Duff McKagan's Column In Seattle Weekly

[MeanBone]

i think Duff is one hell of a father. he's very family oriented, i def hope i'll be like that when i grow up 

[FunkyMonkey]

One More Reason to Read Playboy's Articles ... Me!

Posted yesterday at 10:52 pm by Duff McKagan

If someone were to tell me 5 months ago that I'd be busy thinking up things to write about on a weekly basis, I would have actually been happy to hear it. As of this week, I will not only be continuing my Seattle Weekly commitment, but also starting a new endeavor as a financial columnist at Playboy.com.

From my experience, once you are pegged as a 'rock guy', people just assume that you are either brain-dead or off hi-flying on a private jet with hookers and cocaine. While I have definitely been guilty of both of the before-mentioned traits-most of the time, my life these days is just kind of simple and book-filled. Writing is something that I found a fondness for when I attended Seattle University and took a particular English course taught by visiting poet, Sam Greene.

Some of you may probably rightly accuse my writing style of being a tad sophomoric or conversational. My thought process thus far in my writing just goes straight to the computer keyboard without the guide of an outline or notes. I will edit as I go and don't usually read the whole thing until it is up on the Weekly site. Brian Barr and Chris Kornelis (my esteemed editors at SW) gave me two simple guidelines before my first column, "Make it seem like you are talking to a friend at a bar and make it 1400 words". Sometimes it is the small things that people say to you that will guide your next 10 years. Brian's 'bar-talk' advise will be one of those small things for me.

How the hell is it that I will to be writing about money matters for Playboy? Well, over the last few years, I have been doing more and more TV and print interviews regarding some faction of finance. It started in 2004 when a writer for some music newspaper asked me about my experience going to business-school after my career with GNR. That interview in turn prodded other writers to ask me about money issues within the music biz. From there, PBS's 'Frontline' interviewed me about the 'valuation of a rock band' and the cork was officially off the top of the bottle as far as me being an ersatz 'go to' guy for anyone looking for financial insight from inside the music industry. Sometimes I DO wish more artists would go to business school just so I wouldn't always be getting the calls to do these interviews.

I do find how money works rather fascinating. Adam Smith, the main person looked at to be the founder of capitalism, was a simple but brilliant economist who had particular ideas on how a free market would take care of itself. The theory of every little niche being filled in the marketplace seems too 'free' to actually work...but it has for the most part over the last 240 years. This is a statement made free of politics by the way.

I think part of my mission statement for Playboy may be to perhaps try and shed some light and maybe even bring down some of the criminals on Wall St. Wouldn't that be cool? Maybe be a voice for the people- one that can't be bought (well, no one has ever actually tried to bribe me, but I'll let you know if they do!). The talking heads on the financial news networks also bother me. Always trying to be smarter than the next guy, using big and needless words and terminology so that they can watch themselves at home on their TiVo and gloat. Most of these shows do nothing more than a sort of "if it bleeds, it leads" type of sensationalism. This of course promotes only panic, stress, depression, and fear. Poppycock if you ask me. (As an aside; I would never actually use the word 'poppycock' in a bar room conversation but I couldn't wait any longer to use it. It IS a great word).

If any of you are like me, I didn't know squat about financial 'vehicles' or what the term 'financial vehicle' actually meant until I was 32. Why would I? And by the time I was 32, I was too afraid too ask anyone for fear of coming off as a buffoon. What I didn't realize then is that really no one else knew what any of this financial terminology meant either (except for CPA's, lawyers, and stockbrokers-and my brother Mark who is freakishly smart at everything). I think it would be cool to clarify some of this mess while at my column at Playboy. Just some no-nonsense plain talk about things that can usually get real confusing. In this scary time of grave financial woe, we all need to look out for each other and ourselves.

One thing is for sure; in these times of a drastically changing and unforeseen financial landscape, I will be learning as I go and only hope not to fail in front of everyone or let anyone down. I know that I will be learning a ton as I go. Hopefully some of you will come along with me as I stumble through this new landscape If anyone has any great ideas for the name of my Playboy column, please let me know.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/01/same_crap_different_angle.php

[FunkyMonkey]

Seattle: The Nation's Most Literate City (and Other Ramblings)

Posted yesterday at 9:14 pm by Duff McKagan

Sometimes it just seems the right time to ramble. I try and have a clear and concise topic here every week, but alas, it cannot always be so. Hopefully, my logic can be followed here today. But if not, I am sure some of you will let me know.

The sad news that the Seattle Post-Intelligencer may soon be a thing of the past took our area by surprise in the last month or so. Is this just another sign and result of a recession? Are we all moving toward the Internet and TV more and more for our intake of news? Or is it a 'perfect storm' of these factors and other inputs?

A friend e-mailed me the other day and she had just been in Seattle on a business trip (we both belong to the same online book club that tackles some rather heavy tomes such as Norman Mailer's Executioner's Song). In our book club, we have had discussions about how Seattle has again and again ended up on top of national 'most literate city' lists.

My friend was curious and perhaps a little appalled that one of our area newspapers may very well be closing down and asked me why I thought this was. The easy answer, of course, is the recession. Advertising dollars dollars are drying up and we consumers are not as quick to throw quarters at tactile news when we can perhaps just go to their Web sites and get the news for free. Or, has print news just simply lost its luster? Has the information-age replaced the printing press and it's product?

The fact is the P-I has been in trouble for quite a few years. Without The Seattle Times' support of shared infrastructure withing the JOA, the P-I may have folded a couple of years back. And while on THIS particular topic; it is seemingly apparent that many major city newspapers are having some serious problems. The LA Times just laid off a truck load of workers, and the Detroit Free Press is also going down the crapper. But, I'll get back to this in a second..

Seattle has always seemed well, smarter than most places I visit (London and New York are also smart seeming places to me). I've never delved into the criteria that make up a top-lister in the 'literate city' category and don't really care that much about it either. I do know that my friends and family up here do in fact read a ton. People I meet in coffee shops around town are very apt to make small talk, like anywhere else. But the small talk here will likely include something about the latest book that either of you may have read. Books are perceived as nice companions as opposed to a nerdy habit.

I grew up here. Reading books and making music in basements is how we while away our rainy seasons in the Pacific Northwest. As a result, we are proficient in both disciplines. Art and literature make for a gentler and more humane populous, in my opinion, and that is perhaps why people from out of town remark that 'everyone is so nice' in Seattle. Brains also seem to beat out looks in the aphrodisiac department up here. Smart people get their fair share of ass in Seattle. Sweet! I am obviously on a ramble now.

Another fact of why I think print newspapers are on the decline is that we are on the Internet more than ever (as I stated before). Personally, I for one read The Seattle Times online. Of course, the Seattle Weekly provides me with the other entire intellectual stimulus that I would ever require..but seriously. We are all on our computers ALL of the time. I was surprised last week when I went to look at the 'comments' page of my column, not only by the overwhelming response from Thursday's article, but also by the fact that it generated a lot of talk on the social media site Digg. A lot of you probably know what this is, but I did not. So if you 'Digg' this column, all of the sudden, other people that don't necessarily read the Weekly but are part of the Digg community are in touch with what I am doing. Except the heading is not mine but an inane 'Ex-GNR Bassist Knows How To Use A Typewriter' or some such malarkey. Krist Novoselic and I are getting a bunch of 'play' over there at Digg. My point is that news articles and op/ed columns don't just stay where they were intended but almost simultaneously spread out all over the web. Furthermore, if I even use a key phrase like 'Led Zeppelin', this too will get picked up and transported. It all seems so dirty. Now that I think of it, maybe I will just go to the corner and pick up a good old print newspaper for the untaintedness of it all.

So now, this brings the topics of print newspapers and reading perfectly together for next week. My column will also be found in the print version on the Valentine's Day issue of SW. Dating advice from me is what they wanted? and you all shall receive. Until then...

