Guns N'Roses 'n' prose

SMALL PRINT:IT IS BETTER to burn out than to fade away, as Neil Young would say, but it is better still to write a book about it. That much was apparent two years ago when more people turned up for a book-signing in Eason by Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne than did for the former taoiseach Bertie Ahern shortly afterwards.

There is a generation of rockers who partied to near oblivion in the heyday of heavy metal and have lived to tell the tale. The latest offering is Guns N'Roses bassist Duff McKagan's tome It's So Easy. He's the third member of the band to write a book, following Slash and drummer Steven Adler. "I don't know why the rest of them did it," says McKagan, "but writing the book was a natural progression for me. It gets me out of my own head. Writing is like meditation for me."

McKagan’s is a familiar tale of rock’n’roll excess and redemption. His poison was vodka, half a gallon a day of it, he says, and when that proved excessive, he switched to wine, consuming 10 bottles a day.

McKagan’s grandfather, Jon Harrington, was from Cork. When Guns N’Roses arrived in Ireland for their infamous/ fabled show at Slane Castle in 1992, McKagan was accosted by an elderly Irish relative who berated him for drinking too much. “I drink too much compared these folks? Really?”

In 1994 his pancreas burst, spreading corrosive acid through his stomach. He was looking at a lifetime on dialysis. But he survived, got clean and got a degree.

As well as being a working musician with his band Loaded, he now writes newspaper columns and has started a wealth-management fund.

His tour, which arrives here this week, is as much to promote the book as it is to promote Loaded's new album, The Taking. Due to scheduling difficulties McKagan is not able to do a book-signing in Dublin, but he is doing one in Belfast.

In the autobiography he is remarkably understanding of Guns N’Roses singer Axl Rose whose persistent lateness and mood swings contributed to the band’s demise. It begs the inevitable question about a reunion. “My answer says the same. You never know what’s going to happen in life. If it does happen, I hope it is for the right reasons,” he says.

Duff McKagan will be signing books at HMV, in Belfast, at 1pm today, and will give a concert tomorrow in Spring and Airbrake. He will play the Academy, Dublin, on Thursday

Full text of the interview:

RMcG:You say you have Irish roots. What are they?

DMcK:My grandfather was Irish. He was from County Cork. His name was Jon Harrington. He fought for the US in World War I and my mother was Marie Harrington. My family in Ireland still owns the house he lives in. I'll see my Irish relatives when I come over.

RMcG:There is a very funny story about when you came over to Ireland to play Slane Castle in 1992, and you met your Irish relatives for the first time? What happened?

DMcK:I was around a bunch of Irish relatives who were drinking a ton and then this old gal, a relative, grabbed me by the cheeks and said 'you're drinking too much', and I thought 'oh f***!'

RMcG:What do you remember about that Slane concert?

DMcK:To me it was very personal. I was the first of the eight kids in my family (he is the youngest) to have gone to Ireland so there was that whole big deal. We got a case of Jameson sent to us from U2. Everything was fancy about that gig.

RMcG:There's been a lot of music autobiographies written recently including Slash and Steven Adler from your own band along with Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath, Brian Johnson from AC/DC, Lemmy from Motorhead and Dave Mustaine from Megadeth, among others. Why do you think that is?

DMcK:I'm not sure. Maybe it is because there is a bunch of guys in the same age range. All I can speak about it is my own book. I don't know about the rest of them. I write a weekly column for Seattle Weekly and one for ESPN, and you get into the practice of writing. Hopefully, the more you write, the better you are at writing. I can articulate things much better in print than elsewhere.

RMcG:I've read Slash's autobiography and also Mick Wall's autobiography about Guns 'N' Roses along with your book. It is a wonder that you are all still alive given the amount of drugs and drink you were taking at the time.

DMcK:It is. The poignant thing is that there are guys that are missing from the picture. I wake up every day and I say, 'hey dude, what are you going to do today? You shouldn't be here. You can do something today that you may never have been able to do.' It sheds a new light on every day. When I wake up in the morning, I nod over to the monster in the corner (alcohol and drug addictions) and acknowledge that that guy is trying to make me do all kinds of crap. I acknowledge him, but I don't let him in.

RMcG:All the members of Guns 'N' Roses had troubled childhoods. In your case, it was when your father walked out on your mother when you were young. Did you bond over your backgrounds and was that the reason you ended up with addiction problems?

DMcK:We didn't have addiction problems at the beginning. That came after I guess when we could afford it in my case at least. My addiction came because I was medicating to stop panic attacks. I wasn't drinking not to have the shakes. We bonded musically. We kind of recognised when we were 20 years old that what was going to be fresh and new rested squarely on our shoulders.

RMcG:You had more a punk than metal background when you started out.

DMcK:Punk was more my thing. Metal wasn't my comfort zone, but I did like Motorhead, Rose Tattoo and others. Punk was my thing when I was 13 because it was new and fresh.

