2004.12.09 - Reality Check TV's Dragon Dave - Interview with Steven

Note: The actual date of this is Dec. 9, 2004.



Transcript:
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[Backstage at the Pound S.F.]

Dragon Dave: Hi folks, what’s up. This is Dragon Dave here in Reality Check exclusive with my main man here, Steven Adler. What’s up, man?

Steven: Hi. How are you, man? I had a great time and everybody, it was so much fun. I’m with a new band, Adler’s Appetite, got Keri Kelli to play guitar, Robbie Crane bass, usually Brent Muscat on guitar and Jizzy Pearl singing. We’ve got a new record coming out probably around January, probably on my birthday January 22nd, which, god willing, we should be in Spain.

Dragon Dave: Well, first of all, for those of you who’ve been living under a rock, this guy right here was a member of a band who released the record that, in my opinion, was one of the most kick-ass records ever to be released in the history of rock ‘n’ roll, Guns N’ Roses and Appetite for Destruction. First and foremost I gotta tell you something. I gotta tell something to Steven. When I saw the VH1 Behind The Music-

Steven: Oh god, I hated it!

Dragon Dave: Let me tell you something.

Steven: No, no! Let me tell you! They come over my house, they sit in my house for three f-u-c-k-in’ hours, and we did all kinds of great shit. I got these people laughing. And all they put in there is, “I did everything I could to try and kill myself.” Well, they didn’t put the rest of it in there. It was, I said, “That was my life, that was my band. Me and Slash, we grew up together, we put that band together, we did what we did. Everybody was doing drugs, there was no one certain person. And then they threw me out. And then I did everything I could to try and kill myself.” They just put that part in. That was what I said and they didn’t put that crap in. I hate that shit.

Dragon Dave: My next question-

Steven: And they put all this Matt Sorum and all these groovy people that have no idea. Half of those people never even hung out with us.

Dragon Dave: My next question is gonna be how you’re doing, how is your health, how you’re hanging, how is everything going.

Steven: I’m 39, and I’m doing fine, and my hair is all mine. So I got that going for me.

Dragon Dave: Right on.

Steven: Hey, I kind of rhymed!

Dragon Dave: So-

Steven: (Laughs) I knew it – hey, you were at the show tonight.

Dragon Dave: Yeah.

Steven: I’m just having a good time.

Dragon Dave: You’re still kicking ass. Now, let me ask you something. When you were in the studio doing Appetite, did you realize - while you were listening to the tracks, did you know what a monster it was gonna become or it was just another…

Steven: We all knew what it was gonna become the first time we played together, and we played the Troubadour. We knew what we were doing from the beginning, even before it was Guns N’ Roses, when it was Hollywood Rose - when it was Rose, then Hollywood Rose, then Guns N’ Roses. We were always there. It was just a matter of growing up and time going by, because life is this time, it’s this… you know.

Dragon Dave: Have you been in touch with the other guys?

Steven: Well, Izzy actually might come to Argentina, in South America with us. We’re going there in March. So if he comes, he comes, that’ll be fine, then if not… you know, I’ll be doing pretty good.

Dragon Dave: So, about the new band: tell us about some of the new songs.

Steven: I, personally - but I’ll leave it to you people. I think it kind of… I’m leaving off from Civil War. It’s just taking off where I left, where I stopped at Civil War with GN’R. It’s just taking back over. And everybody who - you know, pick it up, say what you think, around January, mid-January, and prove me wrong. And that’s millions of people. Like John Lennon (?) “Hey, we’re bigger than Jesus”!

Dragon Dave: Uh-oh.

Steven: (Laughs) Wait a second, I thought Axl was bigger than Jesus.

Dragon Dave: (?) looked like Jesus.

Steven: Well, you got that going for him. I love you, brother.

Dragon Dave: Yeah.

Steven: Thanks, guys.

Someone: (?) Davy Vain.

Steven: I love Davy Vain. Davy Vain is fucking god.

Dragon Dave: All right. We’re gonna-

Steven: Davy Vain, Jamie Scott, Ashley Mitchell, Shawn Rorie… fucking god. I love Davy. I wanna do a fucking Roadcrew record and put it out. We recorded - me and Davy, Ashley, Jamie Scott and Shawn Rorie, we did Roadcrew, amazing fucking shit. If you guys go on the internet, you can get it, there’s a tape out of us playing at the Limelight in New York and it kicks ass. I would love to do it. Just… I love Davy. Amazing songwriter.

Dragon Dave: Before I let you go, I want you to do me a favor.

Steven: Don’t let me go, I ain’t going nowhere.

Dragon Dave: The last time I was with this guy, he showed me a neat trick, so I want you to do it for me again.

Steven: Oh shit. Oh god.

Dragon Dave: Here’s a 20 [dollar bill].

Steven: (?) If I could do it.

Dragon Dave: Folks, this is a neat trick.

Steven: Alright, help me do this. I’m hoping I can do this again.

Dragon Dave: Oh, come on now.

Steven: Oh shit. How the fuck did you do that? (?) I can’t do it!

Dragon Dave: Come on, now. Come on.

Steven: I don’t remember, you have to show me.

Dragon Dave: You were the one who taught me.

Steven: I can’t – I’m so sorry!

Dragon Dave: Just take your time. Take your time.

Steven: You have to show me.

Dragon Dave: We’ve got plenty of time.

[Someone hands Steven a pipe]

Steven: Hold on. This might help. Hold on.

Someone: Okay. This pipe is now named Steven.

Dragon Dave: [hands Steven a phone] Say hi to Davy Vain.

Steven: Davy, I love you, I missed you tonight – shouldn’t have blown that hit out. I love you, missed you and was just saying wonderful things about how much I love and appreciate you. Take care. Call me back.