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/02/seattle_the_nations_most_liter.php

[FunkyMonkey]

Duff?s Dating Tips for Men

Plus a little advice for the ladies as well, from the former Guns N? Roses bassist.

By Duff McKagan

Published on February 10, 2009 at 8:40pm

Dating, really, is a catch-22 for men. Look, it's simple; dudes want to get laid. It goes back to our instincts. It is a male's biological function on this planet to impregnate as many females as possible, therefore ensuring population and carrying on our species. Flash-forward to a first date: A guy must fight this urge and remain calm and almost aloof. On top of this, if you really like the girl, hooking up on the first date is usually not the best indication that she may be "the one"... in my opinion, anyway. So herein lies the contradiction for men: "I really, really like her, and I really want to 'do' her, but I hope it doesn't happen tonight!"

So before you head out for that next first date, or Saturday's big date, here are 10 dating tips?bits of wisdom, if you will?that I've amassed during my colorful times?remembered or otherwise.

1. Become a rocker. This occupation helped me get through the awkward "dating years," as I really never dated at all until I got sober. Those early years were basically filled with post-gig hookups or some other male-female interaction as a result of dark, loud, booze-filled haunts. Of course, I was pretty much hammered all the time until I was 30, and experienced TWO bad (but thankfully short) marriages! This poses a most obvious question: What the hell am I doing writing THIS column? Hey, don't be so quick to judge! I don't really remember those years, so it's almost as if they didn't count, right? I look at my life in sobriety as an almost wholly different existence than the years prior.

2. Get sober. Damn, what a scary prospect my first sober date was. I really didn't know how to act. What was I supposed to talk about if I wasn't yet even comfortable in my own skin? What if I got food on my face? I know I wouldn't even have cared before. So many things were going through my head that I probably came off as some sort of weird loser with no social skills. Those first dates after I got sober were some of the most horrible, failure-filled times in my life. "Hooking up" was definitely the last thing on my mind. But of course, in the end, sobriety, and the choices that I make when sober, are really and truly mine. Now my life is filled with all of the good things that I initially thought were going to happen back when I was a teenager. Hey, it may have taken a while, but I have, at last, a lot of solid love in my life.

3. To the ladies: Make your man feel important. Men are pretty simple. We require very little, in fact, to make us happy. I think we feel more vital and "hot" when we are successful in whatever our particular field or job may be. This probably comes from our instincts as the hunter and provider. When you bring "food back to the cave," you are appreciated and important. I think relationships fail more often when this mutual appreciation breaks down or is ignored.

4. To the fellas: Open the door for your date, especially if it's to your bedroom. Old-fashioned values and courteousness never go out of style. Pulling the chair out at the restaurant is also a classy move. Opening car doors and shedding your jacket for a woman when it is nippy are two things that should become habit for you guys out there. Your date will appreciate these gentlemanly gestures and she will never tire of them.

5. The three A's: Attention, Affection, and Appreciation. These are three things that women crave, and that we men don't easily or naturally dole out. The "three A's" are applicable in matters big and small, and shouldn't be tossed off as unimportant kowtowing to your chick. She will respond in a positive manner, and that is good for you both. It helps if you actually mean the things you say, but it's not always necessary. Here are two examples, one good and one bad:

Bad: "Hey you, you are HOT! [Attention.] Give me a hug! [Affection.] That felt good! [Appreciation.]"

Good: "Are you wearing new lip gloss? Let me kiss you! I like it!"

Actually, both of these would work, and neither of them are stellar, but you get the idea.

6. Wear something sexy underneath. My Seattle Seahawks (Sea Gals) cheerleader lingerie had usually been my "go to" undergarment to make myself feel good and surprise a lucky girl if the night went that far! You get the drift.

7. Don't text your date. I believe that protocol during the embryonic period of dating should be as text-free as possible. This early time in a relationship should be nothing short of poetic, and it actually used to be called "courting." Phone calls and sweet notes are far and away the best way to a woman's or man's heart. An unexpected delivery of flowers or chocolates shows women your sensitive side; even Cary Grant would be proud. Don't tell all your "boys" every last detail, thus spoiling an intimate place reserved in your heart. Girls, the same thing goes for you. If you are "falling for" a person and think you have a future, tell your people that and nothing more.

8. Never split the bill on a first date, especially a Valentine's date. I'm old-school; the man should pick up the tab. I do realize this is perhaps an antiquated way of thinking, but you can suck it!


9. NEVER say someone else's name in the throes of lovemaking. If you mistakenly call out your old girlfriend's name, make some shit up, and QUICK! This is the one instance when I can condone lying. If you can't remember the name of the person you're with, may I suggest coming up with some kick-ass moniker that you can remember. You will have to call that person by the same name tomorrow, after all! A name like "my little Irish whorelette," while it may be good after a couple of cocktails and thence into the "sack," probably won't work well in the morning with coffee and danish.

10. When dating my daughters, play by the rules. My oldest is 11, and the time is fast approaching when suitors will start the mad parade of jostling for her young love. Great! I live in the real world, and haven't buried my head in the sand about this upcoming period in her life. And when that first boy comes to my house to pick up Grace for her inaugural date with the opposite sex, I will be prepared. Remember, I DO know what that little dude's ulterior motives will be. No problem. I will take the young buck to the side for some ground rules, and it will go something like this: "Hey, bud. My name is Duff and I am Grace's daddy. Now, I want you guys to have a really excellent time tonight. As a matter of fact, let me store my phone number in your cell. Now listen, I would like it if you had her back home by 11 tonight, and just remember this: EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO OR TRY WITH MY DAUGHTER TONIGHT, I WILL DO THE EXACT SAME THING TO YOU WHEN YOU GUYS GET BACK HERE TO MY HOME! Great, now that that is FULLY understood, have a wonderful time and call me if you might need anything at all."

Happy Valentine's Day.

[gnr2k6]

ha fucking hilarious...this guys humour never ceases to amaze me...

[CheapJon]

pretty good one this time around

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

I snickered and smiled a few times during this article.

But Duff shouldn't publish his homo-erotic fantasies in a major publication.

[FunkyMonkey]

Duff on the cover of the issue w/Duff?s Dating Tips for Men

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/duffCOVER.jpg


Duff McKagan: How to Rock Off the Recession

Posted today at 9:21 am by Duff McKagan

So the stimulus package has been pushed through, and the summarizations of its results are now being listed publicly. President Obama has inherited a real "lulu" as far as our economy is concerned, and his name will forever be attached to this new "New Deal."

It is apparent that we are all really getting stressed about spending. Those of us with an income or money in the bank are becoming less and less likely to spread our cash around, thinking it safer to just hold on to what we got. "For Lease" signs in retail areas are becoming commonplace, harbingers of a choked and blackened economic turn. Maybe it is time for us all to take a collective breath and realize that this too shall pass... eventually. If I may suggest, here are a few upward results that I have gleaned from this stimulus package, and a few observations that I will keep my eye on.

? $400 a year per taxpayer, or at least those of you making less than $75K. From the outside, this appears to be nothing more than chump change. I guess if you multiply this 400 bucks a year by a few million taxpayers, though, and everyone actually puts that money into circulation, then we are going to see some results. So, please, put it into circulation. Try to buy some stuff made here in the States, though... we can use the influx of dough.

? New home buyers, now is your time. Sure, you could wait another eight months for that $300K home to lower its price by another 10 grand, but interest rates are the lowest in our time. If interest rates go up by even a quarter of one percent, you may pay 10 to 15 times that 10 grand you were hoping to save (over the life of the loan). The new stimulus package contains some tax-break incentives for you too, possibly close to the tune of $8,000. I'm not your financial planner, just a guy trying to spread some information around.

