2019.07.26 - Appetite For Distortion - Richard Duguay talks The Spaghetti Incident, GNR Audition, & New Music

Guns N' Roses fans will know guitarist Richard Duguay from his contributions to The Spaghetti Incident on the song "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory." But what was Richard's path that led him to that moment? The first punk band in Winnipeg, friendship with Duff McKagan, Slash recommending he try out for GNR after Izzy left the band...these are just a few moments in Richard's life. We learn all about what defines Richard Duguay.

Come along Richard's journey which continues today with brand new music. We play clips of 2 new tunes from Richard off his upcoming album "Bad Juju." In addition, we check 2 other new songs sent in by AFD Show listeners. The L.A. Maybe with "She's Reckless" and Hippie Death Cult with "Black Snake." All this and much more!



Transcript:

Richard Duguay: But in that Personality Crisis tour of 1983, I believe it was, we were in Seattle and I met this guy who was a friend of the band the Fastbacks -- if you ever heard of them. They're great as Kim [Warnick], Lulu [Gargiulo] and a guitar player who is an amazing guitar player [likely Kurt Block], but I can't think of his name right now. Anyway, Duff had played drums for them at one point. So I met him, I met him through Kim and Lulu, and we just hit it off. Like sometimes you meet people in life's travel. So you just kind of know instinctively that they're going to be good. You're going to be really good friends or whatever that may entail. And it was just one of those things where we just, just stuck like glue for, you know, probably the week we were there and then in '84 when we went back to Seattle, we hung out again. And it wasn't long after that, that [Duff] moved to Hollywood. I believe that he moved in like '85 or something like that. And then we just kept in touch over the years. And then in 1990, I guess it was, maybe it was '89. I was in this band called T.T. Racer in Vancouver. And I sent Duff a cassette of our demo and he loved it and offered to help us. And we came down to do a bunch of showcases down in Hollywood and stuff. And then he got us in touch with some labels and we did a demo deal with Polygram, I believe. And that we moved to LA in '91, I think, and then everything fell apart in a hurry because certain people thought that we were going to be rich and famous within six weeks, apparently. And to my shock and surprise that didn't happen. That rarely does.

[...]

Brando: I'm wondering how, since you and Duff became friends, you know, the happenstance of just being in bands and connecting, how then were you, and it's awesome that you were basically punk rock album. And I'm wondering how, I guess, how did that happen? And how was the song choice picked? Where, how did the selection go to play Johnny Thunders? How were you approached to do the album? How was the recording process? I guess that, that part of it.

RD: Well, here's the truth. I got a call one afternoon when I was living in West Hollywood, from Duff saying, "Hey man, you wanna come down and play on?" He says, "Oh, do you know how to play 'You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory'?" And I'm like, "Well, yeah." And it was originally gonna be on his Believe In Me record.

Brando: Oh, okay.

RD: That's what it was cut. So he called me, said, "Hey, you know this song?" I'm like, "Yeah." And he says, "You wanna come down and play on it?" And I said, "Absolutely." So I went down to the studio somewhere down Melrose. I can't remember the name of the studio. You know, it was a high end studio, of course, being... shit, must have been what, '92 when that happened. I'm guessing something like that. And so I get down there and Duff had put down the drums, the acoustics and the bass and the vocals. So basically it was just electric guitars to do. So I, you know, pick up his late 50s Les Paul Special, and, you know, they plugged me in and whatever. And, you know, it was not a sober workplace, let's say. And because Duff had cut the drums without anybody else playing. It wasn't particularly in time. And there was certain human instincts in his drumming that were not on the original, let's say. So it took a while to get it because things weren't in time at certain places. I don't know if they ever fixed them or whatever, but so he's screaming at me, "I thought you knew this song." And I was like, and I remember thinking at the time, "I thought you might know how to play it too." So anyway, so you know, we finished it up and it was cool and it was great that I did some solos on it and stuff. Then the next thing I know, he calls me up and he said, "Oh, Axl demands that this song goes on the Spaghetti Incident." And I was like, I said, "Okay," it doesn't make any difference to me because, yeah, it's just a session, really. And...

Brando: Really? It wasn't, because still a solo album from one of the Guns N' Roses guys is big, but to be on a Guns N' Roses album, there was no like, "Wow, I'm gonna be on a Guns N' Roses album!"? Or it really didn't make a difference to you?

RD: You know, I mean...

Brando: Because they were big at the time, of course.

RD: Well, they were probably the biggest band in the world. Right. I just don't really think that way. To me, it was just playing on a friend's session.

Brando: That's cool.

RD: I mean, it was cool and everything, but I didn't really think about it. It was kind of like, yeah. Even back then, I was more of an in the moment kind of guy versus... what I did a week ago or a month ago or six months ago. You know, it's kind of like, I never really looked back and thought about where I should be or whatever, you know, I was kind of like.

Brando: I'm jealous of that thought process. I want to be in the moment so much. That's why I'm in therapy. I'm like, I just got to live in the moment and enjoy life and stop freaking out about everything. Anyway.

RD: I think I was pretty much always that way. Maybe it's just the self-survival mechanism. Because Lord knows I fucked up enough in my past to bring any man down to his knees. But who knows? Just the way it is. So it was cool, of course. But I didn't really think about it, to tell you the truth. It was just, I think that was after... I got asked to audition after Izzy quit.

Brando: Oh, okay.

RD: Duff called me and said, "Hey man, Izzy quit today." And I was like, "Oh, that's not good." Steven had already been gone. So, and I said, you know, "Slash brought your name up to maybe play guitar." And I said, "Yeah," you know, "whatever."

Brando: Sure. [laughs] Jesus. And it was Slash that brought it up? Cause obviously you're friends with Duff.

