Stones in your shoe Walking tour to mark 77th birthday of star
MARKETING officials in Cheltenham are to launch an official Brian Jones walking tour on what would have been his 77th birthday.
It will begin on February 28, to commemorate 50 years since the death of the founding member of The Rolling Stones.
Jones was born in Cheltenham in 1942, lived in the town’s Eldorado Road and Bath Road, attended Dean Close School and Cheltenham Grammar School. He died in 1969.
The tour, organised by the Marketing Cheltenham and Cotswold Guides groups, will take around two hours and cover places in the town that he had links to.
It will start at The Wilson Art Gallery & Museum in Clarence Street, which has a bust of the star on display.
It is called Golden Boy and was designed by sculptor Maurice Juggins.
The tour will go through the churchyard of St Mary’s Parish Church, where Jones’ funeral service took place.
Then it will move from the High Street, where he attended Cheltenham Grammar School, to exploring sites associated with his early playing career and his triumphant return to play on stage at the Odeon with The Rolling Stones.
Jones was heavily involved in the town’s underground rhythm and blues music scene before moving to London in the 1960s to pursue his musical career. It was there that he formed what would become one of the world’s most famous rock bands.
He played a range of instruments, contributed to several hit records and acted as the band’s manager in the early years.
Bill Wyman, bass guitarist in The Rolling Stones, said of Jones: “He formed the band. He chose the members.
“He named the band. He chose the music we played. He got us gigs... he was very influential.”
However, after a turbulent time involving legal problems, estrangement from band mates and substance abuse, he was no longer able to participate in the band.
Jones died in a swimming pool in his own house in 1969 at the age of 27 and his final resting place is in Cheltenham Cemetery
Kelly Ballard, Marketing Cheltenham’s manager, said: “This new walking tour will bring Brian Jones’ story to life and will allow visitors to experience the environment that influenced and inspired him in his early musical career. Brian Jones was such a unique musician and his legacy in the town lives on.”
The Brian Jones Anniversary Walking Tour will begin on February 28 and take place on various dates up until August 24.
Tickets to the guided tour will cost £10 per person.
For more information and to book your place, visit visitcheltenham.com/ whats-on/brian-jones-50th-anniversary-walking-tour-p2617063 robin.jenkins@reachplc.com