Broskirose Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Richard Fortus Interview Getting to interview one of my 3 favorite guitar players ever, is a dream come true. Richard Fortus is an incredible talent and has played with many artist such as but not limited to Gun N' Roses, Pale Divine, Rihanna, The Dead Daisey's, Thin Lizzy, and even the Psychedelic Fur. He is a St. Louis native that has worked his way to be one of the most in demand guitar players around today. He is a true inspiration to me personally. First of all Richard thank you so very much for taking time away from your schedule to answer some questions. I really do appreciate it. What is one of your favorite memories playing with one of the best St. Louis bands ever "Pale Divine?" I remember playing the Blue Note in Columbia, MO. Our album had just come out and we were playing 2 sold out nights there. I'll never forget walking out onstage and that feeling of "wow, we made it!". I think that particular venue was so important to me, because we'd tried so hard to get in there for the longest time. You have played with everyone it seems. I think you are honestly one of the best guitar players on the planet. Where do your guitar influences come from? What music shaped you into the player you are today? I am constantly looking for new music to inspire me. Be it old or new. I've always had an insatiable hunger to discover new music. It's a passion that has consumed me from a very early age. So it's hard to narrow down what has really shaped me as a musician. I really enjoy the footage I have seen with you playing for "The Dead Daisies". What an incredible band. It seems like you and Dizzy Reed are really enjoying playing in that project. How long are you guys gonna be touring with them? As long as we can! We are having a blast. It's such a thrill to have the honor of playing with these guys every night. It's pretty hard to beat playing with a rhythm section like Charley Drayton and Darryl Jones! What was it like playing beside Scott Gorham while you were touring with "Thin Lizzy"? What is he like as a person? Scott is one of my favorite people in the world. I'm on the road with him right now. He's got so many great stories and he's such an awesome player. He was such an icon to me when I was a kid. He was the epitome of what a rock n' roll guitarist should be. He always looked amazing, had a great tone and was the pinnacle of cool. He paid me one of the greatest compliments once that I will never forget. I feel a real bond with him and every time i see him, no matter how much time has passed, it always feels like I just saw him yesterday. I have seen all the spectacular guitars you posted on your website www.4tus.com. What are some of your favorite guitars you have? The Official Website of Richard Fortus www.richardfortus.com I really need to update my site. There is only a fraction of my collection on there. I need to document everything and post it all. My amp collection has surpassed my guitar collection at this point. I have a pretty stellar amp collection. I was just speaking with Charley about my "desert island guitar" choice the other day. I think that if i had to pick one guitar. I would probably choose my '73 gold top Les Paul Signature. It's not really a Les Paul. I have 2 of them, but there is one that is just amazing. Everything about it is perfect and it's one of the greatest sounding and most versatile guitars ever. So I really like the guitar work you have done with Gun N' Roses. It has to be amazing to play with a front man like Axl Rose. I have a weird question about your time with GNR. What is your greatest memory of playing with Robin Finck in GNR? We used to do a duet together. Some nights it would be really really special, where we really connected. He's one of my favorite musicians and I always loved playing with him. There were a couple of really religious type of moments that we shared together during those duets. Thank you so much Richard for doing this interview, honestly a true pleasure. http://lifermusicandart.blogspot.com/2013/12/richard-fortus-interview.html ------------------- In light of this interview I've uploaded a video of a Richard and Robin duet from 2006, that I haven't seen on Youtube. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoSoRose Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Sweet man! Richard is awesome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UK SUBS Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Nice interview! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Facekicker Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I like Fortus but I always thought that Beautiful duet was cringeworthy. I remember they played it in Dublin and people started laughing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crash Diet Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I always like their duet, esp. on my first concert in 2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DownUnderScott Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I saw Richard on tv (Aussie tv) the other day in the studio with the dead daises and it was great footage. Just wished it was footage of him in the studio with this other band....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RussTCB Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Sweet interview! I always loved those 4tus / Robin duets. You could see that connection he's talking about during certain shows. I remember watching Inland Invasion live with some friends. When they did Beautiful my buddy was just beside himself watching how they interacted with each other while they were playing it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoulMonster Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 When they did Beautiful my buddy was just beside himself watching how they interacted with each other while they were playing it. I have never said anything like this ever before, nor have I ever used that word in its non-literal meaning, but that was very gay 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
