2016.07.06 - Loudwire - Bumblefoot Opens Up On Guns N' Roses

Transcript:

Bumblefoot: Everybody, I'm Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal and you are watching Loud Wire.

Graham Hartmann: When was it that you first felt like you wanted to move on from from GN'R?

BBF: Anything I say will end up being turned into something bad that's going to hurt people that I don't wanna hurt.

GH: No?

BBF: You know?

GH: Yeah?

BBF: And it just happens that way. It's just that's what ends up happening. Even if I don't mean it to. Like I say, "the sky is blue," and somehow it'll get turned into something when it comes to that subject.

GH: OK.

BBF: So I try not to say too much about it. I try not, I usually put both feet in my mouth but I mean all I could say is that you reach a time when you just know it's time to move on and you just know that what you've seen for your life, you see the future of your life, and what that is, it's not what you pictured for yourself. You know, when I started playing music, I was six years old and when I thought about what I wanted and what my goals were and what makes me alive inside making music, and I was looking at what I was doing and it didn't match up. And I just needed go.

GH: So no idea that the the reunion was going to happen as you were exiting?

BBF: Oh, I knew.

GH: You did?

BBF: I did.

GH: Really?

BBF: Yeah.

GH: Wow! That must have been kind of a hard secret to keep. And to give credit to everybody, everybody kept that secret under wraps. I mean, it hit and it exploded. How did you keep that a secret?

BBF: You just don't tell people.

GH: God. Not even... like maybe some close people around you that you know you can trust? Like, "Look, something big is going to happen"?

BBF: No.

GH: Wow. I could not contain myself with that news. Wow. Did you expect them to be as good as they really are? Because it seems like almost no time has passed. Legitimately.

BBF: Of course.

GH: Yeah, awesome.

BBF: And that's the thing when people that play together for years, when you get back together, it's like the next day.

GH: The power is still there. It's... just to see the fans. Have you, have you been to any of the shows?

BBF: No, That would just be weird [laughs].

GH: Yeah, that would be a little odd to either be backstage or in the crowd, maybe some attention that it's like, "Don't pay attention to me."

BBF: It's not even that. It's just like, you know, going watch your ex-girlfriend get married or something.

GH: Is that-

BBF: It's like, I moved on, they moved on and, you know, I just hope everybody's happy, that's all.

GH: Yeah. The one thing I would like to know is like, what's one of your favorite moments from your time in Guns N' Roses? What's something you look back on and and really hold dear?

BBF: There's so, so many things.

GH: Eight years in the band.

BBF: I think looking back on it, the things that I remember the most was when something bad happened and it turned into something good. There was this sweet girl, Chloe, she was about nine years old. She was in.... She was like the youngest kid in her School of Rock and all the kids picked on her and she was just starting out and she wasn't up to speed yet. And she was getting a hard time and she quit and stuff. And I brought her into a rehearsal and she was a big fan of the song Catcher in the Rye, so I gave her the mic and we played the song Catcher in the Rye with her singing and and popped it on YouTube. So she's pretty much the only other person that ever sang with Guns N' Roses.

GH: That's amazing. How about Live?

BBF: Live? I don't remember much about the live shows. I remember more about the things that happen around it, before and after it and during and the personal interactions. That's kind of how it is. You know the show happens, but it's afterwards when you're outside the venue in London and there's a gap between you and the fans, and you go over to the gate to the people that are just waiting out there and I have my spicy curry chicken that I'm adding even more hot sauce to and giving them the fork through the gate. We're just hanging out and eating and that kind of stuff. Like that's what you remember is just the moments together with everybody. So yeah, that's the stuff that kept me doing it. I mean nothing against the rest of it, but that was in a way the thing that for me just that just keep your spirit up.

GH: The love from the fans that they just gave unconditionally-

BBF: And the love you can give to them.

GH: Yes.

BBF: Both ways. It's, you know,  you get love from them, but you also have so many people you can give love too, and that means a lot.

GH: Do you feel like there are any big misconceptions about Guns N' Roses? About the internal workings, about what people just perceive about the band in general?

