The Guitarist Who Was “Too Pretty” to Join The Rolling Stones After Mick Taylor Left

The early 1970s were creatively prolific but interpersonally tense years for The Rolling Stones, who were still reeling from the death of founding member Brian Jones and adjusting to the addition of Mick Taylor. By the time the band got their footing with hits like “Wild Horses” and “Gimme Shelter”, The Stones faced yet another hurdle as legal troubles, worsening drug use, and personal differences led to Taylor’s departure at the end of 1974.

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“It was when I felt that it wasn’t going somewhere that I left,” Taylor told Guitar World years later in 1980. “I was a bit younger than everybody else, and when I joined them, they’d already been successful for a long time. There are some people who can just ride along from crest to crest. They can ride along on somebody else’s success. There are some people for whom that’s not enough. It really wasn’t enough for me.”

Despite Taylor’s departure, The Rolling Stones showed no sign of slowing down. Following the announcement that Taylor would be leaving the band, the public began speculating on who might be the lucky musician to replace him. Several rock ‘n’ rollers were in the running, including Jeff Beck and Steve Marriott. One player who was supposedly on the shortlist didn’t even know The Stones were considering him for the part.

In the end, he turned out to be pretty for the band, anyway.

This Guitarist Was Deemed “Too Pretty” to Be a Part of The Rolling Stones

Plenty of musicians would have killed for the chance to join The Rolling Stones’ train headed straight for international fame and rock immortality in the early 1970s. Some musicians, like Jeff Beck, opted out of the chance because he didn’t want to be restricted to 12-bar blues. Other musicians, like Steve Marriott, wanted the gig but blew their shot when they upstaged frontman Mick Jagger during their audition.

Unverified rumors claimed that Peter Frampton was also in the running. The guitarist was one year away from finding his own claim to fame with his 1975 album, Frampton Comes Alive! He was clearly at the top of his game and well-deserving of a shot at the gig. But according to Bill Wyman (via MOJO Magazine), the rumors were just that—rumors. “I liked Peter, but he never worked with us, and he was too pretty to be a Rolling Stone.”

Good looks aside, Frampton had his own reasoning for why The Rolling Stones wouldn’t have been a good fit. During a March 2016 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Frampton said that although he would have loved the opportunity to play with The Stones, he would have wanted to continue his solo work as well. “Then Keith [Richards] would say, ‘F*** that,’” Frampton said, imitating the guitarist’s distinct scowl.

Moreover, Frampton posited that if he had joined The Stones, “I’d probably be dead,” referencing the band’s hedonistic lifestyle. Frampton added, “Ronnie [Wood] was a pretty obvious choice and one of Keith’s best friends.” All’s well that ends well, it would seem.

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