? Go to the soon-to-be-reopened Crocodile in March. Word on the street is that for its first weekend, all shows will be free of charge (stay tuned for details). On top of that, new part-owner Sean Kinney may be in attendance and regale you with his awesome stories about his halcyon, pre-Alice days as the house DJ at Burien's "Skate King".. .orange vest, feathered hair, and all. Now THAT is priceless!

? Nancy Pelosi has got to take a chill pill. I am not quite sure why she had to push the stimulus bill so urgently through the house. Wouldn't it have been better for everyone to have at least a few more days to look this thing over? This action, in my opinion, only widened the partisan conflict, and honestly makes me suspicious. I am all for this bill, but in the full light of transparency, as promised.

? Listen to music or go see a concert. I know that the Gutter Twins were just here and Katy Perry also just passed through (two acts that I HIGHLY recommend), and seeing both of these artists have truly inspired me over the last couple of months. Look, the last thing we want to do is to spiral in on this stupid recession mentally. I know that Ms. Perry may have hit a sour mark with one of my esteemed colleagues over here at the Weekly as far as personal politics go (and I respect my colleague), but that girl is pretty killer and knows how to have fun. The Gutter Twins are the polar opposite, but I believe they stir images and feelings of strength and demureness that negate all contemporary thought. Whatever?go out and fuckin' rock somewhere... or rock a fuck somewhere! Both are good for the soul.

? Lower expectations. As I've said before, I think we all got sort of caught up in the acquisition of more and more stuff. We were all guilty of jointly clearing out as much as we could from Costco and Forever 21?on debt, of course. Some of us are now staring blankly at the giant flatscreens and out-of-style designer jeans we have bought: the things we did to :keep up with the Joneses" and keep ourselves in step with our culture of greedy behavior. We treated our houses as banks, forever taking out second mortgages just to buy a new car or Jet-Ski to compete with our neighbor. Maybe now we will realize that our houses are our homes, not our own personal pieces of collateral.

And now it is time to smile, take a deep breath, and not watch any financial news whatsoever. They are selling record amounts of advertising because we are all watching...like we would a car crash.

[FunkyMonkey]

This Is Duff McKagan Taking Your Questions. Again. And Again.

Posted yesterday at 9:48 pm by Duff McKagan

It's not that I am trying to use this space to further my career or highlight how "cool" I am. On the contrary, really. I think people who have followed my arcane musings in this paper have actually truly seen me in my buffoonish glory. In a few weeks, Loaded (my Seattle-based rock outfit) will be releasing our new record worldwide, and the press tour has already begun. You may hear or read an interview that one or all of us do in your local paper or on a local radio station. Rest assured that will not be the only one we'll have done that day. I thought it might be interesting to some of you to take a little trip with me on a typical three-day press jaunt. In this case, 56 interviews in 70 hours. Here goes...

Monday, Feb. 9: Travel from Los Angeles to JFK and arrive at Eddy Trunk's radio show in Manhattan at 7:30 pm that night.

Now Eddy has been around this business for a very long time and is a very good radio host. His show is pretty much commercial-free, which frees up time to play the music you want and to converse back and forth in a real in-depth way. I ended up staying on the show until its end at 10 p.m., and it was a great way to start the three-day stint. The people who phoned in were pretty well informed, and awkward moments were minimal. We played some cuts from the record and generally had a real good time. Got asked about search for a new Velvet Revolver singer and how Loaded got its name.

Tuesday, Feb. 10 (start time 8 a.m.): Today we start at CBS Radio in midtown Manhattan, where they will patch me through to numerous rock morning radio shows up and down the East Coast. Now when I get my coffee on... watch the fuck out. I can talk, and depending on how much caffeine, it can turn into a serious babble. I was suddenly brought back into focus when one of the radio-show hosts said he heard that VR had our new singer (and apparently, this was according to me!). I said that no, we did not have our singer quite yet, but yes, we could be close. Got asked about Loaded's name another 12 to 15 times. Time for a 10-minute lunch at Starbucks on our walk from CBS to Sirius Radio, also in midtown.

At Sirius, I am led around to the various radio shows that want a 15-to-20 minute interview about the new Loaded record. Also at this point, more and more people are getting interested in the fact that I write two weekly columns and that one of them is a FINANCIAL piece for Playboy. I was asked numerous times if I wanted to make a statement about VR's new singer. I politely stated that in fact we hadn't actually found "the guy" yet, but we were headed in a positive direction. I also started getting queried about whether I had been invited to the Playboy mansion yet. "No, I just write for them," said I. Again, was asked about Loaded's name more times that I care to remember.

I may have done a TV news show at this point, but it is kind of fuzzy. I got back to my hotel, went straight to the gym, and tried to get my "chi" back.

Wednesday, Feb. 11 (start time 8 a.m.): So we start today back at CBS Radio for yet another "radio tour" of East Coast morning radio shows. The reception for the new record is actually kind of overwhelming as more and more stations are beginning to add our single to their playlists.

Because I had done press for the previous two days, enough time had transpired for me to be generously misquoted. Questions like "Hey, Duff! How many times you been up to Hef's house?" or "What is your new singer's name?" seemed to drone at me and through me. Aw fuck... I've only got time for another Starbucks lunch before getting to the publishing offices of Playboy for another round of, you guessed it... radio interviews.

This time, the radio interviews were by phone (why, yes, I COULD have done this part in the comfort of my own home). The powers that be at Playboy were pretty excited that press people wanted to speak to them about something other than just naked chicks (nothing wrong with naked chicks, mind you!). As I got into the interviews, though, it was really becoming over-apparent that these questions about me going to the "mansion" and VR's new singer find were getting out of hand. I was happy to get some fresh air when this bit of phone glad-handing was over. On to Rolling Stone and...

You know what? Need I say more? Same shit, different question asker(s). I got back to my hotel and again went to the gym, this time desperately seeking some "me" time.

Thursday, Feb. 12: Today, I am doing Eddy Trunk's VH1 show in front of a studio audience. First, however, I must do a N.Y. rock radio morning show live and in person (these are usually always better, as the person interviewing you doesn't want to come off as a dumb-ass and ask you the same questions that everyone else has). The problem was they asked me EVERY SINGLE QUESTION THAT HAD BEEN ASKED OF ME REPEATEDLY FOR THE LAST 62 HOURS! If that wasn't bad enough, they didn't even seem to acknowledge that I had answered these questions and that my answers were right there on the Web site they were getting all their info from. I was actually saved by a few callers who called the radio host a moron, saving me the effort! Eddy Trunk's show went great, and all I had left now was a Spin interview and a trip to JFK to get on a plane.

Ah, but then it came. Once in a while, a guy in my position will come across interviewers who think they are real, real smart and have the sass to get cute with you. I had neither the time nor the patience to mince words. I asked the guy if he was being serious and if he really wanted to ask me the questions that he was asking me. The trick here is not to lose your shit. No, rather you want to point them in the direction that you would like the interview to go and leave on a high, which it did, and therefore, I did.

Loaded questions = 509
VR singer questions = 271
Playboy "mansion" questions (including the ones from all my friends I grew up with) = 2,192
Advil = 16

Next week, Mike and I head out for a 16-city radio tour. Stay tuned.

P.S. The editor's thought some of you may want to know the answers to some of the questions I was asked.

1) 'Loaded' is a name I came up with back in 1997. The tie-in with my old band's name was unintentional as the 'loaded' that I was thinking of was meant as inebriation.
2) VR has yet to find its' new singer but I will be sure to let you know here first.
3) As of this writing, I have yet to be invited to Hef's pad. I would probably just pass on the invite to a few friends anyhow...don't want to mention any names (Andy and Brian)!

