Mick on acoustic

Till the Next Goodbye video, I think:


Is this the Martin D-28 ChrisM referred to?

I think Taylor wore the Afro AFTER the Stones '73 tour, when he then toured with Billy P.

Hi Smokey. The first guitar looks like a Martin D28-12 (Note the 12 string pegs on the bridge) but the other guitar is harder to identify due to the quality of the image but it does not appear to be Martin because it looks like it has a truss rod cover and Martin acoustics don't have those. The body though almost looks a like a D35 to me because of what looks to be binding on the neck. Hard to be certain though...

And Mr Wibble you crafty dog! As far as I know, Mick only played with Billy when the latter opened for the Stones in 1973.

Hey Stranger, I like the pix in this thread too. Although guitar talk is like greek to me.

Here's one I took last time he came to Canada. Not sure what guitar this is..Gibson?:

Yup, that's a Gibson Les Paul. It appears to be a reissue ofthe 58-60 model year but I can't tell which model year. If I were to guess I'd say '59 because Gibson tends to reserve the highly figured tops for the '59 models.

ChrisM Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi Smokey. The first guitar looks like a Martin
> D28-12 (Note the 12 string pegs on the bridge) but
> the other guitar is harder to identify due to the
> quality of the image but it does not appear to be
> Martin because it looks like it has a truss rod
> cover and Martin acoustics don't have those. The
> body though almost looks a like a D35 to me
> because of what looks to be binding on the neck.
> Hard to be certain though...
Thanks for all of the info, Chris.

>
> And Mr Wibble you crafty dog! As far as I know,
> Mick only played with Billy when the latter opened
> for the Stones in 1973.
Yes, that nice warm up with Billy left Taylor's fingers well-juiced for the set with the Stones. Consider that on days with two shows for the Stones, Taylor played 4 shows and at least one of those "fourth" shows (Frankfurt 2d show) is often cited to be among the best of the tour.

Now for the ESs:

Someone earlier posted the Exile book picture. Is this a 335?


Also, is the guitar really that heavy in your lap or can Taylor play in his sleep? This picture seems to have been taken on the same day.


Finally, the ES from the Silver Train video. Is it the same model?

Hi Chris,

Perhaps my memory does not serve me well. I thoght Preston also did a separate Euro Tour. I'll consult a book or two.

When I saw Stones at Wembley in '73 they were supported by a band called Kracker. I assumed they were main support for the whole tour. I'm pretty damn certain that Billy didn't also do support duties that night. As you know, Billy released a live album of his gigs. That always made me think he did his own tour too. But I can see (from above postings)that he supported the Stones on many Euro dates. I still have that boot you sent me somewhere.

Edit - Chris, I can't find my copy of Roy Carr's book, (1976), in which I thought he said that Preston went on to do a mini tour with God Squad and Taylor. I have found an entry in "The Rolling Stones Chronicles" (1990):

'October 25
Mick Jagger and Mick Taylor join Billy Preston at the Rainbow Theatre, London. It is rumoured that Mick Taylor is leaving the Stones to tour the States with Mike Oldfield.'

Oh, and the next entry.....

November 13
The Stones fly to Munich to cut a new album at Musicland Studios. However, Mick Taylor does not accompany them as he is suffering from a 'mystery illness'.

And the next entry.....

November 24
The band finish their recording sessions at Musicland Studios.

Did Taylor turn up at all?



Ok, back to Geektars!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2006-07-10 00:46 by Mr Wibble.

Four Up (photo from Canada):
That's the guitar MT acquired in spring 2003 (made to his specific requirements by Gibson) because no guitar he had tried could compare to the Les Paul Standard '58 that was stolen from him while on tour 7 years earlier.
That was a very expensive cup of coffee he got that day in '96. I'm convinced the thief that ran off with MT's case (containing his vintage LP) must have known who he was.

Even stranger things have happened to MT. Like guitars he had set up at a souncheck - stepped off the stage to discuss something with the soundengineer (or maybe sign a copy of Sticky Fingers at a fan's request), and that was the last time he ever saw it. Guitar had vanished into thin air (in less than 2 minutes).
That's just things that happen on the road, I've heard similar stories from other well-known musicians. (Some "fans" even make a sport of stealing pieces of clothing from the dressingroom of their favourite artist).

