Rolling Stones Guitarist Death Re-examined

U.K. Police to Review 1969 Drowning Death of Brian Jones after Receiving Documents from Journalist

(AP)  British police said Monday they will review the death of Rolling Stones guitarist Brian Jones, whose 1969 drowning was ruled an accident but sparked decades of speculation that he was murdered.

Sussex police in southeast England said they will examine new documents received from an investigative journalist relating to Jones' death.

"It's too early to comment at this time as to what the outcome might be," the Sussex duty inspector said, reading a statement over the telephone. Police did not give further details.

The Mail on Sunday reported that journalist Scott Jones — who is not related to the musician — has handed over 600 documents to Sussex police.

Brian Jones, one of the founding members of the Rolling Stones, stood out even among his bandmates for his flashy clothes and prodigious appetite for drugs. He died July 2, 1969 at age 27, his body found in the swimming pool at his 11-acre Sussex estate, just a month after he left the band.

A coroner said Jones drowned while under the influence of alcohol and drugs, but the ruling did not quiet speculation that Jones' death was not an accident.

Two 1994 books claimed that Jones was murdered by a London builder who had been hired to help renovate Jones' home: "Paint it Black: The Murder of Brian Jones," by Geoffrey Guiliano and "Who Killed Christopher Robin?" by Terry Rawlings.

Both claimed that builder Frank Thorogood confessed on his deathbed in November 1993 to killing Jones to a road manager for the Stones.

"It was me that did Brian. I just finally snapped," Thorogood reportedly said to road manager Tom Keylock, Rawlings' book quoted Keylock as saying.

It was not clear why British police did not reopen an investigation after the books were published.

Keylock died in July 2009, according to the British newspaper, The Times.

Scott Jones interviewed Janet Lawson, the person who discovered the guitarist's body, shortly before she died last year. In the interview, published in The Mail on Sunday last November, Lawson claimed that her boyfriend, the Rolling Stones tour manager Keylock, had asked her to visit Brian Jones as he was worried about tensions between Jones and Thorogood.

She told the investigative reporter that she saw Jones and Thorogood fooling about in the pool, and later saw Thorogood come into the house, shaking badly.

She told Scott Jones her original police statement did not mention any tensions between Jones and Thorogood.

"The police were trying to put words into my mouth," she is reported as saying.

Brian Jones was credited as an early driving force in the band, but his influence diminished as bandmates Mick Jagger and Keith Richards began focusing on their original songs and away from blues covers.

The title of Rawlings' book is a reference to Jones' estate, which was formerly the home of the late author A.A. Milne, author of "Winnie the Pooh," which features the character Christopher Robin.

[stryker54]

let it be, they are gone and nothing will change that other than someone who is dead murdered him. than what good will that do?

[mswolfestock]

What kind of investigation can they have now that most of the key witnesses are dead? This is bogus.

They should be spending their limited resources on missing children or crime prevention or anti-terrorism.

[rwsmith29456]

Jimi Hendrix was killed by pouring red wine on his head??? The red wine in his lungs (and his hair) could be explained if he threw up after drinking it and aspirated it into his lungs, expecially if he was in the throes of an OD. Not a pretty sight at all but not suspicious. Morrison's death was very unclear, though. As far as Brian Johes goes I'd say his drug/alcohol ingestion could have killed him any number of ways, but it would still be death by drugs and alcohol, even if he fell off the top of a building. Would somebody have to have pushed a drugged and inebriated person off of a building?

[jxknowles]

Police should also look into the untimely disappearance of TV/Movie star Pee-wee Herman. The popular character has been missing since the summer of 1991. Though often tied to comic actor Paul Reubens, the two have never been seen together in public. Still many in law-enforcement believe Reubens is somehow involved and could be responsible for Herman's death.

[CronkiteRocks]

Doors vocalist Jim Morrison's death was also mysterious, and it begs for an investigation as well. His girlfriend Pam told differing stories to various people, the death was covered up, the wrong name (Douglas Morrison) was given to police to hide his identity, Pam's drug dealing friends quickly left town, the doctor never performed an autopsy yet proclaimed that the cause of death was a simple heart attack, drug interaction of Jim Morrison's new asthma medication and interaction with alcohol were never examined, nor was his recent visit to the doctor for coughing up of blood, and to top it all off, a secret funeral was held, the girlfriend buried Jim Morrison in an unmarked grave.

[jxknowles]

The time might well be better spent looking for missing children or solving cold cases. It's fair to say Brian Jones self-destructive lifestyle would probably lead to same conclusion, no matter how it happened.

[casionova]

How about an investigation of Jimi Hendrix death too? The attending doctor found his lungs contained red wine and his hair was "soaked" in wine indicating it was poured over him, tapes and stuff were missing from his flat and his manager had a hefty life insurance policy out on him...