[FunkyMonkey]

Press Tour Redux: Meet Mike Squires

Posted yesterday at 11:55 pm by Duff McKagan

Mike Squires and myself are on a two- week long radio tour this week and next for our band Loaded. Our first single "Flatline" is getting a ton of play at radio and Mike and I are out here 'taking it to the people' (visiting the stations in person). Rarely is there a time in the company of this band where one will not hear laughter../ and a lot of it at that. To continue where I left off last week, may I present "Press Tour: Part II"

Sunday, March 1: Fly to Minneapolis. Mike and I get in the night before our radio visit to discover that they just don't fuck around up here in these parts when it comes to REAL cold weather! No worries, we won't be spending too much time actually outside, right? I mean we will just be going straight to the station in the morning and then straight to the airport after that to catch our plane to Detroit. But still, it's fucking cold!

Monday, March 2: The morning radio show went well and Mike and I were even able to play a couple of our songs live on acoustic guitars. We have a local record label representative who has been driving us around and now drops us off at the airport with three hours to spare. The problem now is that we got dropped off AT THE WRONG AIRPORT! We are told by a very nice Minnesotan that all we have to do is walk a little ways (outside!), catch a train (we had to wait OUTSIDE for it) , and then catch a tram...oh, that's all? With luggage, guitar cases, and backpacks in tow, Mike and I began our trudge through the frozen tundra. Once we finally get to the correct airport, we find that our plane is delayed indefinitely by a mechanical problem. Mike just farted. Ah, the glamorous life!

Tuesday, March 3: We finally got out of Minneapolis and arrive in Detroit all safe and sound. Our Midwest 'radio guys' from our record label are both here and are extremely pumped about getting some 'adds' this week (radio guys are always exited by nature, but our dudes are cooler than most...because we are Loaded and EVERYTHING is cool around us, naturally). 'Adds' is a term used for getting your song 'added' to a particular radio stations' playlist. Mike informs me that he is going to shave his beard but leave a thin 'promotional' mustache. One of our radio guys actually manages Seattle's own Wellwater Conspiracy as it turns out, and we fill the three-hour drive to Cleveland with conversations about Matt Cameron, Kurt Bloch, and all the things that kick butt about Seattle in general. Our trip to the Detroit station earlier today was again killer, and Mike and I got to actually play live a second time.

We find out that a double murder had just taken place in front of our hotel but decide to stay anyway. Shit, it's probably the safest place in all of Cleveland tonight! Squires now states that for the rest of the trip, he wants to only be addressed in the 3rd person...and to not look at him directly in the eyes. Whatever, princess.

Wednesday, March 4: Today is the BIG one. We will be driving from Cleveland to Columbus to Cincinnati to Indianapolis. We find out this morning that the 'double-murder' was an execution-style affair. Apparently downtown Cleveland is getting pretty dicey and there has been an exodus lately from the city dwellers back to the 'burbs. The FM rock station we are doing is one of those wacky-make-farts-sounds jobs. Squires and I however, kept the goofiness at bay and they were actually real cool to us (as opposed to being not cool, which definitely happens). Squires, by the way, is now donning a velveteen, red, floor-length robe that he insists was King Henry the VIII's. He now only responds to the name 'The Wizard'. More to come on this., and of that, I am quite sure.

Columbus was quite mellow and the station DJ let Squires and I tell our dumb jokes and otherwise work off some road giddiness. I spoke with my esteemed SW colleague Krist Novoselic about being a 'host' for a fundraising gig for Dow Constantine (a man who will fight for us all in King County politics!). I asked Krist what a 'host' actually does and he promised me that there would be no funny business or guy-on-farm animal hanky panky. Squires informs me that he (Squires) wants some guy-on-horse hanky panky.

The road now leads us to Cincinnati, where we have two more shows to do today, then it's a drive to Indianapolis. Tomorrow we are doing a syndicated show that goes to 156 radio stations and it also films in front of a live studio audience. Squires is already demanding his own 'Star Wagon'(personal RV) and a director's chair with 'The Wizard' printed in gold leaf on the back. Squires has his own personal fan base thus dubbed the 'Squires Army' and they promise to show up in full force at tomorrow's TV taping...for they are legion and they are many.

It is now Wednesday night and we have finally arrived at our hotel in Indianapolis...I am completely and totally fried. I love to write with humor when I can and hope that it is very evident that all of the stuff about Squires and Krist is meant in jest. What is life, after all, without a lot of fun involved. That's my motto anyway. For obvious reasons, I will not be able to talk about my whole week as I have to turn this column in now! Radio stations are now adding the single and we hope that Loaded will be playing a town near you in the next few months. GOODNIGHT!!!

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/03/press_tour_part_ii.php

[lynn1961]

Duff at 15 playing in The Fastbacks

Posted yesterday at 11:21 pm

Last Christmas I wrote of a family who was barely making ends meet as they fought alongside their daughter with leukemia. I spoke of the importance of the Ronald McDonald House providing a roof for these families who have otherwise tapped out their savings in their plight. Other than that single column, I have stayed away from trying to steer a reader someplace or to some cause I think they should know about. Some of you know, while I may be full of myself at times, it is my hope that you know I am not full of shit. I don't ever want to come off as preachy, but only to share things of substance from my personal experiences-good OR bad. Take what you will from them.

Growing up in this town during the early punk-rock movement was nothing short of fantastically inspiring. Our scene was pretty minuscule, so we all knew each other and probably played in one another's bands some time between 1979 and early '82. Sure, we drank a ton of beer and maybe experimented with LSD, mushrooms, and coke, but beyond that it was pretty innocent.

Sometime in 1982, as the scene became bigger and a recession hit Seattle, we all noticed a huge influx of heroin and pills. I witnessed my first overdose when I was 18. Addiction suddenly skyrocketed within my circle of friends and death by overdose became almost commonplace. By the time I was 22, two of my best friends had passed from ODs. Many of these early addicts have either died or live a pitiful existence to this day. These are the same people who I personally witnessed a wonderful lust for life and a whimsical glint in the eye, looking forward to the future. No one sets out to be a junkie or alcoholic. Some people can just experiment in their youth and move on. Others cannot. Science has admitted that there is an actual difference in neuro- transmitter, serotonin levels and other inputs, that separate a person who will become addicted, and one who will not.

I was recently introduced to one Susan Peck, a woman who has the heartbreaking cross to bare of losing her 19 year-old son Jonathon to suicide brought on by a youth-long (short?) history of drug addiction. The Peck family has a history of alcoholism and therefore had family talks with their kids about things to watch out for. "It wasn't a chat of 'don't do it', but more a matter of 'you will.' It became more of a talk of 'these are the symptoms you need to be aware of...you have a loaded gun to your head.' As it turned out, their son 'pulled the trigger'", Susan explained to me of early Peck family conversations.

Susan's life has been changed forever. That is for sure. But her call to service has been energized to say the least. She is a key member of family support services that educate like-afflicted parents and children. And she has become a vocal advocate of 3 year-old SAMA.

The Science and Management of Addictions (SAMA) was formed 3 years ago by 2 medically savvy individuals (Dr. Robert Day and and CJ Taylor Day) who at any turn could call upon the doctors of Fred Hutch, Swedish, and the University of Washington Hospital to cull answers from the fertile medical establishments surrounding them in the Pacific Northwest. So when their own daughter was diagnosed with the disease of substance addiction they were appalled at the lack of research, advocacy, and education being done on this disease. As parents, they became helpless victims along with their ailing daughter to a broader community still mired in old stigmas and discriminations of character as opposed to a brain disease.

SAMA wants to do active research to scientifically explore and unlock the reasons why one child's brain wants/needs an addictive substance over another who abuses recreationally. They hope to one day FIND A SCIENTIFIC CURE!!

