1992.07.17 - MTV - Interviews at RFK Stadium (Duff, Matt, Gilby)

TRANSCRIPTION:
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Riki Rachtman: We are at RFK in Washington D.C. And right here, Matt Sorum, drummer of Guns N’ Roses. And I want to remind you that at 9:00 tonight, “Guns N’ Roses: Past, present and future.” And what do you think is the future of Guns N’ Roses? I mean, that could be a coin toss. I mean, it’s hard to say.

Matt: The future is very hard to say. We’ve got this tour going on right now and we’re gonna, you know,  probably go out again in January and do Japan and South America and Australia. You know, you never know what’s gonna happen with this band. I pretty much – I wake up in the morning, turn on MTV and, you know, I find out (chuckles).

Rachtman: You’re trying to see what you’re gonna be doing.

Matt: Yeah! Or the radio, I turn that on, you know, “Axl’s in jail,” oh wow.

Rachtman: One other thing, talking about that, I know that you probably hear some, like, weird stories. Some – many – of them that are based on complete nothing. I mean, are there any real bizarre stories that you’ve heard about yourself or the band that were just completely preposterous?  

Matt: (Laughs) Where do I start?

Rachtman: Anything you heard today?

Matt: Today? I haven’t really – I haven’t watched TV today, or the news or anything, so... I’ve just been hanging out in my own little (?)

Rachtman: You gotta hear wild stories all the time.

Matt: Yeah, mainly about Slash and Axl. They’re the guys, you know. Me and Duff and Gilby, we kind of hang back.

Rachtman: We need to start some rumors about Matt then. So as soon as you leave, we’ll say, “Hey, did you hear what Matt was doing when he left?” Anyways, we’re gonna be back talking to Matt Sorum and hanging out here at RFK, Washington DC, part of the biggest show ever that I can possibly imagine. Guns N’ Roses, Metallica, and, of course, Faith No More. Stick around, we’ll be here.

[cut to another clip of the interview with Matt]

Rachtman: ... Rose Ball. It got to be pretty neat, cuz, I mean, living in California and a lot of people... Did you grow up in L.A.?

Matt: Laguna Beach, actually.

Rachtman: So you’ve always known the Rose Ball.

Matt: Yeah, the Rose Ball.

Rachtman: I mean, starting off in bands, I know that a lot of people probably grew up saying, “God, I’d like to play the Forum one day,” or, you know, the San Diego Sports Arena and stuff like that. But to play the Rose Bowl...

Matt: It’s pretty wild. I don’t think anyone... Not that many people play there, you know, because the people in Pasadena are pretty old and they like to keep the volume down, I think.

Rachtman: My mom lives in Pasadena.

Matt: Oh, I’m sorry.

Rachtman: See? (laughs)

Matt: (Laughs) So I think we had a hard time getting it, you know, the facility to play. But I’m glad that we did, because we can get, like, I don’t know how many, 220,000 or something.

Rachtman: It’s a real big place.

Matt: Yeah.

Rachtman: And it sold out the day, like we just said, the tickets went on sale and the sold out. Amazing.

Matt: That says something. In 39 minutes, gone.

Rachtman: So if the tickets are still available that’s gonna be coming by your neighborhood, definitely you’ll want to get the tickets. We’ll be talking to Matt a little bit more, and right now let’s play a video from Metallica. Here is The Unforgiven.

[cut to footage from soundcheck]

Riki Rachtman: Obviously this tour is happening, Guns N’ Roses is soundchecking doing Coma in the background right now.  

[cut to clip from the interview with Gilby]

Rachtman: We’re in RFK in Washington DC. And right now we’re here with Gilby Clarke of Guns N’ Roses. I want to remind you, at 9:00 p.m, special, “Guns N’ Roses: Past, present and future.” And you’re part of the present and future of Guns N’ Roses. And it’s got to be, like, a trip for you to be taken kind of – I’m not saying from nothing... (laughs)

Gilby: (Laughs) It was nothing, though.

Rachtman:... But taken from doing OK in LA, and now to be put in, like, the biggest rock ‘n’ roll band in the world.

Gilby: Basically, they bribed me (chuckles). They made me do it.

Rachtman: Yeah, it was a real tough one, right?

Gilby: It was a tough decision, you know, to go from the clubs and stuff to doing this. It was hard.

Rachtman: And is it pretty much a trip? I mean, you didn’t really have to go through that process. I mean, Gilby and I know this, he has been a lot of other bands and had to go through the process of trying to climb up the ladder. But you went basically from here to, like, there in one day.  

Gilby: 10 years of struggling, 6 months of cheating (laughs). And it was right there, right at the top.

