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Brian Jones

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Brian Jones was an English musician and the founder of The Rolling Stones. He was born in 1942 in Cheltenham and was a great lover of American blues. In 1962 he brought together in London the band in which Mick Jagger and Keith Richards also played. In the first years he was the musical driving force of the group, with slide guitar and harmonica.

Music and breakthrough

Jones could quickly learn to play almost any instrument he came across. This gave the Stones' music new colours in the 1960s: the sitar in Paint It Black, the marimba in Under My Thumb and the recorder in Ruby Tuesday. On the 1967 album Their Satanic Majesties Request he played the Mellotron, a keyboard instrument that plays back recorded sounds of strings and wind instruments. In this way he helped the band to a richer, layered sound in the psychedelic years.

Influence

As Jagger and Richards increasingly wrote the songs, Jones slipped into the background. His drug use made working together harder, and in June 1969 he left the band. A month later, on 3 July 1969, he was found dead in the swimming pool at his home. He was 27. His role as founder, and as the man who gave the Stones so many tone colours, is still mentioned whenever he comes up.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to She's a Rainbow by The Rolling Stones. Notice Brian Jones's Mellotron alongside the piano and the strings: it provides the soft, fairy-tale sound beneath the vocals.

In School of Rock

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Categories: Artists