Steven Adler: 'I'm Finally Starting To Get The Recognition That I Deserve'

[FunkyMonkey]

Steven Adler: 'I'm Finally Starting To Get The Recognition That I Deserve'

07/28/2010

Can you describe what you brought to the Appetite For Destruction sessions as a drummer? What was it you did so well that made that album such a force of nature?

For one, I never took a lesson and I would practice to drummers like Roger Taylor and Peter Criss and so that?s where I kind of got my style from. Because I?ve never taken a drum lesson. So I pretty much went in there with all my heart and all my soul and just gave it all that. Of course, we rehearsed the songs a million times and played ?em live so we knew what was gonna happen. But my whole playing is just from liking those kinds of drummers.

Every song on the Appetite album had been played live before recording it?

Oh, yeah, we used to play ?em live. Once we started playing together, none of us had a job so all we did was hang out and play music; hang out, drink beer, play music. Play music, play music, playmusic [laughs.]

Are there standout moments on the Appetite record that you remember?

Yes, there is. One thing was on ?Sweet Child ?O Mine? where it has that breakdown where it goes ?Where do we go/where do we go.? If you listen, I?m doin? these rimshots on the snare and if you listen to it, the first seven or eight rimshots that I do all sound different. ?Cause I remember there sitting going, ?Nope, nope, nope; that is not it, that is not it.? And when we were playing ?Paradise City,? at the very end of it the double-time part? I was looking at Slash and going, ?Goddammit, c?mon, let?s end this already. C?mon. Dammit. You?re killin? me over here. Let?s go!? While I?m playin? the song, you can see my lips moving and I?m yellin? at ?em, ?Dammit, let?s end this already.?

When you heard what Matt Sorum ended up playing on the Use Your Illusion records were you thinking, ?Oh, shit, I should have been playing on those songs??

Oh, yeah. His were just half-assed, crappy versions. Nothing personal against the guy but he?s like a goddamn drum machine. He?s got no heart; he?s got no soul; he?s got no feel. And as life and the years have shown obviously I?m not the easiest drummer to replace. All I know is, Use Your Illusion would have been bigger than Appetite.

Do you really think so?

I know so and that?s hard to come by. Appetite sold like 85 million records around the world; Use Your Illusion would have been bigger.

?Civil War? was the last song you actually recorded with the band?

I recorded ?Civil War? and got sick off this opiate blocker. So when I went into record ?Civil War,? I was really weak and really sick so I had a hard time playing that. But I did all the demo tapes for the songs for the record. What does bother me the most, I have to say, is, especially with Slash, that was our dream since we were 11 years old to be rock stars and make records and travel around the world, do all these drugs and have sex with all these women. And our dreams came true and then right when you get as famous, as rich, and as big as possible? He says, ?The dream?s over for you. We?re gonna give it to some stranger.? Hey, who the hell is this Matt Sorum f-cker? He wasn?t there. It was just like they threw me out like I never existed and gave my life over to some stranger. ?Here, you take over everything Adler worked for; you live his life.? So it was crushing; it was devastating, very devastating. That?s the word I?m looking for: devastating.

Listen to ?Civil War.? That was the last song I recorded with them. And then the song right after that and the whole record after that, it?s a different band. There?s no feeling there; they took that away. And so it?s nice like I mentioned earlier getting my props for my work. Finally.

But you?ve finally been able to come to terms with being thrown out of Guns N? Roses?

I started getting sober which is a growing and learning process everyday. Once I started working with Dr. Drew [Pinksky] on Celebrity Rehab, I told Dr. Drew, ?I don?t think I can do this to the best of my ability if I don?t talk with Slash.? So he hooked up a meeting for me to talk to Slash and Slash came down to meet me and I apologized to him. See, I blamed him for 20 years for my misfortune and my downfall and it wasn?t his fault; I did all of this to myself. But I kept it built up inside of me as we were talking about keeping things built up. I apologized to him and said, ?I?m sorry that I blamed you for everything.?