Right now, I am reading 'Beautiful Boy' by David Sheff, which depicts his family's struggles with their son's meth addiction. From a personal level, I have suffered and struggled with addiction, and must be daily vigilant against this monster in waiting. Addiction is not romantic, artsy, or cool. It is nothing short of sheer terror and hopelessness. I am behind any scientific advancement for others and myself suffering. Would we leave cancer untreated? Diabetes? No we wouldn't.

Go to www.samafoundation.org. if you or someone you know are interested in support for a loved one-or, just want to help.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/03/_youth_drug_addiction_last.php#more

[MeanBone]

Addiction is not romantic, artsy, or cool. It is nothing short of sheer terror and hopelessness.

brilliant, duff continues to surprise me so much, what a wonderful individual.

[lynn1961]

Storytime: Grand Theft Auto and LSD
By Duff McKagan in Duff McKaganThursday, Mar. 19 2009 @ 7:25AM

Duff McKagan's column runs every Thursday on Reverb.
In an attempt to flesh out some stories that may one day become a gateway to a larger literary body of work, I'm going to write some short pieces of my own. That being said, I am a little scared to share some of these stories in that they are not meant to influence youth in any way, shape, or form. Hey, maybe they can be construed as cautionary tales?

These stories will be instantly visible to the world via the Web, and backlash may be swift. I may be charged with trying to glorify and glamorize certain things that I went through. I am not. I'm only using this place as a testing ground, and I feel secure enough to take whatever criticism may come my way as a result of a some of my more "colorful" times. Oh well, at least the statute of limitations has run out on most of the crimes I will be writing about. And in the legal arena at least, I am seemingly safe (I hope that Seattle Weekly has a good legal department).



As an aside: I don't believe our parents were to blame for any or all of our miscreant behaviors. In my case, I was the last of eight kids, and by the time I was 9, my parents had divorced and my mom was pretty much left to fend and provide for our household on her own. This meant that she had no other choice but to leave me with a lot of responsibility, and I just didn't rise to the occasion right away. I wish I could've been a better son in those difficult transition years for my mother. I still kick myself for some of the hell that I surely put her through. I look back now and it is obvious that I was trying to figure out where my place was in this world without a father figure to rely on as a role model at home.

My father, conversely, was trying to figure out what life was about, period. I do not blame him for anything (although I certainly did back then). He was a WWII vet who started having children with my mother when he was 18 and didn't stop until he was 38. He went straight from the war to working for the Seattle Fire Department, desperately trying to provide for what would become eight children. By the time I was in elementary school, I believe that he was simply feeling trapped and wanted to see what else life had in store for him. He never had a chance to be a kid, and in my opinion he wanted to try to get some of his youth back. He should have gone about his whole scheme in another way. My saintly mom was left "holding the bag," and we eight brothers and sisters cherish the memory of this amazing and strong woman. Marie Alice McKagan endured this all with a lion's heart, a scholar's intellect, and lots of patience, of that I am sure.

I started smoking pot at a REALLY young age: 4th grade, to be exact. I took my first drink at 10 and tasted LSD for the first time at 11. These things were so new in the '70s, and there just wasn't the huge stigma and general warnings about child drug use. We were just experimenting, that's all. But this piece isn't going to be about drugs; it's just that I am trying to highlight the fact that we just seemed to grow up a bit faster back then. No, this story is really about crime... car theft, to be exact.

The best friends I established by 6th grade are still my best friends to this day?Abe, Edgar, and Bob?the 4 of us were pretty much inseparable (I've changed their names here). They are good and solid men, but back in middle school we tested our boundaries against grown-ups and authority. We were harmless troublemakers, really, but soon found ourselves in the line of fire against an asshole counselor at Eckstein. In my case, I was suspended twice and finally expelled. "Yeah, good riddance," I remember thinking to myself. Besides, I was already crafting a new career for myself.

Abe and I started to separate ourselves from the pack at this point. We both embraced the new and exciting punk-rock scene that had recently hit Seattle. Abe and I formed the Vains with Chris Utting in 1979, three years before we were of legal driving age. In the daylight hours, I would take the bus anywhere and everywhere that I had to be for band practice or my new job as a dishwasher, etc. When it got dark, though, Abe and I began to hone our craft as burgeoning car thieves.

I remember clearly the first car we, um, borrowed. It was a 1963 VW Bug. It all seemed innocent enough at first. It was 2 a.m., and we were stuck without a ride home at some punk-rock party in deep Ballard. It being Seattle and all, of course it was raining and cold. Abe and I only got about 10 blocks into our seven-mile walk when it dawned on us to try stealing a car and driving ourselves the rest of the way home. We had heard of a simple and easy way to trip an ignition on any and all pre-'64 Bugs, but had never put our knowledge to the test. We soon found our car, and clumsily broke in a wing window with a jackboot. Once we got the car started, we both realized that neither one of us knew how to drive a car, let alone one with a clutch. We found out the hard way that first gear can indeed get you from point A to point B, seven miles away, albeit slowly!

When you are a kid, the lust for being of driving age is nothing short of intoxicating. Abe and I discovered after our first night in the stolen VW that we no longer had to wait until we were 16 years old to have access to a car. We began to sharpen our tactics and skill as car thieves?even studying new ways to hot-wire Peugeots and Audis. Sometimes we even held onto certain cars for a week or more, parking them in rich neighborhoods where the police would be less likely to look for a stolen vehicle.

On top of this, it was at times the things we found INSIDE these cars that would lead us to further criminal activities outside the car-stealing racket. Once we found a large set of keys that had only an address attached to them. This address was a large laundromat, and the keys were to the lock-boxes that held all of that particular day's change intake (hundreds of dollars a day, which to us was a fortune).

Our exploits began to garner attention from older, savvier criminals. The newspaper began to run stories of things we were involved in, and this is when I began to see only a dire ending for myself?jail or worse. It was time to get out. Besides, at this point my music career began to get more serious, and I met a girl. I was done.

Abe, however, continued to widen his circle of criminal activities for a while longer. He started to hang with a crowd that, while exotic, seemed also a bit dark and dangerous. Abe started to specialize in particular foreign makes, stolen for particular clients who were willing to pay. Edgar, Bob, and I started to become concerned. Abe was arrested one night after a high-speed chase with the Seattle Police. The crimes? Grand Theft Auto and Reckless Evading. Shit.

I have only been able to touch on a minuscule part of this period of my life in this short column. Rest assured, it could have had a LOT worse outcome for me and my friends as far as criminal records, jail time, or worse. Having kids of my own now makes me realize just how very young I was when I did some of the things I did. I cringe looking at my daughters sometimes. They know of some of my childhood antics; the more serious stories can wait. The weight I have to carry is one day having to share it with them. The McKagans do honesty these days, and that I probably learned from my own father not doing it.

[FunkyMonkey]

Back on the Mountain With New Boots and Tim Medvetz

By Duff McKagan
Thursday, Mar. 26 2009

A few months back, I wrote of my trials and mini-triumphs along the trail of my training toward climbing Mt. Rainier this summer. My work as a musician requires a ton of traveling, and finding time to train for a 14,000-plus-foot mountain within these confines is quite challenging (hotel fire-escape stairs do work, and I always take a jump-rope). I have a few days off from work this week, and will use them to do some "survival training" in the high-altitude back country of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

If you remember, my mountain training partner in California is more famously known as "biker" Tim from the Discovery series Everest. Tim has topped Everest as well as Rainier and sundry other peaks in Mexico and the Himalayas. He is one tough mofo?6'6" tall and 245 pounds of pure muscle. He is the kind of guy who walks into a bar and dudes get scared by his presence alone. I'm not quite sure what powers of fate put the two of us together in this life, but I am quite sure that "God" or whoever has a killer sense of humor. Our personalities together make for some really funny moments. At times he tries to get mad at me for my back-country incompetence, but I just give him shit right back. I tell him that I am not the one to blame for whatever is making him so damn mad, and that whatever happened to him in his teenage (or whenever) years, we can probably work it out with a nice talk and maybe a comfy bro hug. Tim doesn't do comfy. (Except for the "camp booties" he triumphantly pulls from his backpack after a hard day's climb. Real cute.) I know that I can run faster than Tim because he has a fused ankle from a bad bike accident 10 years ago. Because I know this, I can write this piece and give him more shit within this space. He will read it and get even madder at me. I see myself as sort of a Kato to his Green Hornet.