RD: I mean, I knew Slash a little bit. I mean, I knew Izzy a little bit, Steven a little bit, Axl not so much. But yeah, that's what Duff told me anyway. He said, "Hey, Slash brought your name up and if you're interested." And I said, "Sure." I said, "Well, but you're going to have to send me copies of all the records because I don't own any." So he couriered it over a bunch of cassettes, I think it was at that time. And I spent like a couple of weeks learning everything. And I guess when Gilby showed up. I guess they just grabbed him or something. And I'm not sure whatever happened. So yeah, it was cool, you know? And then it came out, like the Spaghetti Incident?, it came out in, fuck, I don't know, late '93. Or early '94 or something. And I was on tour with Duff in Europe when the single for it, I think it was Ain't It Fun and I don't know what was on, came out and he gave me a call-

Brando: November '93. November '93.

RD: Yeah, we were somewhere in Europe I think at that time. And yeah, and then when I got home off those tours I got a platinum record delivered by somebody.

Brando: That's pretty great.

RD: Yeah, strange. I mean.

Brando: Strange, sure.

RD: Strange, but I never have ever put it up.

Brando: Really? Is that a, maybe that goes along with your personality? You don't want to show off anything?

RD: You know, I mean, my ex-wife put it up and I didn't, you know, I kind of like, "Whatever." And then when we split up and everything, and then my wife, Paula, today, not today, put it up but she put it up in the studio and I was like "Okay." I don't know. I think a lot of it is... I don't want that to be the highlight of my life, because I don't think it's the highlight of my life.

Brando: I got you.

RD: You know, it doesn't, what's the fucking phrase I'm looking for? It doesn't define me, I guess, maybe. You know, it's like, it's a cool song. I mean, it's a great song. I think the version's cool. As then, today, I'm much more in case of what I'm doing today than what I did yesterday. And you know, it's cool, you know, it's great, you know, and people don't seem to understand my... And it's not that I don't care, because you know, I think it's cool and everything, but I just, you know, my brother used to bring friends over to my house and he'd make sure to tell them, you know, he played on this record and they'd all be in awe. Just kind of embarrassed me.

[...]

Brando: Since you knew some of the guys beforehand, had you, and you obviously had played with Duff, Had you played before with Slash or Steven or Izzy? Any of them just jamming one night out and about or you just kind of knew them in passing, perhaps playing the same clubs?

RD: Well, when I met them the first time, I mean, I met Duff obviously in like '83 or whatever, was in '87 when they were out with The Cult. Because the record had just come out in Canada, I believe. June or July of 1987, so they were not really well known at all. I mean, I knew who they were, Duff had sent me an advance cassette and blah, blah, blah. They were on tour with the Cult and I was on tour in Vancouver and we met up. They came over to where we were staying and hung out. And we played that, my band at that time was the Hellcats. And they came out, not Axl, but everybody else was out. And we all hung out and then ended up at Slash and Duff's hotel room and Slash was pretty drunk. And he kinda got a bit on me and was throwing shit out the window at parked cars and shit. That was my introduction to Slash. That's a good one. Yeah, it was pretty weird, but you know, whatever. And so, you know, we met them and then...

Brando: By the way, I don't know if you are playing Space Invaders, but I hear like a beeping.

RD: Oh, is it better?

Brando: Yep, went away.

RD: Okay. And then we met up with them again. [barking in the background]

Brando: The dog is cool.

RD: Frankie, shush! When they were opening for Maiden across Canada, I mean, they were, it was just before Sweet Child came out. And so, you know, they had the buzz and everything. And, I think they were playing a Monday night, got in town on a Sunday, if memory serves and back then in Winnipeg, you couldn't buy alcohol at all on a Sunday. which didn't go over well with those guys, of course.

Brando: Of course not.

RD: This was '87 or no '88, I think. So anyway, we had them all. Me and my ex-wife invited them over for a barbecue and we had a bunch of drinks. We had a bunch of alcohol and stuff like that. So I kind of got to know them. You know, I wouldn't say me and Slash were good friends or friends even. I mean, I actually have a funny Slash story that's kind of hilarious, but anyway, maybe later. So I got to know them a little bit and you know, when a band is on the road, especially when they weren't making any money, you know, really at that point, you know, a home cooked meal is always a good thing, you know. So by the time I moved down to LA in '90 or '91, they weren't calling me up or anything, but when we would run into each other, we'd know who we were, blah, blah, blah. So I don't know where we were going with this.

Brando: That's all good. I was just, well, this could be a good time for that funny Slash story, if you're okay to share.

RD: All right, oh yeah, it's, you know, I'm sure he doesn't remember. Oh, so we're in the Rainbow one night and this is probably '93 or something, I guess. So, you know, everyone's well intoxicated amongst other things. And Slash comes up to me and he goes, "Hey man, how you doing?" Blah, blah, blah. And I was like, "Hey Slash, how you doing?" He goes, "You know, maybe you can jam." "Yeah, okay." He goes, "I'll give you my number where I'm staying." I'm like, "Okay." So he gives me his phone number and stuff. Next day, my ex-wife, Erin, she goes, "You need to call Slash." And I'm like, "I'm not gonna call Slash because I know what's gonna happen." She goes, "No, no, no, no, you need to call Slash." So I'm like, "All right, okay." So I call Slash and he goes, "Hello?" And I said, "Hey Slash, it's Richard," first thing he says to me, "How the fuck did you get this number?" And I was like, "You gave it to me last night and told me to call you, remember?" He goes, "Oh, yeah, right. Uh, I'm really busy right now. Can I call you later?" And I was like, "Yep." And that was the last I ever heard of it.

Finished with this.