Miss U, I have no doubt you can learn to speak Greek if you put your mind to it. Buy a couple of Greek magazines, check the websites of the main GTR manufacturers, or ask some GTR Geek (oops, did I miss an R) friends to explain the basics at a music shop.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-07-08 00:10 by Stranger.

To all reading this: my apologies for again hijacking this thread. But, “Stranger” has made some points I would like to react to. So, here it goes.

Again, I am not interested in the personal lives of any of the Stones members. I really don’t care about their houses, their wives or their financial situation. I have never ever made any statements of any sorts about this, and I never will. I am a guitarist myself, I live, eat and breath guitars, and this is, next to the music my only interest concerning the Stones.

My one-sentence remark “Taylor sold his LP’s in the early to sustain his drug addiction” boosted you to write large mails to correct me in all sorts of things I never ever pretended to have any knowledge about. Then, a problem is that you keep your name hidden, so it is hard to judge your opinion and stated facts. If you are who I think you are, we have met a couple of times (also through other people), and we agreed to disagree. The fact that you know the Taylor of today does not make you an expert on the last 30 years.

>>
Taylor is not receiving royalties from ABKCO (Allen Klein), although they should be accounting to him for the records that they sell in the US/Canada territory. MT might not have anything against Allen Klein personally but AK's company still owes him a substantial amount of money (For Ventilator Blues alone ABKCO have confirmed they know that there is £ 350.000 in an account somewhere - which is MT's share of the publishing money for that one song).
>>

This is not correct, and it’s impossible for ABKCO to confirm they have money for this song. The holder to the rights to Ventilator Blues has never been ABKCO/Klein. The original publisher was Cansel Ltd, andit was sub-published by EMI Publishing Ltd. Mick Taylor received a special copyright on this song in 1972, and in 1980 the copyright was assigned to Tony Roberts Music Ltd. Now the song is published by EMI Publishing and Belfern Publishing, i.a.w. Musidor B.V.. The latter is the publishing firm of the Stones, a sub-business of Promopub BV. Allen Klein. Klein holds the rights to (from top of my head) four tracks on Exile, written while the Stones were still with Klein, but not to VB. As Taylor co-wrote the song, he is entitled to the part of the writing credits and these are paid to him directly, without interference with any Stones-lead company. If Jagger & CO. refused to pay Taylor that money then Taylor would have sued Promopub- a very easy case that even Jagger will rather avoid. As I have said before (and you never responded to that), Taylor has NEVER sued the Stones for anything.

>>
Decca is the only record company that is paying MT for Stones records. This is only a tiny amount, because Decca is the label they were signed to during the Brian Jones era.
Since MT's work is embodied in a couple of records of the Decca catalogue, they figured it was reasonable to pay him a percentage of the artist royalties generated by those records
>>

Again not correct. The rights to the DECCA albums belong to Klein and Essex Publishing, DECCA was only the distributor. The money for Taylor’s two tracks on Let it Bleed, the Get Your Ya-Ya’s album and Metamorphosis lie with Klein, who should pay Taylor. Klein never acted as a middle man between the Stones and the record company, which was his selling point. In the days before Klein, the record company kept all the rights and paid all fees to the artist. A publishing agency would then act as a middle man between artist and record company. Klein changed that: he made the record company only the distributor, while he would keep all other rights. This is the exact same way Rolling Stones record was set up, with Atlantic or Virgin being just mere distributors. So, the two parties that should pay credits to Taylor are Klein and Promopub/Musidor BV, not Decca, Atlantic, CBS or Virgin.

>>
There are two thing that I can imagine to be infuriating if I would be in Taylor's shoes. I don't understand why he keeps getting singled out for drugs problems he had in the past (is it because he has openly spoken about it ?)
>>

Well, here I think you do not understand me, and in general do not understand the general attitude of Stones fans towards Taylor. In no way I have ever intended to single him out for his drug addictions. Taylor will never be judged by me, and I feel by no other fan for his addictions. it is only a way to understand what happened after he left. Here he is, one of the greatest guitarists of all time, just out of the biggest band of all time, and what happens: nothing! Aside from a failed solo album, literally nothing happens between 1975 and 1983. A way to understand this -in my opinion- tragedy, is to understand that he was suffering and struggling with a drug addiction. His drug addiction was, in my understanding, one of the reasons that he was unable to create music and take up his live after the Stones. He is never condemned for it, it is only said in order to understand his situation. And, in all fairness, to this day it still weighs heavily upon Taylor’s shoulder and career.