My first foray with Tim was up 10,500-foot Mt. Baldy, and I made the rookie mistake of wearing brand new boots. Don't EVER do this. You can't really say that my feet blistered, because frankly there just wasn't any skin left to form a blister. I couldn't tell Tim that my feet hurt on the way up Baldy, because he quite possibly would have tagged me as a pussy, and my brazen manliness won't allow for that. They say that the worst thing that can happen to you on Everest is getting blisters on your feet. Not only can't one walk, but there is also just no way to keep your feet clean at all times, and infection is sure to happen. A simple infection on your foot can turn to staph at any time, some strains of which can be terribly resistant to antibiotics. Staph causes blood poisoning and that poison will kill you. First stop before the back country. . . get better boots!

Adventure 16 is L.A.'s version of REI. They have everything you might need for some serious outdoor activity. The people that work here actually climb mountains and kayak the rapids. When a tattooed guy such as myself comes sauntering into a place like this, they instinctively know to shun and make you feel an outsider. "Hey, aren't you that 'rock guy'?" says Roman, a climber and salesman at A16. "What the hell are you doing HERE?" Ah, yes, the old discrimination. I find this everywhere I go. Apparently, I'm not supposed to do ANYTHING besides, well, rocking. Luckily Tim joins me at the store, and the salespeople realize that if I am with him, I must be somewhat OK. I get it: Just because TIM climbed EVEREST and has his own TV SHOW on DISCOVERY, he is taken seriously. And because I play ROCK 'N' ROLL and NEARLY DRANK MYSELF TO DEATH and look like I COULDN'T CLIMB A LADDER, I am not. Whatever. . .

The name of my new guy for boots is Alia, who has the tell-all nickname of "the shoe Nazi" (I'm not sure if he knows this or not). Alia takes footwear seriously, and I was his newest mystery to solve. He examined every aspect of my foot before I even tried on a boot. When I did finally get to the point of putting on a pair, he methodically showed me how to stomp at the heel first, and how to lace up with his complex formula of loops and knots. As I walked around the store, Alia would follow and have me stop at certain junctures so that he could adjust the boot and/or jab a finger inside the back to see if any space had opened up. Tim, meanwhile, was getting friendly with a family outfitting for a Himalayan foothill adventure. This family included two daughters in their 20s, and Tim had found his wheelhouse. The ladies love Tim.

Back in the real world, now that I have finally the right boots, the realization that Mt. Rainier is in my near future kind of hits me out of nowhere. I know that huge summer crevasses will be yawning under-foot for the one most unfortunate to be above when the exact amount of thawing will cause a breakthrough. The threat of overhanging ice calving in huge sheets is also very real (a boyhood friend died just this way back in the '80s). For now, though, I must focus on training and getting as much high-altitude knowledge as I can outside of my teeming personal Alpine library at home. The shit is getting very real now.

Something else helps pull me from my chilling daydream: "You have such beautiful blue eyes!" Ah, yeah, the girls have come under the mad spell of Tim Medvetz. I will not let him live THIS moment down for our whole trip this week. I can already feel him getting mad.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/03/backcountry.php

[Albert S Miller]

I look at Mount Rainier daily, I can't imagine Duff climbing this beast, cuz thats exactly what it is.  Though this is his up and coming journey,  he is nervous contemplating this event for himself, I am nervous for him, but would like to wish him much luck and for the sake of all be careful Duff.

[FunkyMonkey]

Duff McKagan: Croc and Loaded

By Duff McKagan in Duff McKagan

Thursday, Apr. 2 2009

I think by now that anyone who reads this column is pretty damn sure I play in a band that doesn't carry the history of GN'R or the current popularity of Velvet Revolver. No, I am in one band that while actually staying together LONGER that any of thos previous bands, remains popular only in our own comical minds. Yes, I refer to this band of excellent gentlemen somewhat aptly dubbed LOADED.

On April 7 we're releasing Sick, our first record in some eight years. To start things off we wanted to keep it real and keep it local. The Crocodile has been so kind as to let us play on Thursday April 9. Many thanks to Susan Silver, Sean Kinney, and Eli the booker. I, for one, cannot thank this crew enough. Playing our first gig of our world tour right here in town seems apropos?the Croc is a venue that I have many fond and fine memories of. (I think I played drums with the Fastbacks there one night before Guns did the Kingdome. My memory is indeed a tad foggy from those days in general, but that is a whole different story.)

Playing a gig here in town also gives a chance for me to maybe meet some of the people who write in to my column on a weekly basis. "Nevermind" is the first one who pops to mind. A person (I presume to be a man) that gave me crap from column-one, but our cyber-relationship has blossomed into well-meaning jabs of cynicism and a shared past of drug use and subsequent sobriety...I do hope he still gives me shit after this piece and do hope that he comes to this gig and hunts me down.

"Mad Mama" is another one that has been a stalwart friend to the column and has cheered me on at every step as I plunge myself into this new endeavor of writing, mountaineering and sundry other tomfoolery and publicly viewed 'vision-questing'.

Of the readers that I deem to be local, a professor dubbed "Kris" has a blog of his/her own that is drenched with deep-thought and hyper-awareness. I am honored that people like this even give a guy like me the time of day to read the neophyte script that I turn in to the Weekly. (On this subject, I just watched CBS's Sunday Morning and there was a segment on bogging and news otherwise obtained on the Web. Apparently, for the first 100 or so years of their existence?1680 to 1780?newspapers would leave a blank page at the end of an article so that readers could write their comments and then pass it along for someone else to cross-comment. By 1915 there were some 15,000 different newspapers and magazines circulating in the U.S. Radio, TV, and other media eventually diminished the high demand, but it appears now that with the Internet, we are back up to having the wide variety celebrated those 100 years ago. Back to the future, I guess.)

My newfound writing career has also proven to be an effective marketing tool. Playboy is coming to town, not only to film the Loaded show, but also to follow me around the next day, as I will give an on-camera expose of 'my' Seattle. I hope that they are aware that 'my' Seattle doesn't consist of strip-clubs and singles bars. Only occasionally will I hire a gimp in full bondage gear for a cocktail party or one of our daughters' birthday parties here at Manor McKagan. No, 'my' Seattle is pretty pathetic and un-sexy, unless you consider Martin Feveyear, Mike Squires, and Sean Kinney sexy. Well, Sean IS kind of hot on second thought. Actually, our dog Buckley DOES think that he himself is a porn-star at times-he may be good for the Playboy piece. Maybe I can take them to Sonic Boom records so that I can at least APPEAR to be somewhat hip and cool. Yea, I can lie and say that I have always been into vinyl and that I don't even own an iPod (it's really cool to say that you are into vinyl, right?). My ruse would be undone though. They at Sonic Boom would most certainly make a comment like "Hey, you must have finally got a turntable; you've never bought RECORDS here before!"

We just received our routing for our June European tour. It looks like it will be nine stinky guys on a bus for 28 days this time as opposed to 14 days like last September (see "Fart Tennis"). It will be summer rock festival time on that continent and we really got on some amazing gigs over there. They just have better names for their festivals over there too, like Rock AM Ring, Graspop, Metal Way, Nova Rock, and of course Download Festival. (It used to be called Donnington Park and if you've ever seen the GN'R "Paradise City" video, the black-and-white part was shot there at Donnington. It will be cool for me to get back there for sure.)

