Wednesday Essay Question: Mick Taylor -- Greatest Rock Guitarist of All Time or What?

Just a little postscript, as it were, to our Rolling Stones discussion of the other week. Here's the best sounding version I've ever heard of "Travelin' Man," a studio outtake from sometime circa Sticky Fingers or Exile, which is mostly Taylor's show. And a rather jaw-dropping one, in point of fact.




As you can hear, the song is really nothing more than a three-chord vamp, and Taylor is essentially noodling over the course of it. And yet by the time the track nears the six minute mark, he still hasn't run out of ideas.

I think what I'm saying is that I'd kill to be able to play even a fraction of the licks he tosses off here so blithely.