>>
When they formed Rolling Stones Records (in 1970), it was decided that each bandmember would get exactly the same rights with regard to the proceeds from any of their activities. The only exception is of course publishing royalties, which were paid by the publishing company to the bandmembers that got an (official) credit on any of the compositions they released).
>>

For the Stones, this means that 80% of all royalty income is divided by Jagger and Richards, and the other 20% is divided between the five Stones (so 4% each). When on tour, all income is divided by 5. Wyman, Watts and Wood have all commented that this means that of huge albums like Sticky Fingers and Exile they earn fair amounts (huge amounts by our standard…), but Jagger and Richards earn incredible amounts, making them just plain filthy rich. Also, it earns the non-writing members of a ban a large sum of money in the year the album is released, after that the income will decrease to very low numbers, while the income for the authors will remain fairly high, is songs will be played on the radio etc.

>>
MT was being paid a healthy amount in artist royalties in the 70's. This had nothing to do with touring.
>>

Yes, he was paid a healthy amount, but nothing compared to the income of Jagger and Richards. In the early 70’s Taylor wasn’t a wealthy rock star by any means.


>>
(Jagger turned up at MT's doorstep, literally in tears. He repeatedly said to Mick: I wish I could fire him [KR], but I can't...).
>>

This I can not believe, as Jagger simply knows that 50% of his income is created by Keith. This is the same reason Watts and Wyman always have patiently waited for Keith all those years: he was their income.

>>
So if Taylor was not entitled to his 1/5 of the artist royalties, how come his earnings were substantial even when they were not touring.
>>

Because they weren’t. He wasn’t entitled to 1/5, and he never got rich on royalties. He got rich from touring with Stones.

>>
RSR is no longer the label that puts out Stones Records. First they signed a distribution deal with Atlantic Records (Atlantic made them an offer, while MT was still with the band). Later on they got even better (distribution) deals with labels like Columbia, CBS (Sony nowadays) before they went with Virgin. (Virgin has also bought the back catalogue). Each time they switched between labels, a lot of money changed hands and Taylor should have gotten his 1/5 from the "transfer sum".
>>

Sorry, again completely not true. The only business Taylor has is with Promopub BV, not with any record company. All the record companies you mention were only the distributors. Promopub should pay 4% of the net earnings per album he played on. If this is not the case, Taylor should sue the Stones and he will absolutely win.

>>
"Can Mick play with us?" Jagger looked embarassed and nervous. Just before they had to go on, he came over to Mick T and said: "Mick, I know what happened with your royalties... Don't worry, we'll get it sorted out".
Now why would he say that if they were not withholding his royalties ? Also, Keith has told MT: We owe you.
>>

Sorry, this was about completely something else: Wayne Perkins and Mick Taylor threatened to sue Promopub in order to receive credit for the work they did on Tattoo You. Promopub was advised to settle the deal outside of the courtroom, as all copies of Tattoo You had to be withdrawn as long as the legal action was not settled. Jagger agreed, and an undisclosed sum of money was paid to Taylor.

>>
Mick Taylor was never as broke as you want to make it sound in the early 80's. He secured himself a very good record deal (Keith was green with envy) and was paid an advance. The recordcompany wanted him to promote the album by visiting American radio stations while Taylor wanted to take a band on the road. He fullfilled his obligations, even though what he really wanted to do is put a new band together. The LP didn't become an instant commercial success. It didn't help that it was released at the height of the punk movement - nobody could have foreseen this. So that's probably why he didn't do much touring in 1980, the record company wasn't backing his plan to put a new band together. Not so strange that he needed some time to consider what to do next.
>>

Well, sorry, I just don’t believe it. Again, I have no intention to make Taylor sound like broke, singled out and on the ground or what ever. But the stories about the not-so-good wellbeing of Taylor in those years are just too manifold. There’s so many accounts of people who know him and worked with him that Taylor was in such a bad shape due to drug problems, it’s almost impossible not to be true. Again, I do not condemn Taylor, I don’t blame him, but knowing the truth helps to understand the situation.

