree with) but I don't recall many posts saying that he was a godlike musician or a guitar god. Most of the Brian worship centers around the idea that he wrote or co-wrote a bunch of Stones hits and never got credited or that Mick and Keith suppressed him because of jealousy and greed.
     
  15. There are a multitude of musicians who have mastered their instruments. They play in symphony orchestras and bands all over the world. This is not the same as the ability to create great music. Brian Jones had this ability. So did other members of The Rolling Stones.
     
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  16. idleracer

    idleracer Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    :evil: "Out Of Time," "Under My Thumb," "Ride On Baby" and "Yesterday's Papers" reveal a man who was primarily a xylophone player who had been masquerading as a guitarist for the previous four years.
     
  17. Purple Jim

    Purple Jim Senior Member

    Location:
    Bretagne
    As I said on another thread, all this about Jones being a supreme musician is very exagerated. He was versatile, talented and he added some lovely, essential touches to the records but he wasn't a monster musician like Clapton, Peter Green, Mayall, Hendrix, Duane, Zappa, etc...
     
  18. DTK

    DTK Forum Resident

    Location:
    Europe
    I dunno, it sounds like a piano monster has entered the studio on Jimi's All Along The Watchtower tracking session. One with mittens :).
     
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  19. Purple Jim

    Purple Jim Senior Member

    Location:
    Bretagne
    Well Jimi tried him on piano and he was hopeless (too stoned?) so they moved him to percussion and he was great!
     
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  20. ssmith3046

    ssmith3046 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Arizona desert
    I've read several biographies on Jones and watched interviews with Mick, Keith, Charlie, and Bill talking about Jones. I'm not sure I'd like him as a person but I really enjoy the Jones era of the Stones.
     
  21. djork

    djork Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    Not to toot my own horn (becasue I can't toot a horn), but I can get workable noises from most intruments with strings, mallets, or keys that would work in a rock song pretty easily.* It is less a skill and more about having a good ear.

    *Offer may not apply to cellos, violins, violas and string bass. Ask your healthcare provider if I am correct for you. Side effects may include wasted time, shrieks, shrill noises, blurred vision, headaches, diarrhea, and death.
     
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  22. Dylancat

    Dylancat Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cincinnati, OH
    Brian Jones was great as were his contributions to the band called the Rolling Stones.
    One of the appeals of the Stones recordings were that they were unvarnished wonders.
     
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  23. old school

    old school Senior Member

    Brian played slide with Alexis Korner before Brian met Mick or Keith in 1961. Alexis did a show featuring Brian Jones in Dartford in the audience was Dick Taylor, Keith Richards & Mick Jagger. The guys jaws were on the floor! Brian Jones was one of the early slide players in all of England in 1961.
     
  24. old school

    old school Senior Member

    If you want a honest answer about Brian Jones you have to layout some groundwork! So what if Brian hit a few bum notes what is that supposed to prove? You're intentions are to prove he was not a multi-instrumentalist? It's obvious his technical abilities, are superior in every way. Nobody but Brian Jones played those instruments in the studio and on tour. Their is ample proof of that.
     
  25. elaterium

    elaterium Forum Resident

    Marimba, not xylophone.
     
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