The strange part of what happened with you and Guns is that you weren?t the only person doing drugs and getting high. It?s pretty common knowledge that Slash and Duff were heavy drinkers so how were they able to make it through the recording sessions without messing up all the time?

They were screwing up but see they had more pull. To them at the time, it was, ?Oh, he?s just the drummer.? They threw out all respect for me and I was just consider, ?Ah, he?s just a drummer; we can replace him. But we can?t replace Slash. And Axl?s not gonna replace Izzy.?

OK, I need to go to a meeting now. Enough, mister, OK, Steve? You?re killin? me here [laughs.]

When Guns N? Roses fell apart for you, did you know you wanted to put together another band at some point? Or did you think maybe you?d had enough with music?

Well, first I just wanted to kill myself so I was on a straight path trying to OD in any way I could. And that failed. And then I said, ?Yeah, I wanna keep playing.? I?d get to the point where I try to kill myself and then it doesn?t happen and I?d give up for a while. I go, ?Ahh, it?s not gonna happen, f-ck it, so I?m gonna do something with my life.? I did put a couple bands together and they were great but I was still doing drugs. I?m worthless when I?m on drugs and I ruined a band that I had called Road Crew with Davy Vain. And we had great songs and those were great guys; those were great people, Davy and Jamie [Scott] and Ashley [Mitchell] and Shawn [Rorie.] Wonderful guys but I messed that up with drugs. It was all pretty much just self-destructive stuff. I couldn?t believe that they [GNR] were able to just throw me away like that.

You also talk about suffering a stroke from doing all the drugs. That could have really been a life-changing event.

I had a stroke; it f-cked my speech up. Thank god I could still play drums! How lucky is that? I?m one of the luckiest guys in the universe. How many drummers for one get as much publicity as I?m getting? I?m telling you, you come to the shows and I get so much love from the fans; it?s so wonderful. Life is good; life is really good.

And what is happening with you and your music?

Adler?s Appetite just recorded a single and with my new book that will be out in stores on July 27th, we?re gonna be releasing the new single we recorded called ?It?s Good to be Alive? which it is, exclusively with the book. You buy the book, you get a free download of the song. And also please, you can go through adlersappetite.com and check out all kinds of updates and pictures from the shows that we?ve been doing.

It?s wonderful that you?ve been able to survive all these calamities and still be able to laugh about it. You?re a mensch [Yiddish word for a decent person.]

You called me a mensch; that is what I wanna be. My grandmother said, ?Be a mensch or don?t be a mensch.? What do I wanna be? Be a mensch?

Yeah, you wanna be a mensch. That?s a good person.

OK, I wanna be a mensch. Thank you, Steve. Good. Talk to you later.

Edited to fit, entire interview here:
http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/interviews/interviews/steven_adler_im_finally_starting_to_get_the_recognition_that_i_deserve.html

[CheapJon]

hey guys, appetite sold like 85 million copies

[Bridge]

hey guys, appetite sold like 85 million copies

And UYI would have been bigger.   Although I think he meant it made 86 million DOLLARS, which is closer to being accurate I believe.

When you heard what Matt Sorum ended up playing on the Use Your Illusion records were you thinking, ?Oh, shit, I should have been playing on those songs??

Oh, yeah. His were just half-assed, crappy versions. Nothing personal against the guy but he?s like a goddamn drum machine. He?s got no heart; he?s got no soul; he?s got no feel.

Very blunt, but very true.  I can also understand how Steven felt to see everything he suffered for in those club days to earn being a multimillionaire rock god just being handed to another guy who didn't have a single credential or claim to the GNR name.  I've always said that the two luckiest sumbitches on planet earth are Matt Sorum and Dizzy Reed.  Nothing like being able to just waltz into a band that's already the biggest band in the world and start rubbing the luster on yourself without contributing to their rise.

[chineseblues]

I?m finally starting to get the recognition and the respect that I so rightfully deserve to have.

No ego on this guy eh, nope no ego at all there 

[Bridge]

No ego on this guy eh, nope no ego at all there 

Yeah, so what?  The guy is the original drummer of the greatest rock n roll band of all time.  He deserves to be recognized for it.