So that is it for now. Hopefully some of you will be able to make it to the Thursday gig in Seattle, or to some other damn place on this planet. I've been storing up some good jokes to regale all of you with, too. Until then...rock the fuck out!

[FunkyMonkey]

Merle Haggard, Mark Lanegan, and Your Summer Reading List

By Duff McKagan Thursday, Apr. 9 2009

This city of Seattle never ceases to surprise and intrigue me. It is a cultural and artistic melting pot and that is for sure. I try and see life through much more than just "a musician's" eyes, but oftentimes it is at musical events that I feel closest to my comfort zone. Maybe it is here that I can let down my veil of adult, my facade of judgment. Perhaps my observations are less colored by outside factors whilst I am in a club or a theater.

Sometimes I will see 100 gigs a year and find very little to be inspired by. At other periods in my life, I will see three or four shows in a short amount of time that just seem to make me a better person. Merle Haggard and Kris Kristofferson at the Paramount the other night gave much more to me than I could have hoped for.


Merle's battle with lung-cancer led to some hushed-tone urgency when tickets to a date or two of his become available. Reverence for the man and his career were obviously evident last Friday. Kris Kristofferson may have summed up the evening's sentiment with his song "Here Comes That Rainbow Again". If you haven't yet heard it, I strongly suggest you do so.

Another aspect of that evening gave me pause for reflection: real, hard-core Merle and Kristofferson fans aren't the ultra-hip scribes and scenesters that one may hear bragging about a show like this. No, the people who were there were from Eastern and Central Washington, south of Olympia and north of, well, downtown and Capitol Hill. These people looked hardscrabble and perma-tanned from years of working in the sun. The thing about Seattle though, is that there is a comfort zone here for a crowd like this. As I was driving up Pike after the gig, I saw some punkers walking an old cowboy and his wife to a bar. Cool.

This town was host to some of the first punk rock clubs in the country back in the '70s, too. Early Northwest punk bands like D.O.A. and the Fastbacks in turn informed the scene that would burst on the world consciousness with Soundgarden, Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Pearl Jam. Perhaps Seattle's most precious musical commodity would not have been able to ferment without the solidarity that is shown to its musicians (that "commodity" to me is Mark Lanegan).

We seemingly were seen as a place that was open-minded enough to host the first rap tour when other cities' promoters didn't see the worth in it (yes, Grand Master Flash at the Music Hall in late 1980 I believe). "Urban" radio got some of its earliest high-audience ratings here in our town.

And now on to our weather.

This past weekend we finally caught sight of springtime. It seems that all it really takes is two consecutive days of near 70-degree weather for us to forget all that we knew of the long, dismal Seattle winter. In my humble opinion, there really is nothing or no place in this world like summer in Seattle. The Mariners will be having their home opener on April 14 and we can get our hopes up for at least not finishing in the A.L. cellar like last year.

May I suggest some good reads for your lazy, ever-lengthening days ahead?

Mr. Untouchable: The Rise, Fall, and Resurrection of Heroin's Teflon Don, Nicky Barnes. This is a no-holds-barred biopic of Harlem's Nicky Barnes, a self-made drug mogul who almost got away with it all.

Beautiful Boy, David Sheff. This book really jarred me as it probably hit closer to home than I was expecting as a father myself. This book explores a father and son's heartbreaking journey through meth addiction. A simply amazing read.

Longitude, Dava Sobel. If you are an exploration and adventure nerd like myself, then you will know that having only latitudinal readings spelled disaster for many of our early maritime discoverers. The hunt for the mysteries that finally unlocked longitude were not just mathematical. Many people in high places wanted the credit and reward that a simple carpenter inevitably got to take home.

My Bondage, My Freedom, Frederick Douglass. I read this book while I was at Seattle University a few years back. When a book is a required read in a particular course, rarely do you find it to be a page-turner. Douglass' account of his young life in slavery, his eventual escape into the North, and scholastic and cultural stardom paint a vivid picture of what life was like, not only for him in the 1800s, but the rest of America as well.

Hitmen, Frederic Dannen. An amazing expose of the record industry circa 1980s: Payola, sex, scandal and intrigue. Good shit!

Q, Quincy Jones). A large portion of this book takes a look at Mr. Jones' early days right here in Seattle. It enlightened me to read about how thriving and great a jazz scene we had here in the 40s and 50s. Quincy is a bad motherfucker!

Lexicon Devil, Brendon Mullen. For anyone who doesn't know about the Germs, this would be the book to get you caught up. The Germs were one of the most influential American punk bands, PERIOD. Brendon Mullen does the band and the era justice.

60 Hikes within 60 Miles of Seattle, Andrew Weber and Bryce Stevens. Yeah, that's right. Get the fuck out of that chair or sofa and up into those mountains that you look at so longingly from Capitol Hill or the 520 bridge!

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/04/merle_et_al.php

[FunkyMonkey]

Duff McKagan: Why I'm An Eternal Optimist

By Duff McKagan in Duff McKagan

Thursday, Apr. 16 2009

I'm that guy who is constantly trying to see the "good" or "bright" side of most things. Reason and common sense do play into my rosy visions, and therefore inform me that not everyone or every situation may agree with the way that I look at it/them. I think that the moment that jadedness or ill will seeps into a person's thought process, it's then a dangerous and slippery slope toward what could be all-encompassing grey gloomy-Gusdom. To hell with that.

Obama has been sharply criticized by the conservatives of this country for not being "tougher" with the Europeans on his recent trip there for the G20 Economic Summit. Sure, pledges were made for some $1.1 trillion for a continental version of our TARP, but some say that Obama should have been sharper in tone and more bellicose in nature. I guess I'm not as cynical.

It appears to me that the maiden trip served its purpose in that Obama put world leaders on notice that they are dealing with someone who has intellect and a plan more nuanced than schoolyard diplomacy. If a politician (or anyone else, for that matter) yells, screams, and makes demands from the get-go, there really is no place to go from there. There may be more room for getting real work done if one goes into a situation first with a touch of humility and an air of academia and social ease. These things he most certainly did.

Also, it seems that the Obama administration is doing away with bleak terms like "Axis of Evil" and "War on Terror." I have no time or patience for religious fundamentalists who prop up terrorist acts to bring attention to their cause. These small groups of assholes must certainly be dealt with, but to give their movement and actions more attention does them a favor. Disenfranchised youth love to be part of something that goes against the grain, and in those parts of the world, the Taliban and their ilk is that something. When you get someone like Obama spreading the seeds of something kinder and more positive and having sit-down talks with the Taliban, then those youth will perhaps have to stop joining the ranks of the terrorist paramilitary camps.

Right now I am reading The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes. The book recounts, for the most part, the trials and tribulations that this country went through recovering from the Great Depression. Roosevelt did a lot of things right in his recovery efforts, but there were definitely stumbles and missteps along the way. One of the big problems that generation faced is the same one we are experiencing now: a lack of consumer confidence. A dark outlook on the economy seeps into every pore of our society. Even when prolonged favorable economic indicators were prevalent back in the '30s, the public remained sharply resistant to giving their collective confidence back to our banking system and government. Chin up, people! The more I read of historical events, the more I see that everything is cyclical. I have optimism because history is the great indicator of future events for me.

Another reason for me to be pleased of late is our Seattle Mariners! Yeah, I know that it is painfully early to start to even THINK about talking or writing about the M's, but hey, I like how this team looks. Edny Chavez and Erik Bedard are just two of the reasons to pique Seattleites' interest in getting tickets to this first home stand. Ichiro and Junior's return are great stories, but a winning team with a couple of aces and some clutch bats would be a better one. Shit, we had a come-from-behind win last Saturday against the A's; I don't remember ONE of those from last year, do you?