>>
Last subject for today. According to MT himself the only guitar he ever sold in the 80's was a Telecaster that he didn't particularly like. There's just one other guitar he sold, a Les Paul Classic (re-issued model from the 90's), About 4 years ago he decided he wanted to replace it with a guitar that looked and sounded more like the one (Les Paul Standard '58 with Bigsby) that was stolen from him while on tour.
>>

Sorry, this is again not true. Ever since Taylor started touring again from about 86, he has played dozens of guitars, mainly Les Pauls, that all were either borrowed, or bought and sold later on again. And about the Les Paul’s: there’s just too many people confirming the story of why and how Taylor sold his LP’s in early 80’s that it is hardly impossible not to be true. And again, one of these LP’s has become a known LP in the collector circles. If you’re interested, I have a tape of Bob Dylan discussing Taylor, and he also mentions that he was amazed that Taylor sold all his gear.

>>
did not leave it on the train, someone (most likely it was someone that had been wating for his chance after recognising Taylor) was seen running off while Taylor was getting himself a cup of coffee. This can be confirmed by the person that was accompanying him that day (in '96). but was just too late to stop the thief.
>>

This can very well be the case. I have one newspaper clipping with an add asking for info on the guitar, and one aural remark from Taylor himself that “he left it on the train”. You’re version might very well be plausible.

>>
Taylor and Richards also used to share guitars, which can make it hard to follow what happened. Taylor has said in interviews it has always mystified him why Keith wanted to sell his (Bigsby equipped) Les Paul Standard in '67 (a few years later, he still seemed to like it). Unfortunately this guitar was not found back and re-united with its owner, after it got nicked from Nellcote.
>>

Yes it was. It has been for years in the possession of a very well known collector in London who was a friend of Chuch McGee, Alan Rogan and Pierre de Beauport. This means that the Stones must have known about this guitar being available again. I personally have told Taylor about this guitar being in the possession of this collector, but at that time he wasn’t interested in it anymore. The guitars went for sale through I belive Sotheby’s, and sold for $400.000

>>>
If there are guitar traders that claim they have a vintage Les Paul that was once owned by Mick Taylor then they must have bought it from a third party. Maybe the person that paid the burglars/thieves for the instrument ?
>>

You do not understand the chronological order: 11 instruments were stolen at Nellcote, July 1971. These guitars were replaced by dozens of new ones, most of the bought at Gruhn in Nashville. The guitars BEFORE the burglary are known from the pre-1972 tours, the guitars after the burglary are known since the 1972 tour. The guitars Taylor sold in about ’81 are the ones he bought AFTER the burglary, the ones he used on the ’72 and ’73 tour.

>>
After the raid on Nellcote, Ian Stewart searched London music shops for weeks, hoping that some of guitars that were stolen would turn up eventually (a few did).
>>

No, not one did turn up. It wasn’t until the early 90’s that some guitars turned up –Keith’s painted LP Custom, Keith’s Flying V, Taylors/Richards LP with Bigsby and the prototype of the Dan Armstrong guitar. Also, some of Brian Jones guitars, stolen shortly after his death, started to show up. These guitars emerged from the underground to the serious collectors. At the moment the original owners do not take legal action, the trade becomes legal.

>>
The Les Paul SG (with Bigsby) Taylor already owned when he was with the Bluesbreakers is the same one he gave to Robin Millar (talk about generosity) after he left the Stones. I believe that's the guitar that's on the cover of Get Yer Ya Ya's Out.
>>

Taylor has stated in various interviews that he regretted very much his Mayall’ years guitars were stolen at Nellcote. This always seemed very plausible to me, as the SG has never been seen anymore after July 1971. If Taylor now states he gave it away, then I guess that must be the truth, and I was wrong.

I hope you understand that I have by no means any intention to spread any rumors, gossip are down right lies about MT’s personal live. To this day, Mick Taylor’s playing is my main inspiration in music, and I guess he will always be. But I do hope we will once have the truth about the guitars of the Stones, the guitars that inspired me to play guitar from the beginning.

Mathijs
Ps: I would really like to know what YOUR take is on what happened with the two Les Paul guitars he used on the ’72 and ’73 tour. Where are the now according to you?

Mathijs could you respond to my query regarding the Keith/Mick Sunburst Les Paul? You mentioned that a LP forum member now owns it but not much else. Pray elucidate!

Scintillating, Stranger! The greek, we'll see. Talking about greek like a geek is definitely not hot. (still reeling from above posts).

And brilliant deduction, ChrisM. Thx.