[chineseblues]

No ego on this guy eh, nope no ego at all there 

Yeah, so what?  The guy is the original drummer of the greatest rock n roll band of all time.  He deserves to be recognized for it.

Have you read the entire interview? The guys ego is as big as the Goodyear blimp. He even says that the Illusion songs were his songs. He was the drummer, he never wrote the songs...

[Bridge]

songs. He was the drummer, he never wrote the songs...

Drummers are musicians who write valuable layers to songs but don't get credit for them.

The guys ego is as big as the Goodyear blimp.

And you're as down to earth as they come...

[Trist805]

Yea you are right, Bridge.   I think Steven probably has the least ego of all of them.   He is all about the fans.   And he does deserve the credit.   One of my biggest pet-peeves is when ppl try to dismiss Steven as being not essential to the band.   I think lots of ppl realize, now, that his drumming and his energy was a huge part of AFD. 

[IKnowWhereIAM]

Yea you are right, Bridge.   I think Steven probably has the least ego of all of them.   He is all about the fans.   And he does deserve the credit.   One of my biggest pet-peeves is when ppl try to dismiss Steven as being not essential to the band.   I think lots of ppl realize, now, that his drumming and his energy was a huge part of AFD. 

I understand this is your opinion...and I just want to offer mine.  Steven is MORE ego centric than any other member of the AFD lineup...he basked in the limelight, and readily accepted every opportunity to party as a result.  He is STILL begging for attention, and accepting every opportunity to flaunt his contributions to AFD.  The reason he has become 'All about the fans' (and again, only my opinion) is 1) it pays, and he is not doing much else that does (at that level), 2) his efforts to 'reunite' the AFD lineup, and get his piece of the $100 mil that such a reunion would supposedly bring in.

I just got screwed out of $27 buying his book - so my opinion may be a bit colored by that.

[D]

I agree with Steven 1 million percent. Why people treat him like he didn't matter always pisses me off and shocks me. His Drumming is so amazing on AFD and really helps make that record. Even Axl said he hated the drumming on the UYI albums.

Drums aren't to be played technically.. they area groove/feel instrument and Steven is one of the greatest ever in that dept.

[Bridge]

I understand this is your opinion...and I just want to offer mine.  Steven is MORE ego centric than any other member of the AFD lineup...he basked in the limelight, and readily accepted every opportunity to party as a result.  He is STILL begging for attention, and accepting every opportunity to flaunt his contributions to AFD. 

I agree in a way.  He does do a lot for attention, he does play up the "I'm the guy who played drums for the original GNR lineup" card a great deal, taking whatever credit he can for being in GNR, and he does bask a lot in the limelight whenever he can.

So yes, I think Steven could very well be president of his own fan club.

HOWEVER -- the flip side to that coin is that for the last 20 years, the public at large has given Steven NO credit whatsoever for his massive contributions to the rhythm, swing, and spark of those Guns N Roses songs.  So I can understand Steven wanting to speak up for himself to try and make people aware of his work, because no one else will do it for him.

[IKnowWhereIAM]

I agree in a way.  He does do a lot for attention, he does play up the "I'm the guy who played drums for the original GNR lineup" card a great deal, taking whatever credit he can for being in GNR, and he does bask a lot in the limelight whenever he can.

So yes, I think Steven could very well be president of his own fan club.

HOWEVER -- the flip side to that coin is that for the last 20 years, the public at large has given Steven NO credit whatsoever for his massive contributions to the rhythm, swing, and spark of those Guns N Roses songs.  So I can understand Steven wanting to speak up for himself to try and make people aware of his work, because no one else will do it for him.

Drums 'worked' very well on AFD, because (again IMO) the not quite perfect tempo, out of time/delay, added to the sleazy feel.  If drums had been perfect on AFD, it still would have rocked, and still would have been huge...it is only in comparison to the machines that replaced him, that we find 'genius' in Steven's work.  I must say, and I hate to snap us back to 2010, but Frank is definately the closest so far to being able to match sleaziness, but with superior technical ability.


