1/15/2007
Mick Jagger a No-Show at Funeral of "Eighth Rolling Stone"
(London) While most of the current and former members of the Rolling Stones - official and unofficial - arrived for the funeral of Trevor Whittaker today, there was one noteworthy absence: Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger.Attendees at the closed-casket service of the so-called "Eighth Rolling Stone" said that Jagger likely is still angered about a 1974 incident that caused Whittaker to sever all ties to the Stones.
"Trev had nailed this bird, see, that Mick was all about," said Keith Richards, cigarette dangling from his lower lip. "And as Mick was always big on being the 'first in,' well, he got a bit cheesed and took a swing at Trev. It was all rather stupid, really, but that was how we were back then."
A multi-instrumentalist, Whittaker occasionally filled in for Stones members on tour, and performed on a number of the band's recordings. Richards said that Whittaker's contributions have long been overlooked by the music industry.
"He was always in the background, never really comfortable in the spotlight, but he always seemed to be the bloke who could break a logjam," he said. "Take 'Get Off of My Cloud,' for example. We were playing it in the key of C, and having trouble getting it to work, when Trev walks by and says: 'Play it in fucking E. That's more in Mick's range.' So he grabs an Ovation and nails it. Dead to rights. That's what Trevor Whittaker meant to the Stones, and fuck Mick for not showing up today, the bloody div."
Jagger: "Unavailable" for funeralA spokesperson for Jagger said that the singer was out of the country and did not hear of the funeral until it was too late. Richards took issue with the statement.
"We all knew Trev was in bad shape, he'd been in the hospital for two weeks. That was the height of disrepect," he said, of Jagger's absence. "Ever since 'Sir Mick' donned the fucking royal coronet and sported the old knight's ermine he's been more full of his own arse then ever before. I'm just glad everyone else showed up to see Trev off."
Labels: Mick Jagger, Rolling Stones, Trevor Whittaker
