[Revenge of Sith]

The Stones considered firing Ron Wood because of his inability to stop drinking. Perhaps Ron can go to the Jeff Beck Group and Mick Taylor could rejoin the Stones.

[skeeter]

Well, if they considered firing Wood at the same time deciding to keep Richards must’ve been a helluva drinker.

[abigkahuna]

Talk about the Stones and Partying--back around , when the Stones lit out for France, a little singer from California by the name of Gram Parsons tagged along. He stayed with Keith, evidently Parson's capacity for "recreational substances" was even too much by the Stone's standards and was asked to leave. Keith had his own mansion and the recording studio for "Exile" was set up there to accommodate his heroin habit.

It is said that Parsons had a noticeable influence on "Exile", as well as the previous album, "Let It Bleed", where the song "Country Honk" was styled by Parsons during their mixing sessions in Los Angeles.

Tragically, Parsons over dosed in the Joshua Tree area and later his friends high-jacked his body and took his corpse out to the desert there and lit it afire to fulfill Parson's request. I think that story was made into a film.

Parsons's himself, single handily birthed the alt country movement with his "Cosmic American Music" they blending of country and rock and roll. To listen to Gram Parson's work with the Byrds and early Flying Burrito Brothers and you can see why there is the movement to include him in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

On a side note, to replace Mick Taylor the Stones auditioned quite a few guitarists, including "The World's Best Unknown Guitarist", Roy Buchanan.