Ex-GUNS N' ROSES Guitarist CLARKE: AXL ROSE Is 'An Incredibly Talented Guy'

Devin Pratt of FHM (For Him Magazine) recently conducted an interview with former GUNS N' ROSES and current SUPERNOVA guitarist Gilby Clarke. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow:

FHM: The "Use Your Illusion" tours must have been legendary.

Gilby: "It was the best — one of the greatest experiences ever. As a kid, my dream was to play in a loud rock 'n' roll band and it didn't get any better than that. GNR was perfect loud rock and I loved their music. I wasn't trying to be Izzy. I got to be myself, and I played exactly the way I play. Nobody told me to do anything a certain way. It was perfect."

FHM: What were GUNS N' ROSES groupies like?

Gilby: "Unbelievable. GNR was the ultimate decadent lifestyle—we were expected to fuck up. I saw some pretty crazy things. GNR had a reputation for being a little tardy when we were playing, so there was always a couple of hours from the opening band until we took the stage. We had cameras that would show all the girls lifting up their shirts — they were just cameras that scan the audience before any concert, but what they didn't realize was we were sitting in the back with walkie-talkies directing where the cameras went.

FHM: So you guys hand-picked the cream of the crop?

Gilby: "There's nothing funnier than seeing some chick with a nice rack on camera with thousands of people screaming around her and our guys slapping backstage passes on them. We definitely enjoyed ourselves."

FHM: Do you miss playing with those guys?

Gilby: "It was like anything in life — it had a beginning, middle and an end. I have great memories and, as the years go by, I tend to forget the crap. The band was great, and we loved playing. But you know what? It doesn't exist anymore. We're not the same people, so even if you put us all in a room together and say, 'Go play 'Welcome to the Jungle',' it's not the same. I don't wanna do that anymore. I did it and it was great, but I don't really need to relive that. I'm way more excited about SUPERNOVA."

FHM: To get back to GUNS N' ROSES for a moment, do you think "Chinese Democracy" will come out this year?

Gilby: "I certainly hope so because I'm so over talking about it. This anticipation is ridiculous. Just get the fuckin' thing out! Every interview I do I get two or three questions about it and I haven't even been in that goddamn rehearsal room in 10 years."

FHM: Does Axl still have what it takes to create great rock?

Gilby: "I've always said he's an incredibly talented guy. The things he writes about blows my mind. The music probably isn't going to have the same angst that it had, but there's probably gonna be some really great stuff on there."

Read the entire interview at www.fhmus.com.