It’s messy even though it’s only rock ‘n’ roll.
Mick Taylor, the band’s former guitarist, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art are at odds over a guitar that was originally played by two Rolling Stones members.
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The 1959 Gibson Les Paul was given to the Met as part of a historic gift of over 500 of the best guitars from the heyday of American guitarmaking, according to the New York museum. Dirk Ziff, a guitar collector and billionaire investor, is the giver.
Taylor believed he recognized the guitar, with its characteristic starburst finish, when the Met announced the donation in May. He had last seen the Stones recording the album Exile on Main Street at Keith Richards’ rental property in the south of France in 1971.
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Several instruments vanished, thought to have been stolen, in the swirl of drugs and rock ‘n’ roll that surrounded the sessions.
Taylor and his group now think it has resurfaced. According to the Met, provenance records provide no proof that Taylor ever owned the guitar.
According to museum spokesperson Ann Ballis, this instrument has a lengthy and well-documented history of ownership.
According to Marlies Damming, Taylor’s business manager and partner, the Met ought to allow the guitar to be inspected.
According to her comment to The Associated Press, an impartial guitar specialist ought to be able to determine the guitar’s provenance in one way or another.
Although its ownership is up for debate, the instrument’s pivotal significance in rock history cannot be disputed. Keith Richards bought it in the early 1960s and played it on the Rolling Stones’ 1964 debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. According to the Met, interest in this iconic model was sparked by the performance.
Guitar greats Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton also played the instrument known as the Keithburst. Taylor claims that Richards gave it to him in 1967, two years prior to his joining the Stones as a replacement for founder member Brian Jones. In 1969, Jones passed away.
After leaving the band in 1974, Taylor rejoined them for the Stones’ 2012–2013 50th anniversary tour.
In addition to mentioning the theft, Jeff Allen, Taylor’s manager and publicist for decades starting in the 1990s, claimed that Taylor informed him he received it as a gift from Keith.
According to Allen, Mick did inform me that the Les Paul that was stolen was used in the guitar solo for “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” for which he became well-known.
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According to the Met’s records, Richards had the Les Paul until 1971, when Adrian Miller, a record producer and manager who passed away in 2006, purchased it.
Since then, the instrument has gone through multiple ownership changes and made two public appearances.
When it didn’t sell, Christie’s put it up for auction in 2004. Ziff purchased it in 2016 and loaned it to the Met for their Play it Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll exhibition in 2019.
What comes next is uncertain. Taylor and his representatives have not been in touch with the Met, which intends to create a new gallery showcasing its collection of American guitars.
