Rich Pickings on Rolling Stone: The Life and Death of Brian Jones

Rolling Stones founding guitarist, Brian Jones’ death has been shrouded in mystery for the last five decades. He died at the age of 27, allegedly drowned due to misadventure at his country home swimming pool. However, Danny Garcia’s investigative documentary film asks many questions which probably won’t be answered until the 75-year police ban on opening their own files has run its course.

Garcia puts a convincing case for, if not murder, at least manslaughter rather than the verdict which screamed of a drink and drugs cause that was passed at the time. Indeed, it is rumoured that the builder Jones hired and had just sacked admitted his murder on his death bed. But this, along with many other anomalies, was hushed up by the authorities.

Garcia conjures up the atmosphere of the sixties and, in particular, the sex, drugs and rock’n’roll lifestyle of the Rolling Stones and other prominent bands at the time. They were seen as giving a V-sign to those in power and thus demonised by both press and police who actually worked in cahoots.

There is lots of background to Jones’ fate through childhood, his part in setting up the band and the victimisation that saw him subject to two drugs busts. He was also stabbed in the back by other members of the group, notably when Keith Richards ran off with his girlfriend Anita Pallenberg. In this way he became subject to ill health both physically and mentally.

He was asked to leave the group in May 1969 and was dead six weeks later. But Garcia does not support the conspiracy theories that it was the Stones’ management behind it all. What makes this film particularly poignant is the very special gift Jones had as a musician, and was well ahead of his time by introducing early blues influences and world music into the mainstream.

Whatever the cause of his demise there is no doubt it was a great loss to music and as Garcia shows a damning indictment of both the press’ and police’s conduct then and now toward anti-establishment figures.

Reviewed by Rich Jevons on 6 December 2020. Available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime Video.