ADVERTISEMENT It’s the sort of story that could only come from the chaotic swirl of 1970s rock ‘n’ roll excess.
Former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor reckons the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is currently displaying his guitar – a 1959 Gibson Les Paul he says vanished in a haze of hard-living while the band recorded ‘Exile on Main St.’ in France.
The guitar in question is no ordinary instrument. Nicknamed the “Keithburst” thanks to early ownership by Keith Richards, it’s a star in its own right. Richards famously played it during the Stones’ 1964 debut on The Ed Sullivan Show. It’s also been in the hands of Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page.
But Taylor, who replaced Brian Jones in the Stones in 1969, says it ended up with him after Richards gifted it in 1967 – and that it was later stolen.
“Mick did tell me that the guitar solo that he became quite famous for, on ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knocking,’ was with the Les Paul that got stolen,” said Jeff Allen, Taylor’s manager and publicist for decades. “He told me he got it as a present from Keith.”
Taylor left the Stones in 1974 but returned to the stage with them nearly 40 years later, reuniting for the band’s 50th anniversary tour in 2012-2013.
So when Taylor spotted the distinctive “starburst” finish on a guitar featured in the Met’s May announcement of a blockbuster donation, he did a double-take.
The guitar was part of a 500-instrument haul given to the Met by billionaire investor and collector Dirk Ziff – who bought the Les Paul in 2016 after it failed to sell at a Christie’s auction in 2004. Ziff had previously loaned it to the museum in 2019 for its “Play It Loud: Instruments of Rock & Roll” exhibition.
The museum, however, isn’t entertaining claims of a rock ‘n’ roll robbery.
“This guitar has a long and well-documented history of ownership,” said museum spokesperson Ann Bailis, who pointed to provenance records showing the guitar went from Richards to record producer Adrian Miller in 1971. Miller died in 2006.
Since then, the guitar has changed hands several times and made two public appearances – most recently as part of Ziff’s high-profile donation, which the Met calls “a landmark gift of more than 500 of the finest guitars from the golden age of American guitar making.”
Taylor’s camp isn’t convinced. Marlies Damming, his partner and business manager, says the Met should allow independent scrutiny of the instrument.
“An independent guitar expert should be able to ascertain the guitar’s provenance one way or the other,” she said in a statement.
Whether the “Keithburst” is the long-lost guitar Taylor remembers – or simply another well-loved Les Paul from a golden era of guitar-making – may now depend on whether anyone is willing to open the case.
The Met says it hasn’t yet been contacted directly by Taylor or his team. Until then, the guitar remains firmly in place.
