Gilby Comments on Ron Ashton

GILBY CLARKE, GUNS 'N' ROSES/MC5/ROCSTAR SUPERNOVA GUITARIST

Back in the '70s, when I was learning to play guitar, I didn't have the luxury of taking lessons. Instead, I just picked up riffs from whatever was on my record player at that time. Even though I liked the rock royalty of my youth, like KISS, Led Zeppelin and Aerosmith, there was a kid at my school who had an older brother who turned us on to the Velvet Underground. That music was hypnotizing. The Velvets led me to the other proto-punk bands, including, of course, the Stooges. What guitarists like Ron Asheton were doing with their guitars was something I could actually relate to, especially with my lack of theory and training. I like to call it "manic aggression" and "punk rock blooze." I love that kind of guitar playing. Ron's borderline out-of-control rhythms mixed with tight blues licks remain the very foundation of punk rock.