I hate to be predictable here, but I support taping therapy sessions - surreptitiously if you have to - if you believe your therapist is creating a revisionist history of events, behavior and/or statements made during therapy sessions. And I think your instincts were probably right, stopdog.

When a therapist - someone you're expected to trust - refuses to acknowledge his/her own mistakes or negative reactions during therapy, he/she is (1) fostering self-doubt by invalidating the client's accurate interpretations of the therapist's statements or behavior, (2) denying the client*the opportunity to gain insight into how his/her behavior and defenses affect others, and (3) discouraging the client from accepting and expressing his/her own authentic responses to the therapist (as well as to others).

It's incredible (and pathetic) that therapists would ever knowingly exploit the power differential in a therapeutic relationship (not to mention your self-doubt and vulnerability) just to save face, but I know for certain that mine did. I believe clients should always have the right to tape therapy sessions (in theory if not legally) if it means assuring themselves that their perceptive abilities are still intact - it's too important to one's psychological well-being. (Incidentally, it would be equally helpful to discover that just the opposite is true both for yourself as well as for your relationship with your T.)

stopdog, I'm sorry your former T left you with the mistrust and confusion you now face (or may face) with your current T. Hopefully your experience with the current T will remain as noncontentious as it is now and that he/she will respect and validate your concerns should you decide to raise them.