Last summer I came off a brutal and drama-filled year touring our last Velvet Revolver record. All I wanted to do was get back to Seattle and watch some Mariners games on TV or go to Safeco. I think that I got back from tour somewhere around June 1. The season was already over. We all look forward to our teams being at least competitive in (at least) their divisions. Last season's M's gave me nothing in return for my abundant fandom, and it sucked. I have some optimism for this season, and it just feels good to have that right now.

The Huskies football program? No place to go from here but up. Seahawks? Same thing. I hear that there is even a soccer team in town now, too. What's next? Maybe there will be a ban on semi-automatic weapons...that would get me REAL optimistic!

[FunkyMonkey]

Duff McKagan: Rock Has Changed, My (Facebook) Friends

By Duff McKagan

Thursday, Apr. 23 2009

So here I go again; off on yet another of the by-now-countless rock tours required to support a new record (I think the count now stands at 10 records, hence 10 tour campaigns). Doing this for the past 20-odd years has afforded me a serious bird's-eye view of just how drastic this business of music has changed.

"Hey! I'm your Facebook friend!" is probably the most common greeting a band or artist hears out here on the road these days. For a band to even think about a mere modicum of success these days, they must know how to reach the listener or potential fan via the Internet. Back in the day, radio was the one-and-only vehicle a band or artist had to get any recognition outside their hometown. Today, pretty much all the rock radio stations are owned by one or two corporate conglomerates whose only interest is to sell advertising space. Advertisers don't want anything close to danger anywhere even remotely close to their product being pimped. This makes for really safe and REALLY boring radio. (We are lucky in Seattle, though. KISW has somehow kept a bit of individuality and honor, playing what they want on Joleen's show, etc.) You may wonder why it is that you hear the same 10 fucking songs on your local station. These 10 songs have been "tested" vigorously.

Song testing is a very interesting thing. Well, interesting if you like lame. At song-testing sites, they will find an audience (usually for free pizza and 50 bucks) and play a certain rock song for them. In front of each audience member, there is a sheet of paper that informs the participant to choose one of the following:

A) I would turn the channel if I heard this song
B) I would turn the volume UP if I heard this song
C) I would turn the volume down if I heard this song
D) I would do nothing If I heard this song

Interestingly enough, D is the answer they are looking for. That's right, if you feel no emotion toward the song, you are more likely not to touch the dial at all. Not unlike a sheep, you would just continue listening to that channel and be pummeled by the commercials when those came along too.

OK, so we as fans and artists have transcended commercial radio and other pitfalls of the major record labels and corporate bullshit. Bands have figured out that while, yes, they won't sell as many records because of illegal digital downloading, these same bands can get more exposure from MySpace, YouTube, and other Internet means of social networking. More visibility in the ether can mean more people at your show buying your T-shirts and maybe even your CD. (I have noticed that fans WILL buy your music at a venue. Maybe it is the excitement that is generated by the live show that pushes the fan to further support the artist. I dunno.)

Fans can now find really obscure and independent acts just by taking cues from links on YouTube, etc. My eldest daughter finds all the new music she listens to by these means. By the time an artist "blows up" in a commercial sense, kids like my daughter are WAY past it. Metal Sludge and Blabbermouth are popular places too to find the latest news and gossip about your favorite band, putting a strain on paper publications like Rolling Stone and Spin.

But maybe there is a grassroots backlash a-brewin'. Kids will come up to us guys in Loaded and constantly ask if we are going to put out our newest record on vinyl. Yes, vinyl is really making a comeback, even sparking the major labels to press older catalogues on vinyl again. Best Buy, Target, and Wal-Mart all have put up vinyl sections in their stores. Independent record stores are again becoming the "hip" place to hang out for youth. (I just visited a record store in Nashville called Grimey's that had at least 1,000 kids show up when some local acts played in their back parking lot. It seemed like every one of them had a new vinyl purchase tucked under their arm). Who knows, perhaps Cream and Hit Parader will come out of forced retirement?

Yeah, I guess it just comes down to the fact that EVERYTHING is pretty much cyclical. Whether it's economic recessions we are talking about, or the need to hear music in a warm analog. I just hope that '90s junkie-chic and skinny "boy-looking" fashion models never come back in vogue. THAT was a bad period that should just be forgotten.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/04/_the_changing_rock_times.php

[D]

Duff McKagan: Rock Has Changed, My (Facebook) Friends

By Duff McKagan

Thursday, Apr. 23 2009

So here I go again; off on yet another of the by-now-countless rock tours required to support a new record (I think the count now stands at 10 records, hence 10 tour campaigns). Doing this for the past 20-odd years has afforded me a serious bird's-eye view of just how drastic this business of music has changed.

"Hey! I'm your Facebook friend!" is probably the most common greeting a band or artist hears out here on the road these days. For a band to even think about a mere modicum of success these days, they must know how to reach the listener or potential fan via the Internet. Back in the day, radio was the one-and-only vehicle a band or artist had to get any recognition outside their hometown. Today, pretty much all the rock radio stations are owned by one or two corporate conglomerates whose only interest is to sell advertising space. Advertisers don't want anything close to danger anywhere even remotely close to their product being pimped. This makes for really safe and REALLY boring radio. (We are lucky in Seattle, though. KISW has somehow kept a bit of individuality and honor, playing what they want on Joleen's show, etc.) You may wonder why it is that you hear the same 10 fucking songs on your local station. These 10 songs have been "tested" vigorously.

Song testing is a very interesting thing. Well, interesting if you like lame. At song-testing sites, they will find an audience (usually for free pizza and 50 bucks) and play a certain rock song for them. In front of each audience member, there is a sheet of paper that informs the participant to choose one of the following:

A) I would turn the channel if I heard this song
B) I would turn the volume UP if I heard this song
C) I would turn the volume down if I heard this song
D) I would do nothing If I heard this song

Interestingly enough, D is the answer they are looking for. That's right, if you feel no emotion toward the song, you are more likely not to touch the dial at all. Not unlike a sheep, you would just continue listening to that channel and be pummeled by the commercials when those came along too.

OK, so we as fans and artists have transcended commercial radio and other pitfalls of the major record labels and corporate bullshit. Bands have figured out that while, yes, they won't sell as many records because of illegal digital downloading, these same bands can get more exposure from MySpace, YouTube, and other Internet means of social networking. More visibility in the ether can mean more people at your show buying your T-shirts and maybe even your CD. (I have noticed that fans WILL buy your music at a venue. Maybe it is the excitement that is generated by the live show that pushes the fan to further support the artist. I dunno.)

Fans can now find really obscure and independent acts just by taking cues from links on YouTube, etc. My eldest daughter finds all the new music she listens to by these means. By the time an artist "blows up" in a commercial sense, kids like my daughter are WAY past it. Metal Sludge and Blabbermouth are popular places too to find the latest news and gossip about your favorite band, putting a strain on paper publications like Rolling Stone and Spin.

But maybe there is a grassroots backlash a-brewin'. Kids will come up to us guys in Loaded and constantly ask if we are going to put out our newest record on vinyl. Yes, vinyl is really making a comeback, even sparking the major labels to press older catalogues on vinyl again. Best Buy, Target, and Wal-Mart all have put up vinyl sections in their stores. Independent record stores are again becoming the "hip" place to hang out for youth. (I just visited a record store in Nashville called Grimey's that had at least 1,000 kids show up when some local acts played in their back parking lot. It seemed like every one of them had a new vinyl purchase tucked under their arm). Who knows, perhaps Cream and Hit Parader will come out of forced retirement?

Yeah, I guess it just comes down to the fact that EVERYTHING is pretty much cyclical. Whether it's economic recessions we are talking about, or the need to hear music in a warm analog. I just hope that '90s junkie-chic and skinny "boy-looking" fashion models never come back in vogue. THAT was a bad period that should just be forgotten.

http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/reverb/2009/04/_the_changing_rock_times.php

Duff said it!