No Credits........



ROCKMAN

No Creds



ROCKMAN

ROCKMAN

Still playing Firebirds? in 2005



Here is another acoustic guitar:



And finally will there be a thread about stompboxes?

ChrisM Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mathijs could you respond to my query regarding
> the Keith/Mick Sunburst Les Paul? You mentioned
> that a LP forum member now owns it but not much
> else. Pray elucidate!

Yep. For years the story about Taylor selling his two LP's in the early 80's has been confirmed by various reputable sources (like Gruhn etc.). The story goes further that one guitar vanished into a collector's vault, and that one guitar was in display at various guitar shows and shops before it vanished into a vault. In the early 90's several of the guitars stolen at Nellcote emerged from the underground scene, and some ended up in collectors hands (like the well known Phil Harris), some of them (according to Ron Wood) were bought by the guitar techs of the Stones, and some were for example bought by the Rock&Roll Hall of Fame.

For years that was all I "knew" (meaning 'heard'), until I discovered the LP forum. During one of the discussions on famous LP's, one of the known, large collectors said that a lurking member of the forum, reputable one with the biggest collection, was the owner of one of the guitars Taylor sold in the arly 80's. The known collector stated that the owner had bought it directly from Taylor, brought it to the Texas erea and put it in his vault. The owner is known for a large collection of "famous" burst, but is not willen to share pictures.

Normally a story like this is one of the "rumour/gossip" section. But as you know as well as I do, some of the moderators of the forum absolutely know everything about the guitar trade of the last 30 years, all have huge collections (16 LP's, $300.000 each...) and are not known for telling fictional stories, gossip and lies (which will only harm the market and thus their own property).

There was also a short list of all the Stones LP's that are known now:

1. Keith's painted custom
2. Keith's/Taylor's '59 Bigsby LP
3. Keith's LP he used in Europe '65, now owned by a Dutch guitarist (Eelco Gelling)
4. Keith's LP at the Hard Rock Cafe (but I have never seen it in the hands of Keith
5. Keith's white SG Custom at the Hard Rock Cafe

Of Taylor's LP's, I have never seen pictures after that '75 pic of Taylor sitting next them.

Mathijs

So are all of these LPs that Taylor used Standards, or are some of them Customs?

wow most interesting thread i've read in IORR in weeks!thanks Mathijs

I've never known Mick to play Les Paul Customs Smokey, at least with the Stones. Where is the photo from by the way? Could it be Kansas City from 1981?

Yes, that is the only known picture from KC '81, posted on this site a few years ago.

Chris, you seem to know quite a bit about Mick's use of these guitars. Do you think he switched off between the LP and SG going back to his Bluesbreaker days for tonal reasons (I don't know whether they had different pick ups back then), shoulder relief, or some other reason?

Hopefully, Gerardo will forgive me for nicking this from his site:

with sssoul Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ... 1987? (i'm not sure i'm interpreting the
> photo label right.)
>
> [img.photobucket.com]
> guitars/MickTaylor/80s_MT_mathijs.jpg
> - courtesy of Mathijs (don't know who took it or
> when, sorry!)

Courtesy of me. I took the photo. No flash bulb, 200 speed Kodak film, Minolta 35mm, I don't even remember the model. It was one of their SLR cameras without a lot of bells and whistles. I think I used a 35-135mm lens. No matter since I was sitting up front and center. That was at the Old Lone Star Cafe. 1987 is correct. The guitar was a reissue, not a vintage. It was stolen around 1995.

The secret to grainy photos is to use no flash in low light situations.

Stranger, I've heard on another forum that MT was "blacklisted" after leaving the stones, preventing him from working with other musicians. Can u comment on whether this is true? And I wonder how long this lasted, or if it still continues.

Great shots, Smokey!

What r these?



(if only to be a fly on the wall to hear this, huh?)








Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-07-09 23:02 by Miss U..

Miss U. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Stranger, I've heard on another forum that MT was
> "blacklisted" after leaving the stones, preventing
> him from working with other musicians. Can u
> comment on whether this is true? And I wonder how
> long this lasted, or if it still continues.

Well, as Taylor announced his departure from the Stones in December 1974, and gave an interview together with Jack Bruce about a week later, and as Taylor has worked and performed with hundreds of musicians and contributed to dozens of albums, including to Keith's own first solo album: no, apparently this not true.