Rachtman: Has it been pretty wild, been a roller coaster?

Gilby: Oh, man, this is great. This is, like, everything you’ve ever heard of, like The Rolling Stones used to do back when we were growing up. This is it, this is the top.

Rachtman: Well, right now let’s play a video that you got to be your first Guns N’ Roses video in.

Gilby: Pretty much. Yeah, it was my first.

Rachtman: And my first Guns N’ Roses video.

Gilby: That’s right! You were the co-star, right?

Racthman: I’m pretty sure, Gilby. Here’s November Rain, Guns N’ Roses.

[cut to clip from the interview with Duff]

I’m here with Duff from Guns N’ Roses and we’re at the RFK Stadium in Washington DC, on the stage. This is the first day the tour that’s about to kick off. And how long is this tour going on for?  

Duff: Well, just over two months. And we just got back from Europe for two-and-a-half months. But this is the tour, man. This is the tour.

Rachtman: Yeah, this is pretty wild. I mean, Guns N’ Roses and Metallica. How did the whole thing get set up?

Duff: Well, I mean, as you know, both bands are good friends. We hang out in Hollywood and stuff together when they are there and we were there. And we just, like – I mean, literally, at bars and stuff we talked about why we should tour together. And it finally came together after a lot of, you know, bolt.

Rachtman: Is the kind of thing though that went through the bands before it really went out to the managers...

Duff: Absolutely.

Rachtman: Like, “Let’s do a Guns Metallica,” “Hey, let’s play together.”

Duff: It was really all the bands that did it. I mean, when it came down to it, it was the bands that made all the decisions, you know? And it just got kind of legislated through the management and all that. So it’s a band tour. It’s like, you know, it’s not a corporate tour or nothing like that. It’s set up by the bands.

Rachtman: I know. And we’ll be back here exactly at RFK Stadium in Washington DC. But right now, you can lead to this video?

Duff: November Rain. I think I’m in this or something.

Rachtman: I think I’m in it too.

Duff: Oh are you there too?

(Laughter)

Rachtman: That much. Here’s GN’R. November Rain.

[cut to another clip from the interview with Duff]

Rachtman: We’re here at RFK Stadium in Washington DC, here with Duff and in about 5 minutes we’re gonna see a brand-new special: “Guns N’ Roses: Past, present and future.” And we’re talking a little bit about this tour, and you mentioned earlier that it was just kind of a thing that the bands kind of put together, that you guys said to Metallica or vice versa, “Let’s just do this whole tour now.” What type of problems have been arising? Cuz I’m sure a lot of people would think that Guns N’ Roses and Metallica, you know, that kind of tour... I mean, it’s an amazing idea for the fans, especially.

Duff: Well, really, there’s no problems at all. I mean, like I said before, both bands are great friends and I’m sure people could see how it would be like, oh, we’re competing for the top spot. But it’s not like that, you know. It’s like, we’re both rock ‘n’ roll bands and we want to tour together, and that’s that. Simple as that, you know.

Rachtman: It’s not any kind of clash of egos.

Duff: Absolutely not.

Rachtman: It’s just two huge bands that want to play together.

Duff: Yeah. Two bands that want to play together.  

Rachtman: With a third band, Faith No More.

Duff: Of course, yeah.

Rachtman: Okay. Right now let’s play a video from Guns N’ Roses, which is actually, even though it appeared last summer, one of your older songs, right?

Duff: If not the first song that we ever wrote, yeah. Don’t Cry.

[cut to another clip from the interview with Duff]

Riki Rachtman: That was “Guns N’ Roses: Past, Present and Future,” and we’re kicking off a half hour of live Guns N’ Roses performances and right now we’re about to play Paradise City filmed at the Ritz. Do you remember the show at the Ritz?

Duff: Which one?

Rachtman: The one that we filmed the show.

Duff: Oh, that one.

Rachtman: We had that big show that we played on MTV, the one with all the beeps in it?

Duff: I remember, yeah.

Rachtman: Do you remember any other shows, Duff?

Duff: Yeah, shut up.

Rachtman: Okay now, here is Paradise City, live at the Ritz with Guns N’ Roses.

[cut to another clip from the interview with Duff]

Racthman: Since you’ve played so many live shows, I mean, you just got back from Europe and now you’re embarking on this whole big thing with Metallica, are there any shows that really stand out on your mind, that you always remember? Good or bad.

Duff: The ones I remember stand out (laughs). No, Wembley Stadium in London always stands out. We played there, like, three times, the Queen thing and Giants Stadium, where we did Paradise City.

Rachtman: I remember the New Year’s Eve in 1992, which was in Miami?

Duff: Oh, Miami, yeah. That was insane.

