Paul Tobias Wikipedia

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Paul Tobias (b. 1963), also known as Paul Huge, is a former rhythm guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses and the lead guitarist of mank Rage.

A childhood friend of Axl Rose, Tobias had been connected with the band from its early days, and was thanked in the credits for Appetite for Destruction. He co-wrote "Back Off Bitch", "Shadow Of Your Love", "Oh My God", and "IRS." He also played rhythm and lead guitar on the band's cover version of "Sympathy for the Devil".

Although Tobias was featured on Sympathy for the Devil in 1994, he wasn't officially confirmed as a band member until several years later. In 1995, he returned to work mainly as a fellow songwriter for Axl Rose, while the band was contemplating ideas for an upcoming album. While former band members Slash and drummer Matt Sorum have publicly stated that Tobias' involvement strengthened their respective decisions to resign from Guns N' Roses, neither Tobias nor Rose have officially commented on these allegations. During the latter part of the 1990s, Tobias began working for Guns N' Roses full-time in a studio setting, jamming and recording song ideas with, among others, the band's keyboardist Dizzy Reed and current lead guitarist Robin Finck [1].

In January 2001, when Guns N' Roses played their first concerts in eight years at Las Vegas House of Blues and Rock in Rio III, Axl Rose introduced Tobias onstage in both shows as someone who had helped him in keeping the band together during the past years. In Las Vegas, Rose also noted that Tobias had previously played live in only a handful of shows. The band would play their next two concerts in December 2001, again in Las Vegas. They proved to be Tobias' last appearances as a band member.

Tobias was officially replaced in the band by Richard Fortus in the summer of 2002 due to his aversion to touring [2]. Interestingly enough, Guns N' Roses' first rhythm guitarist, Izzy Stradlin, was also a childhood friend of Axl Rose and left the band because of his opposition to life on the road.

In 2002, Tobias' band mank Rage expressed interest in releasing an album, consisting of material recorded prior to his tenure with Guns N' Roses.[3] In July 2006, nearly four years later, a MySpace account featuring three of the band's demos was opened.

In January 2004, it was rumored that Tobias was to be involved in a new band with The Black Crowes singer Chris Robinson and Stone Temple Pilots members Dean DeLeo and Eric Kretz.[4]