Credit is due to Steven for what he did in 1987, and nobody can take that away...not even Steven himself.  Had he NOT been a complete drug-fiend, he would have been accepting the credit for what he did for 20 years, rather than his recent emergence as #1 cheerleader for a reunion...after all, you dont hear too many guns fans pining for the Sorum days now, do ya?

[Jdog0830]

I would have liked if Steven keept at it with GNR. UYI i think would have been better with Steven. Matt is good but not my favorate drummer.




Joe

[AxlReznor]

So he's stopped blaming everybody else for his problems? He says this directly after going on another fucking rant about being (rightfully) fired, and how the band were a failure without him? Fucking dickhead.

[Bill 213]

Yea you are right, Bridge.   I think Steven probably has the least ego of all of them.   He is all about the fans.   And he does deserve the credit.   One of my biggest pet-peeves is when ppl try to dismiss Steven as being not essential to the band.   I think lots of ppl realize, now, that his drumming and his energy was a huge part of AFD. 

Right because when you try to charge your fans $7500 to have a lunch date with you, that's not having a big ego at all. 

[Bodhi]

I might be in the minority on this , but I think The "Illusions" as a set are way better than "Appetite."  The range of the different types of songs on there is incredible.  And I thought Matt did a fine job on the record, Locomotive, You Could be Mine, Estranged, your telling me He had no "feel" on those songs?  Thats bullshit, Steve is just a little jealous of Matt both for the GNR thing and the VR thing.  If it were up to Steve in the early 90's GNR would have crashed and burned before the Illusions ever saw the light of day.

[FunkyMonkey]

STEVEN ADLER On MATT SORUM: 'He's Got No Heart; He's Got No Soul; He's Got No Feel' - July 30, 2010

Steven Rosen of Ultimate-Guitar.com recently conducted an interview with original GUNS N' ROSES and current ADLER'S APPETITE drummer Steven Adler. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=143781

[Genesis]

I wouldn't go so far as to say Matt's drumming has 'no soul' or 'no feel', it's just different from Steven's. Matt is more precise and probably more predictable while Steven's drumming has no set plan and because of this has a certain unique character. I especially like his use of the cowbell. That said, the way Steven talks, you'd think Appetite has the greatest drumming ever recorded.

[IzzyDutch]

Not a nice thing to say perhaps but as far as I'm concerned he's hit the nail on the head.. Matt's technically so superb of a drummer, his timing is so perfect it's really like a drummachine. Don't like his style, I prefer more punkrock-ish very groove orientated like Steven but also Roger Taylor, Taz Bentley etc. Also I don't like Matt's drummarrangements much. Drummers like Steven (which you can hear in his style he's got Roger Taylor as the biggest inspiration) have drum arangements which are totally suited for the song, the drumming follows the music and every beat is different. Also Steven has great cymbal arrangements which makes certain music sections stick out more. Matt has more standard beats he throws together.

[D]

Steven's point is, every member of a band should be considered important. if Slash hurt his hand.. would they have replaced him?

He is right u can't fire Slash or Izzy or Duff, but because he is a "Drummer" he is deemed unimportant.

I use to have an ignorant attitude towards drummers also. i use to think they were a dime a dozen and insignificant until i started playing with drummers and let me tell u.. i was a fucking idiot. they DO matter.

Listen to Motley Crue without Tommy Lee.. it is nowhere the same... imagine Metallica without Lars.. it just isn't the same or NIrvana without Grohl or the Chili's before Chad Smith. not the same

GNR still a great band.. Im not saying Adler necessarily makes or breaks because the amazing vocals,guitars,lyrics etc will always keep it awesome and GNR

HOWEVER

the swing/punk/melodic groove is missing from GNR since Adler left.  Now that doesn't mean UYI or CD aren't great albums but just meaning that loose,punk,groovy,danceable element to GNR is no more.. UYI and CD sound like a drum machine...  that isn't a negative just different

i prefer busy,loose groovy drummers..... the drumming on UYI and CD isn't unique.. could've been the same drumming on anyone of a million rock albums released whereas Steven's was unique and special.