Rachtman: We’ll see a live performance taken from that show. Here’s You Could Be Mine from Miami, New Year’s Eve ’92.

Duff: Alright.

[cut to another clip from the interview with Gilby]

Racthman: You Could Be Mine, played live in Miami on New Year’s Eve. And we’re about to play another Guns N’ Roses live video. But I mean, there’s got to be some quick interesting stories about playing live with this band.

Gilby: Oh, yeah. Everything’s interesting. Every day it’s a new thing. In Germany one time we had to play in a thunderstorm, like the worst thunderstorm they had in 20 years in Germany. And we are all sitting there watching all the fans (?), they’re soaked and everything and we’re dry cuz we have a roof. So Axl takes one look at them, steps out, gets soaked, made all of us step out and get soaked. Matt came out from his drum stage, got soaked, Dizzy poured a beer over his head, of course, got soaked... Yeah, every day is an adventure, something new.

Racthman: Right now, this is one taken live from Wembley, and they played this during the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards. And I remember I kept on watching this, cuz that was one of the first times everybody in America was gonna see Gilby.

Gilby: But he wasn’t there!

Rachtman: And we get that thing, where’s Gilby, and the camera just kept on missing... Anyway...

Gilby: I didn’t know they were filming that song.

[cut to another clip from the interview with Gilby]

Rachtman: ... Gilby Clarke of Guns N’ Roses. And you recently got to play the Concert for Life, big show in England. And I know that you’re a huge Queen fan.

Gilby: Huge Queen fan. I’ve loved them from early 70s.

Rachtman: You used to do Queen songs on stage a long time...

Gilby: Didn’t we, yeah. A lot of times. Yes (chuckles).

Rachtman: It had to be a real thrill to get up there and...

Gilby: Oh, yeah. To play with them and with the whole thing, it was just awesome. Something that I’ve never, ever dreamed that we would do.

Rachtman: I mean, all your dreams are coming true, aren’t they?

Gilby: Everything, yeah.

Rachtman: See what can happen in America? See what can happen in America? (chuckles)

Gilby: Don’t burst my bubble, alright? (chuckles).

Rachtman: It’s just downhill from here, Gilby.

Gilby: Yes, I know, I’m kidding.

Rachtman: Here’s Knocking on Heaven’s Door, Guns N’ Roses, live at the Concert for Life.

[cut to report during the show]

Rachtman: They never thought it could happen. This is definitely the tour of the year, if not ever. As far as I can remember, I don’t remember a tour this amazing. Faith No More, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses. And there is Guns N’ Roses live in the flesh, complete with a horn section – a female horn section -, background singers... I’m telling you, right now we’re about three stores up and this whole place is shaking. This is an amazing show. You gotta check it out!

Gilby talks about a show in Germany in the rain: "In Germany one time we had to play in a thunderstorm, like the worst thunderstorm we had in 20 years in Germany. And we are all sitting there watching all the fans (?), they’re soaked and everything and we’re dry cuz we have a roof. So Axl takes one look at them, steps out, gets soaked, made all of us step out and get soaked. Matt came out from his drum stage, got soaked, Dizzy poured a beer over his head, of course, got soaked... Yeah, every day is an adventure, something new". Wonder which one it was, seems to have been 2-3 alternatives.

Soulmonster wrote:Gilby talks about a show in Germany in the rain: "In Germany one time we had to play in a thunderstorm, like the worst thunderstorm we had in 20 years in Germany. And we are all sitting there watching all the fans (?), they’re soaked and everything and we’re dry cuz we have a roof. So Axl takes one look at them, steps out, gets soaked, made all of us step out and get soaked. Matt came out from his drum stage, got soaked, Dizzy poured a beer over his head, of course, got soaked... Yeah, every day is an adventure, something new". Wonder which one it was, seems to have been 2-3 alternatives.

According to this article it seems like the show was in Hungary and not Germany: https://www.loudersound.com/features/guns-n-roses-no-shows-and-bomb-scares-on-the-chaotic-use-your-illusion-tour

Soulmonster wrote:

According to this article it seems like the show was in Hungary and not Germany: https://www.loudersound.com/features/guns-n-roses-no-shows-and-bomb-scares-on-the-chaotic-use-your-illusion-tour

It's the same article as this one, I think:
https://www.a-4-d.com/t3633-2006-05-dd-classic-rock-magazine-abuse-your-illusion

There is a mention of another thunderstorm in Wurzburg, Germany (June 20)

I have come to believe Gilby mixes up events. The worst weather seems to have been in Würzburg on June 20 although Dizzy could have poured the beer over himself at the Budapest gig.

Yes, this is very likely.