BBF: I don't know. I mean, I've seen the inside and I've seen the outside and I know how things are and and I don't know necessarily what... I don't know what people don't know, what they do know and I think it's different for everyone. And I don't follow what people say about it and that stuff.  I don't get into that. So I don't know what kind of wacky things might be out there that people are thinking, you know, about square watermelons and eating a lamb dinner and holding up a show for 80 hours and all that nonsense.

GH: Maybe more about the camaraderie between the band members. I think maybe people see them as being somewhat distant perhaps, and maybe not being close with Axl.

BBF: I don't know. I mean, everybody would hang out.

GH: Yeah. So, I mean, with with eight years and Axl, you felt yourself being his friend as well as a bandmate?

BBF: Me personally, or my relationship-

GH: Yeah, just-

BBF: I don't know if I could compare him with my relationship to other peoples. Sometimes felt like friends, sometimes felt like enemies. Sometimes... You know, we felt like bandmates.

Loudwire article with excerpts:
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We recently welcomed former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal into our studio for an exclusive interview. During his visit, Bumblefoot, who is currently performing in the all-star group Metal Allegiance, discussed his exit from GN’R, revealing he knew about the reunion with classic members when he left. He also briefly commented his relationship with Axl Rose.

Though Bumblefoot’s departure was revealed in summer 2015, the shredder actually left back in 2014. Fellow guitarist DJ Ashba left the band in 2015, as well. “You reach a time when you just know it’s time to move on and that what you’ve seen for your life, what you see [for] the future of your life; it’s not what you pictured for yourself,” Bumblefoot tells us in the video interview above.

Though Bumblefoot speaks of this revelation, he also reveals he knew of Slash and Duff McKagan’s return to Guns N’ Roses as the guitarist was making his leave. As for the band’s 2016 run of reunion shows, Bumblefoot admits he hasn’t attended any of the gigs, though he isn’t surprised by how solid the performances have been. “People who play together for years, when you get back together, it’s like the next day,” Bumblefoot says.

In the rest of our exclusive interview, Bumblefoot recalls his favorite memories from his eight years with Guns N’ Roses, which all revolve around his interactions with fans. One in particular is when Bumblefoot invited a 9-year-old School of Rock student named Chloe to sing “Catcher in the Rye” with GN’R during a sound check, helping reinvigorate her passion for music.

As for his relationship with Axl Rose, Bumblefoot was hesitant to delve to far into the subject, but he did say, “[We] sometimes felt like friends, sometimes felt like enemies. We felt like bandmates.”

https://loudwire.com/ron-bumblefoot-thal-guns-n-roses-exit-favorite-moments/

More excerpts from Classic Rock:
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Former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal knew that Slash and Duff McKagan were returning to the band when he decided to quit.

But even that didn’t keep him from making the decision to move on – because he believed the time was right.

And he’s revealed that one of his favourite memories from his eight-year stint with Axl Rose is the time he helped a nine-year-old girl sing with them.

Before discussing his departure, Bumblefoot tells Loudwire: “Anything I say will end up turned into something bad, that’s hurt people I don’t want to hurt. That’s what ends up happening, even if I don’t mean it to. So I try not to say too much about it.”

He continues: “You reach a time when you just know it’s time to move on, and you know that what you’ve seen for your life, and what that is, it’s not what you’ve pictured for yourself.

“When I started playing music I was six years old. I thought about what I wanted, what my goals were, and what makes me alive inside making music. I was looking at what I was doing and it didn’t match up. I needed to go.”

Asked if he knew about the reunion, he replies: “Yeah, I did.”

But he hasn’t seen the latest lineup perform. “That would just be weird,” he says. “It’s like going to watch your ex-girlfriend get married. I moved on, they moved on, I hope everybody’s happy, that’s all.”

In 2012 Bumblefoot brought young fan Chloe Paris to a rehearsal, where she sang with the band. He recalls: “The things I remember the most was when something bad happened and it turned into something good.

“There was a sweet girl, and all the kids in school picked on her. I brought her into a rehearsal and she was a big fan of the song Catcher In The Rye. She’s pretty much the only other person who sang with Guns N’ Roses.”

https://www.loudersound.com/news/bumblefoot-knew-about-guns-n-roses-reunion-slash-duff-mckagan-when-he-quit

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