I bet you could have come up with this yourself.

Mathijs



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-07-09 23:30 by Mathijs.

dial300 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> with sssoul Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ... 1987? (i'm not sure i'm interpreting the
> > photo label right.)
> >
> >
> [img.photobucket.com]
>
> > guitars/MickTaylor/80s_MT_mathijs.jpg
> > - courtesy of Mathijs (don't know who took it
> or
> > when, sorry!)
>
> Courtesy of me. I took the photo. No flash bulb,
> 200 speed Kodak film, Minolta 35mm, I don't even
> remember the model. It was one of their SLR
> cameras without a lot of bells and whistles. I
> think I used a 35-135mm lens. No matter since I
> was sitting up front and center. That was at the
> Old Lone Star Cafe. 1987 is correct. The guitar
> was a reissue, not a vintage. It was stolen around
> 1995.
>
> The secret to grainy photos is to use no flash in
> low light situations.

Thanks for the info. Of course all pictures that With Sssoul signs with "courtesy of Mathijs" are of course "stolen/scavenged/ripped/borrowed from all over internet by Mathijs".

Anyway: are you sure the Gibson Les Paul was a re-issue? To be honest: I always have thought it isn't even a real Gibson! There's something that bothers me about the headstock shape, the tuning pegs and the logo on the peghead. But, this guitar has always been identified as a "vintage '58", and even Taylor stated when this guitar was stolen (for example in an add in the noe defunct "Rolling Stones People Magazine") that it was a vintage '58. I was always full of doubt, but didn't look any further as the statements were so clear. Also, "Stranger" also commented that it was an original '58 that got stolen.

Are there more and clearer pics of this guitar?

Mathijs

Mathijs, my question was to Stranger not to you. You don't know everything, and clearly you've shown that here!
I'm well aware Taylor worked with Jack Bruce, have the dvd at home.
Don't presume to know the extent of my MT knowledge. That would be foolish.
My question remains, because I have read this before on another Mick Taylor forum.

In future, don't speak to me again. But I've asked this of you many times in the past!

> I know of one LP "stolen" on tour, and that was a
> '58 LP with Bigsby. It wasn't actualy stolen,
> Taylor had left it in a train in England in the
> early '90's.

That guitar was a reissue, not a vintage. It was in a Gibson black plastic guitar case that was made for their 1978 series Les Pauls. The stolen guitar was the one that had been repaired. The head stock cracked on its way back from South America. The repair was expertly done and beutifully spot finished by DiMarino's Music in Copague, NY.

with sssoul Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Smokey, here's that photo the right way round
> (presumably!):
>
> [img.photobucket.com]
> guitars/MickTaylor/1968october13_GeorgefromLA_smok
> ey.jpg
> - Detroit, october 13th 1968, by "George from LA",
> courtesy of Smokey

"Presumably"? Taylor's a right handed guitar player! What's to presume? And he played "right handed" Ampegs because they don't make left handed ones. (Phone jacks are on the left side of the sound control panel).

Smokey Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> He also strummed a Fender during the IORR video,
> but I could not find a picture of that.

During the video he played a Fender Mustang.

Mr Wibble Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think Taylor wore the Afro AFTER the Stones '73
> tour, when he then toured with Billy P.

What??? Taylor only played with Billy Preston's band when they opened up for The Stones during their tour of Europe 1973. There was no "after". And he did not always wear a wig when playing with Preston.

Miss U. Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hey Stranger, I like the pix in this thread too.
> Although guitar talk is like greek to me.
>
> Here's one I took last time he came to Canada. Not
> sure what guitar this is..Gibson?:
>
> [www.micktaylor.net]

This Les Paul is from the Gibson shop, hand selected by the shop people specifically for Mick Taylor. I think they call this The Historic Shop, or something. I can't remeber and I don't have time to look it up. The guitar then went from Gibson to the retailer Ron's Guitars in Groton, CT (ronsguitars.com). The first one was rejected becuase it had too much flame. Even though this one does have flame to the grain, it was listed as a plain top, not a flame top.

The guitar was prepped and "fine tuned" by Ken Knash (guitarmechanic.com) using an "over-the-phone" description for how to set it up, what strings to use and what string height to go with.

Then it was shipped to the UK, arriving safely, no damage, no scuffs, new lacquer smell. I love the smell of lacquer in the morning.