November_rain Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 In one of the shows I attended in 2006 I was first row right in front of Richard and he was amazing, he´s such a talented musician! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOOSIER GUNZ Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 The Beautiful duet is definitely worthy of a studio cut. I love the live versions of course. That was a special moment in the history of Guns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axl_morris Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Saw him 2 nights ago with dead daisies. He had great stage presence as usual. Never seem him use a talk box before either but he did then. They played some new material too, i know its not GNR but the new stuff is written by fortus so that's something.they also mentioned in an interview they are touring in march so I don't see how that fits in with the GNR information we've been told at the forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Estranged Reality Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I like Fortus but I always thought that Beautiful duet was cringeworthy. I remember they played it in Dublin and people started laughing.I think perhaps in retrospect it's more admirable.You have to remember the kinds of crowds GN'R engenders themselves to: not exactly pop music fans per se. I can see why an Aguilera cover would be brushed off, but it was always a nice interlude between songs, and I frankly really prefer it over some of the other solo spots over the years (whether it was Sorum's drum solo or Ashba's Ballad of Death, which I know people seem to enjoy, but I'm not particularly keen on).Nice interview, Broski! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themadcaplaughs Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 (edited) I like Fortus but I always thought that Beautiful duet was cringeworthy. I remember they played it in Dublin and people started laughing.Agreed. When I first read a set list in 2006 and "Beautiful" on there I almost did a spit take. When I finally heard it, is was even worse than I imagined. Although, I will agree with Estranged Reality that anything is better than Matt's drum solo. Edited December 10, 2013 by themadcaplaughs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Axl_morris Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 regarding those who hate on beautiful"Ya know, we get a lot of shit for doing that song! Fuck em! it's agreat melody. Christine Aguilera didn't write it, this friend of minecalled Linda Perry (4 non Blondes), wrote it. The first time i heardit on the radio, I thought that Jeff Beck would do a really lovelyversion. So, when Robin and I were looking for a song to do together,I thought of that one. I'd only heard it on the radio once or twice. I don't think it was that popular in the US. I think it's hilariousthat it's Christine Aguilera! Seems like most people don't think it'svery funny though. Again, fuck 'em if they can't take a joke! I likethe song and I think we do a great version."That might explain things a bit better? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewlang Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Saw him 2 nights ago with dead daisies. He had great stage presence as usual. Never seem him use a talk box before either but he did then.They played some new material too, i know its not GNR but the new stuff is written by fortus so that's something.they also mentioned in an interview they are touring in march so I don't see how that fits in with the GNR information we've been told at the forum.Did you see them in Leeds too? Thought they were great!On topic, cool interview. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RussTCB Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 When they did Beautiful my buddy was just beside himself watching how they interacted with each other while they were playing it.I have never said anything like this ever before, nor have I ever used that word in its non-literal meaning, but that was very gay I hear ya. I loved it personally though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sliverjazz Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 I think its great, man. Its great for me. Ive sobered up. Ive cleaned up. Im getting around, seeing the things Ive missed. Its just getting to see the fans. It just tickles me that they remember me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smoke Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 What does Jake the Snake have to do with this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARBeast Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Nice interview but next time try asking a good question like.. "Bumblefoot said in a recent interview that he was bullied when he first joined GNR. Is this true? How do you feel about these accusations?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NGOG Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 This isn't Broski's interview, is it? It's by a guitar tech called Patrick Houtz. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broskirose Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 This isn't Broski's interview, is it? It's by a guitar tech called Patrick Houtz.Correct, I even posted the source.Though I can see why some people might be confused with that last question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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