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the lost pretty thing / NEVER FORGOTTEN / music & film / thank you

Brian was a heavy smoker and liked a drink. Dick Taylor put it to me succinctly “He smoked like a chimney.” A friend who knew Brian in his later years recalled his impression of Brian being a keen pub drinker who loved being in pubs and seeing the various characters who frequented them, and indeed was one of those 'characters' himself.

The money Brian received from his redundancy dwindled away. Sadly, because he needed money he sold the white Telecaster guitar in which he has been seen in so many filmed performances by the Pretty Things and used in countless live performances. His son Philip is understandably disappointed that his father didn't offer the guitar to him before taking it to the local (Maidstone) music store to sell on. Perhaps fatherly pride prevented Brian from admitting to his son that he was in financial difficulties, who knows?

In 1998 Brian moved to what would be his final address in Kingsley Road, Maidstone. His accommodation was the front room on the ground floor of the three storey house.

Andy Fletcher moved in around the same time as Brian and occupied the room on the top floor. The two of them just exchanged hellos to begin with, Brian's being "Mornin' man!" but they became friendly as time went by. "Often I chatted to Brian about those heady days in the mid Sixties and I have to say although the later years hadn't been kind he still had that spark." Andy also recalled one early encounter with Brian; one rainy evening he heard loud knocking at the front door and went to investigate. He opened the door to find Brian stood there. By this time Brian's long brown hair was streaked with white and he had grown a white beard, giving him a rather biblical appearance. "He reminded me of Samson, especially the way he looked as if he was holding up the wall. He'd lost his front door key. As he stood leaning there all he said was "It's f*ckin' raining, man!"  Andy continues "He was a character and a half and after a few beers was just one of the funniest people I have ever known. He did not reflect too much about the Pretty Things themselves, only on their music." Brian had acutely felt the pressure to 'do better' commercially when the hits stopped. Incidentally, his favourite Pretty Things tracks from his time with them were Honey I Need and Midnight To Six Man; he enjoyed listening to other music from that time in the later years, such as Cream and John Mayall. After Brian had listened to more contemporary music on the radio, Andy would often hear an indignant shout coming from Brian's room along the lines of: "We were f*ckin' better than that!"

But what Brian was, and always had been, crazy about was jazz; especially the track So What after which his early 90s band were named. Brian raved about that track in particular and often practised it on his guitar. Andy remembers being surprised to hear Brian playing some jazz chords rather than rhythm and blues, and correctly surmised that Jazz was Brian's true musical influence. Early in their friendship he got Brian to sign a book that contained the Pretties' photo; that book is now a treasured possession.

Brian spent most of his time in his room, practising on his black Stratocaster but without the amplifier plugged in - once he plugged it in and the whole house shook! He played known tunes sometimes, especially his beloved So What but mostly tended to improvise. He also enjoyed reading books by novelists such as Stephen King and his favourite meal was pie and instant mashed potato! He would go out from time to time, to the post office in the centre of Maidstone or to one of his favourite pubs, The Albion or the upstairs bar at Muggletons. Brian was also seen out in the company of a lady of about his own age who may or may not have been his girlfriend. As always, Brian kept the romantic side of his life private. He was not a great mixer and tended to have acquaintances rather than friends. However he did occasionally get together with the other occupants of the house to enjoy a few beers in one of their rooms, during one particular New Year's Eve session, Brian's demeanour and sense of humour had the other two in hysterics. "Humour-wise he was like a cross between Spike Milligan and the old priest in Father Ted." Andy revealed and also told me that, although Brian liked a drink he saw Brian sober on many occasions too.

Brian's room on the ground floor also contained the electric meters for the whole house, so if he was out and a switch tripped, the other residents had to wait for him to come home or, as Andy recalls "Once or twice we had to go out and track him down."  One absence of about a week was a stay in hospital, but Brian never actually told the others that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer; the nearest he came to doing so was saying what he would like to do if he had more time.

Another friend who visited Brian around March 2001 recalled: “He was living near Mote Park (in Maidstone) in this horrible bedsit...despite his illness he never stopped smoking or drinking. I was shocked by his appearance. Despite this he remained chirpy and optimistic about the future, but it was obvious that he didn't have much time left.” Brian was dying.

