2007.09.DD - Q Magazine - A Round With Slash

A round with Slash

Sunset Marquis, LA

It's Q's round. What are you drinking?

Sheep's blood! No, it's iced tea with sweet n low's.

I beg your pardon?

I've not had a drink in nine months and 10 days. Since I was in rehab. My wife went to rehab for her excesses a while ago, and I knew when she got out I was going to have to go, so I went on a two-month, hardcore drug binge.

A bit like heroin?

Something like heroin.

"Something" like heroin?

[Stoney silence, changes subject] I have a bit of a workout regime now, too. It's for an hour, 3 times a week. I try to do it as quietly as possible. One of the things I can't stand is the fitness kick, chatting by the water-cooler, on the treadmill, the whole image, all that crap.

You left Stoke-on-Trent for L.A when you were 11. Any pleasant memories?

The fucking weather. Even when I was little, I was thinking, "There's got to be somewhere better." I knew there must be sunshine somewhere.

Do you see much of fellow Stoke-On-Trent native/LA transplant?

I met him in his hotel. This guy comes up and says, "You're Slash, right?" And I was like "Yeah." And he goes, "You're from Stoke - I'm from Stoke!" I'm thinking, "Who the fuck is this guy?" Later on that evening, I went to jam with Camp Freddy. I got up to do Whole Lotta Love, and this guy got up to sing and it was Robbie Williams. We started hanging after that, but then he got sober and I didn't see him for a long time.

You were 20 when Guns N' Roses started. Ever had a proper job?

[Mildly affronted] I had a lot of jobs. I started working when I was 11 years old. I had - by anyone's standards - a pretty intense paper round that covered a huge chunk of the LA metropolis. On a bicycle! I worked  in news stands, movie theatres and guitar stores; I used a darkroom, printed up shit and hammered crap. I got fired from my last job for using the phone too much. I was booking all the gigs. This was before call-waiting and my boss couldn't get through. I was paid $4 an hour.

Did you get your love of classic rock from your dad?

When I was living in england, my dad's brothers were really into rock. My dad is a die-hard rock 'n' roll fan. He says rock 'n' roll was never really interesting until the Brits got into it. He's right, too.

He must be proud of you...

[Bashfully] Yeah, I would definitely say he is proud of me.

Is the Simpsons' bus driver, Otto, based on you?

No, no. I wouldn't want to consider myself that guy. I don't come from the "Hey dude!" stoner school. That's usually just a lot of my friends and associates.

When is it not appropriate to swear?

I will try and make it appropriate anywhere.

Do you enjoy a good swear?

I swear a lot. They are the most expressive words. I come from a swearing family. My mum would kill me for saying that.

What's your favourite swear word?

Fuck. But don't talk about that too much, as you will reduce me to a fucking idiot.

You played at an anti-war concert called Peace on the Beach in 2003. Do you feel vindicated about that?

I don't normally make political statements, although I do have opinions. But we have an idiot president making an idiot move and all these young Americans in the army have to go do this stupid thing. In this particular case, I thought it was a really worthwhile cause, so I broke my cool for a second and got involved. Do I feel vindicated? Nothing happened, nothing good came out of it.

You've worked with Michael Jackson. What's your relationship with him like?

We had a working relationship. We did some gigs, an awards show and two records together. I never witnessed anything bizarre. I mean he's bizarre, but I never witnessed anything totally out of the ordinary. I was invited to Neverland many times and never felt the inclination to go. Ha!

Another iced tea, Slash?

I'm fine.

You were at Anna Nicole Smith's funeral in the Bahamas in March.

It was really sad. It was very sombre, but also  really bizarre, because her mum showed up and she had been at the courthouse that morning trying to prevent the funeral from happening. We didn't bother going to the reception afterwards. Anna was a really sweet, lost soul.

Axl Rose issued a statement in March 2006 saying you turned up on his doorstep apologising for the last 20 years of conflict. What really happened?

When Velvet Revolver started, we were promoting the new record and I was harbouring so much resentment about what happened at the end of Guns N' Roses that I vented all my feelings to the press. I had never got the shit off my chest. So I apologised for all that. Recently Velvet Revolver had to induct Van Halen into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame because they were fighting and couldn't do it themselves. It changed my view. Fighting with band members is so childish.