Here Today... Gone To Hell!

Here is roughly what Duff says about playing in London with Guns N' Roses.

DUFF McKAGAN SAYS TAKING STAGE WITH GUNS N' ROSES WAS "MEANT TO HAPPEN"

ArtisanNewsService | February 22, 2011

I almost wish that getting on stage part didn't happen...for me the most important part of that chance meeting that our hotel rooms were right next door to each other.  Great, it was meant to happen, it was meant to happen for us to finally connect again.  What happened when we connect is a private matter -- but I'm glad it happened.

It almost, I wish it was like on an off night they weren't playing, because people were like oh you played does that mean a reunion -- no, it doesn't mean any of that.  I went to the gig with him, I was so jet lagged and on so much energy drink it was all sort of surreal at that point.  I should be in bed right now ya know, I have a meeting at 8 in the morning -- what am I doing here?  And all the sudden there is a bass in my hands -- what, am I going to play?  You Could Be Mine...I haven't played this song since 1993, sh*t how does this song go.  That part was fun -- I'm glad it happened.  But the way more important thing was, there was a sense to me that it was meant to happen.

Video interview with Duff here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RizDYwC7C8Q

Guns N' Roses w/ Duff McKagan You Could Be Mine O2 Arena 14/10/10

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAoc87z9d4A

I thought it was cool for Duff to say it was more important for him to reconnect with Axl, than it was getting on stage.

And when you end up in the room right next door to each other, what a coincidence, you would have to think the meeting what meant to happen.

duff is a GREAT guy, period.

Yeah, I love Duff.  8)

He always talks sense and seems very intelligent.  ;)

yeah, I still don't understand why he left.

Tired of the bullshit.. the rest was fired or left, the family feeling was gone.

Duff was in a bad position when he left. His daughter was born only a few weeks after he left GNR and he had just gotten out of rehab. He needed time away from all of that lifestyle, or his daughter would have grown up with a junkie father. Loaded was different, smaller and probably a safer bet for him at that time.

Duff left for personal reasons to do with his family, and he wanted to spend more time with his own inner circle. Duff, unlike Slash never left for artistic reasons, or because he had any dispute with Axl.

In fact I remember, Duff saying around 94-96, that he wanted the next GN'R record to be more Nine Inch Nails like. If anything, it seemed Duff was on the same page as Axl regarding GN'R's evolution.

that's why I don't really understand why he left, I don't buy the "family reasons".

maybe he was influenced by Slash, I know he wanted to stay to do the junction between him and Axl...he probably left when he saw Axl will never bring Slash back.

but artistically at least it was a mistake to my point of view...that's why I still don't get it.

Actually Duff did state that he felt like at some point after Slash quit Axl was dictating the band without any of Duff's input. The firing of Matt, Paula Huge joining the band were are couple of issues he mention.  Duff said b/c he wasn't involved in any of these decisons it didn't feel like a band anymore and thought it was time to move on.

Also Duff was clean and sober for a couple of years b/f he left Guns.

Duff joining GnR onstage made me, and probably most of us, very happy. But not because I thought it was a sign of reunion. I guess most of the members here on HTGTH doesn't even want a reuinion! I don't. But I was happy to see Axl and Duff together. It was totally surprising!

Only Duff can apologize for bringing any eventual dissappointments to people who thought this ment reunion. He is a gentleman! Maybe he felt this added extra mediabullshitting on Axl? I don't know.

Axl says interview:

'' Maybe Work Whit Duff ''

Post Interview Bumblefoot Play Whit LOADED

Tour 2010, Duff Join In GN'R, only guest.

INFO IS OLD... People believe what slash join in GNR... jajaja... NEVER.

Cheers

 : ok:

Why did Duff Leave?   Well first it was Steven getting fired, then Izzy left, then Gilby left/got sacked and then Slash quit. 

Once Slash quit it didnt take long before the others followed or got sacked.  It got too messy and that version of Guns was clearly finished.

Duff was still in the band for 3 years after Slash left. That is not even close to "soon after".

I wish that lineup could have made it work a bit longer, but tough to say it was a mistake for Duff to leave given the circumstances.
Wasn't much reason for him to stay. He's put out a lot of material since he quit, and while I'm not a huge fan of all of it, it shows he was itching to play/record, which wasn't happening at the time, and in hindsight wasn't gonna happen anytime soon had he stayed.