RMcG:You were probably the biggest band in the world back in your heyday. Yet, do you ever feel that you could have achieved so much more had you not been together creatively for such a relatively short period of time?

DMcK:You could think of it that way. I also think that it is a wonder that we lasted as long as we did. That band was so raw and brutal. It is amazing that we produced between 50 and 60 songs.

RMcG:This year is the 20th anniversary of Niravana's Nevermindand I know there is a poignant scene in your book when you end up sitting next to Kurt Cobain on a flight just two days before he died. But people forget it is also the 20th anniversary of Use Your Illusions I & II. What is your feelings about those records now?

DMcK:I think I'm just now getting an appreciation for that. I was driving down the freeway with my wife and K-Rock was on. They were playing Pretty Tied Upand then they came on afterwards. and the DJ said it was the 20th anniversary of the albums and I said that song Pretty Tied Upsounded so f***ing good. Everybody knows November Rainand Civil Warbut there are deeper songs on there. Most songs started when we were doing Appetite for Destruction. I haven't sat down and listened to those records since we made them to be honest with you. There are some songs on Use Your Illusions that are dirty f***ing classics like Double Talking Jive.

RMcG:Axl Rose gets a hard time in Slash's autobiography, but you seem to be much more understanding of his moods and tantrums. You even refer to him as a friend who was there for you in the bad times.

DMcK: I now have perspective, and truth is that I have a lot in common with all those guys. I choose to see the good points. There is accountability, and if somebody has accountability, I'll call them on it, but the book is directed at my own accountability.

RMcG:You mention in your book how much Axl Rose's persistent lateness on stage caused the band trouble while on tour. Last year he turned up over an hour later to the his concert in the O2 in Dublin. and walked off after two songs. It seems that nothing has changed in the last 20 years.

DMcK:Right, yeah (long pause). I'm glad when some of that stuff goes down that I wasn't there. I don't know about his changing or not, but I just know he was important in my life. I know he gets a bad rap and maybe he deserves it sometimes. I wasn't there in Dublin. All I can speak about is my own experience. I'm trying to be a grown-up man. It all comes down to my kids and I'm trying to lead by example.

RMcG:I know you get tired of being asked the same question, but what you think are the chances of a Guns 'N' Roses reunion?

DMcK:My answer stays the same. You never know what is going to happen in life. That is one thing I have learned. Now I don't make any big statements like it is never going to happen or one day it will. I just say that you never know what is going to happen. If it does happen, I hope it would be for the right reasons.

RMcG:I take it you are not personally averse to the idea?

DMcK:No, I'm not personally averse to the idea, but I don't wake up saying 'hey God'.

RMcG:I've heard it said that the prospect of a Guns 'N' Roses reunion means more to the fans that it does to the band members because you've all moved on and the fans still have their memories. Do you feel that way?

DMcK:What the fans think is important to me because they have made the band and my career and everything I have done musically. What they feel, I can't just dismiss it. I totally get it. It would be insane even if we played one gig for the guys in the bands and the fans, but there is a lot of dirty water under the bridge.

RMcG:Do you ever get annoyed when you see Guns 'N' Roses touring the world with only Axl Rose from the original line-up?

DMcK:Only when somebody comes up to me and they say 'oh, you're playing Detroit tomorrow night', and I have to tell them otherwise. I hate having to tell the same story (he left in 1997).

RMcG:You're not only promoting the book but also your new Loaded album The Taking.

DMcK:It is great touring with this band. We've been to Dublin once before. Coming to Dublin is a great place for this band. Dublin and Glasgow really understand our band, our sense of humour with the James Joyce darkness.

RMcG:How do you juggle all your commitments between the band Loaded, your columns and your wealth management company?

DMcK:Believe it or not, I don't take on more than I can chew. Even the growth of the wealth management company will be slow because I won't say, 'yes, yes, yes' to everybody and not be able to handle it. That is one thing I learned. I have kids, that's first, writing is something you can do in planes, backstage on a tour bus. I like to write, it gets me out of my own head and that can be a dangerous place. Writing is like medication for me.

RMcG:Do you see the book as part of a promotion tour for the album or the other way around?

DMcK:They both kind of collided. The guys in Loaded are being cool, and they are supportive of this book. They're cool with me promoting the book. I like being busy.

RMcG:Loaded is a long way from the huge tours and the planes and the limos of Guns 'N' Roses.

DMcK:It is just the band and a couple of crew guys. We roll hard and we roll fast and we have a good time and, in the UK and Ireland, we are playing nine nights in a roll, and that is how I like to do it.

RMcG:How do you find touring with two young children?

DMcK:They come out on the road a lot. I miss my kids a lot. I'm already missing them, and I haven't even left yet, but that's the life of a touring musician.