In those last weeks of his life, much deserved royalties were finally forthcoming...I quote Mark St John courtesy of Alan Lakey: "I got some money from the PTs royalties for him and I gave him a chunk of money for him and he bought a big telly and a load of videos" Also in those last weeks Brian bought himself a mobile phone and used taxis to get around. It was much deserved, but tragically arrived too late for him to enjoy it as much as he should have. Mark St John: "I had terrible trouble keeping in touch with him. He was in DSS accommodation and then he moved and then I lost all the addresses and it was right at the end that I managed to get some money to him and then he died."

Brian passed away on Wednesday 16th May 2001; he had turned 57 the month before. He was found by Andy Fletcher returning home from work around 4.30pm that afternoon. Brian was by the door of his room, his mobile phone by his side; Andy got the impression that he may have been heading in the direction of the stairs up to the other rooms. It was too late to do anything for Brian who had probably passed away during the morning. Andy called an ambulance and spoke to the police; in a state of shock he sat on the same wall where, a few years later, I too sat and collected my thoughts (see Never Forgotten). He went to work as usual the next day, trying to carry on as normal but it wasn't easy. It didn't help when someone turned up four days later to take Brian to a chemotherapy session, not realising that he had passed away.

Poignantly Andy recalled how only the night before Brian died, as on previous occasions, he had cooked a meal for Brian and it is comforting to know that in those final days Brian had a friend looking out for him to whom he could turn if he needed help. It seems Brian was looking out for Andy too. Just a couple of months before he died, Brian gave Andy an important piece of advice: "He said, "Don't take no crap from anyone!" He was right." Words born out of bitter experience no doubt.

The music world had lost one of its most talented and underrated guitarists.

Although his passing was mentioned in a few music magazines, including Classic Rock, it appears to have received virtually no mainstream media attention, if any. This tall, quiet, attractive young man, incredibly talented and enigmatic, who had known Dylan, teased an hysterical festival crowd and been part of a band that for a time had the world at their feet, had died middle-aged, sick and alone, forgotten by many of the young men who bought his records and pretended to play guitar like him and the girls who screamed hysterically as he played for them. He'd certainly received his fair share of fan mail...

The announcement in the local paper, the Kent Messenger, on 18th May confirmed the correct date of death as 16th May (unfortunately many sources continue to incorrectly state that he died on May 25th) and refers to Brian as the 'notorious lost Pretty Thing' who would be 'sadly missed by friends and family'; it stated that his funeral would take place on June 5th. Dick Taylor was among those who attended and my understanding was that it was a low key affair. "Don't Bring Me Down" was played at the start of the service and "Midnight To Six Man" at the end. Brian was cremated at Grove Green (Vinters Park) Crematorium and I understand his ashes are stored for the time being awaiting an appropriate distribution.

Brian was survived by Philip and Stephen, his two sons from his marriage to Christine. She had passed away the year before Brian. His father passed away the following year.

Brian's old record player was sold on by the new occupants of the house in Tonbridge Road at a car boot sale, but a pair of old speakers he left behind have found a new lease of life in the kitchen. The collection of love letters written by Brian and Christine to each other all those years ago were destroyed to prevent them falling into the wrong hands.

Andy Fletcher has fond memories of Brian. "I am so glad to have known him."

Mark St John told Alan Lakey: "He was a fantastic guitarist. I’ve got the masters of that stuff which are only three track re-masters but you can hear him there. I did some re-mastering of stuff that involved him and he had a really kind of clear sound...if you listen to him and Dick he really rolled in a way that a lot of people don’t roll. He played in a very, very unusual way...he was a unique rhythm player."

Philip, Brian's eldest son, told me that he felt the recordings his father made with the Pretty Things never adequately showed just how good a guitar player he was. "He was an incredible musician."

In addition to the wonderful quote which graces the front page of this site, Dick Taylor said, "I think Brian was never really acknowledged by us as the talented musician that he was, he was an absolutely brilliant rhythm guitarist and no one could have replaced him in that role."

never forgotten