Cool to see that they reconnected after all these years. I could care less about a reunion at this point. The damage is done. They let their egos get the best of them, and it probably cost them another great album or two during their creative prime. Still it's cool to think that they get along, instead of feeling like your watching a soap opera every time you read about classic GNR.

he could have stayed and make music with his own side projects.

anyway, that's a good thing to see they can talk and play together again.

Slash left GNR in October 1996.  Matt got fired in April 1997.  Duff left in August 1997.  That version of the band fell apart in them 10 months.

Correct me if I'm wrong put what I remember Duff saying is that they had a meeting, and by the way things were starting to feel Duff told Axl he wouldn't be Axl's employee.

Maybe Duff was open to experimenting back then, but I have a real hard time imagining him being into the direction Axl wanted to go.
Duff brought the punk influence to classic guns, Loaded and to an extent VR. That style doesn't really lend itself to the crisp clean production style Axl went with.
I guess when playing live it all goes out the window, but the way CD was recorded just seems such a drastic departure from what he was used to, and has done since.

I think Axl has the right people in place for the type of music he wants to make.

No, I think he'd have been into it. Even Gilby at the time said that Axl and Duff were on the same page about what the next album should be like.

Yeah, maybe so, but he clearly wasn't too attached to it.
I don't think the new sound would be utilizing his talents, so he made the right call in my opinion.

Gotta love Duff  :)

http://www.duffmckagan.net/hf99.htm (http://www.duffmckagan.net/hf99.htm)

Duff left GNR because he felt like it was a dictatorship.  Read the interview for the details.   

Duff to Axl "Enough is enough, this band is a dictatorship and i dont see myself playing in those conditions, find someone else".

So there it is people.  The reason Duff left GNR.

Thanks for posting this. I rmembered the article but could not find it. Also to back this info up are several interviews with Duff on youtube.

Duff was still in the band in 1998, Slash left in 1995.

Duff left the band in 1998, right before his daughter was born. He was not sober for years, eh had just gotten out of rehab. He stated many times in recent years that this was a big reason for his wanting out.

He has also said he made comments in the late 90s/early 2000s about Axl that he regreted.

I think it's naive to ignore the fact that every single member that left, got along, and had one person in common with whom they didn't.
Doesn't mean one side is right or wrong, but I think it paints a pretty clear picture of why the band ended. I don't think it's the mystery some people make it out to be.
Duff left in 1997 when it was hardly even a band. It's not like they were on the road, partying their asses off every night. Not sure leaving was necessary to become sober.
I'm sure Duff regrets things he said at the time, because most people don't want to air their dirty laundry to the media,
but it's pretty obvious why he and the others felt they couldn't make GNR work any longer.  In my opinion that band was finished the day Izzy left anyway, at least creatively.
I like Gilby, and they were still a powerhouse live, but losing Izzy changed the whole dynamics of the band, and kind of cheapened the whole thing.
I think being on the road as long as they were took a toll on them. Izzy had enough, and I'm sure everyone else saw the writing on the wall after he left, but it can't be easy to walk away from being the biggest band in the world. It took some of em a bit longer to come to terms with it being over. Hell, most of their fans still aren't over it!

Izzy was in major trouble with the law and facing prison time if he didn't stay sober. I'd imagine that was probably the main factor that pushed him to leave. There were drugs all around them.

Yeah, I don't doubt that. And him leaving was the beginning of the end.

I'm going to be meeting Duff tomorrow, he is doing a signing session in Birmingham UK.

And you know what, One.In.A.Million will be wearing his Robin Finck GN'R shirt.  :hihi:

No, jacdaniel is right. There was only a ten-month gap between Slash and Duff leaving.



Anyways, it's good to know that Duff and Axl are cool now. I wonder if he'll ever do anyting else with GNR in the future?

That and Axl wanted him to sign some new contract making him an employee of the band rather than a partner. Axl has talked about it in an interview. Something about Izzy not moving around on stage enough.  ::)

That won't bother Duff, he or Slash do not have problems with stuff like that.

I've seen tons of people with GNR shirts at Slash and Duff shows, big and small-they really are not bothered by it.