Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (born 28 February, 1942) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, and the founder and the original leader of the Rolling Stones. Although he was originally the leader of what was supposed to be a blues-oriented band, Jones' fellow band members Mick Jagger and Keith Richards took over the band's musical direction, especially after they became a successful songwriting team. Jones developed a serious drug problem over the years and his role in the band steadily diminished. The band asked Jones to leave the Rolling Stones in
| Brian Jones |
|---|
| Background information |
| Birth name Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones |
|
Born 28 February 1942 (age 77) Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England |
| Genres Rock • rock and roll • blues rock • baroque pop |
| Occupations Musician • songwriter • composer • singer |
| instruments Guitar • harmonica |
| Years active 1960-1969, 1971-present |
| Labels Decca•Atco•London•Rolling Stones• |
| Associated acts The Rolling Stones • Master Musicians of Joujouka• Brian & The Robbers •The Beatles • George Harrison• Jimi Hendrix |
June, 1969 and guitarist Mick Taylor took his place in the group. Jones suffered a near death experience less than a month later when whilst under the influence, he almost drowned in his swimming pool. This led to a two-year hiatus from public life to recover and receive treatment for his drug problem. During this time, Jones became heavily involved in songwriting, and soon returned to the spotlight as a performer at The Concert For Bangladesh, held at Madison Square Gardens, New York on 1 August, 1971. A debut single "(Thank You) For Being There" was released a month later to critical success. Jones has since produced eight studio albums (three of which with his backing band Brian & The Robbers ) over four decades, earning him three Grammy Awards, and two inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, as a member of The Rolling Stones in 1989, and as a solo artist in 2006.
As of 2017, Jones resides with his family at his home on Cotchford Farm in Hartfield, East Sussex.
Discography
Studio albums
- Being There (1971)
- Will It Happen? (1973)
- Brian & The Robbers (1974)
- Not Your Average Blues... (1976)
- Still Rolling (1982)
- The Mind Valley (1986)
- At Heart (1998)
- Remember This? (2013)
Live albums
- Brian Jones Presents The Pipes of Pan at Joujouka (1971, recorded 1968, produced by Jones)
- The Concert For Bangladesh (1972, recorded 1971, Jones contributes two live performances of "(Thank You For) Being There" and "Ruby Tuesday")
- Brian & The Robbers Live at The Bottom Line (2011, recorded 1976)