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Honestly, how did Axl even get Buckethead to join in the first place?


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Someone I know worked crew on a Buckethead show once (B played the venue where she worked). She said that Buckethead, with or without the mask, is painfully, terminally shy and reserved to the point where he doesn't look people in the eye if he doesn't know them. That's probably old knowledge here, but it's a pretty valid reason why bullying or shunning might have really contributed a lot to his exit, along with the other points mentioned. Bumblefoot also mentioned the shunning/bullying/alienation and he seemed to find a way to handle it, but Buckethead probably wasn't the sort of guy who could tell them to fuck off and threaten them the way Ron eventually did.

As to the illness, there are still some articles online about it, but it seems very vague. This one just says that it was a "serious stomach ailment" http://www.mtv.com/news/1444113/guns-n-roses-reschedule-european-tour/

And this one says it was internal bleeding. Ouch. http://www.pollstar.com/news_article.aspx?ID=496296

Edited by stella
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I've also heard pneumonia..seems like there's never a consistent story for what was happening with him at the time

Only thing for certain was him having spine issues (slipped disc) that needed at least one surgery around 2010

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He's a musician, a guitarist, and he was asked to join one of the biggest rock bands of all time.

This is an extremely dumb question :lol:

He'd already auditioned for RHCP years earlier. Believe Antony picked him up at the airport if I recall correctly from his book. Would've loved to have heard that car ride conversation. :tongue2:

BH also auditioned for Ozzy a few years back as we all know given Ozzy's famous line about "Well, just call me mum". Classic.

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I forgot about the Ozzy story.

Ozzy Osbourne: "I tried out that Buckethead guy. I met with him and asked him to work with me but only if he got rid of the fucking bucket. So I came back a bit later and he's wearing this green fucking Martian's-hat thing. I said, 'Look, just be yourself!' He told me his name was Brian, so I said that's what I'd call him. He says, 'No one calls me Brian except my mother.' So I said, 'Pretend I'm your mum then!' I haven't even got out of the room and I'm already playing fucking mind games with the guy. What happens if one day he's gone and there's a note saying, 'I've been beamed up?' [Laughs] Don't get me wrong, he's a great player. He plays like a motherfucker!"


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he probably got hungry really late one night and went down to the first KFC he saw.

as it turned out it, it was closed but he begun chatting with this nut case who was a cleaner in KFC and the moron saw the chance to earn some $$$ so he talked him in about music...

that is the only way I see someone who walks around with KFC bucket on his head can land a position in a band that actually has a record deal.

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I don't really know but I would say that back in early 00s, things were very clear for Axl Rose: "Conquer the world with the new band and erase the old band from everybody's mind". That, of course, didn't happen and it wasn't because it was impossible, but because Axl didn't try. I guess, Axl promised Buckethead a lot of things, and being in a monumental band never hurts.

Whatever happened, we all know how it ended. Buckethead left the joke of a band in 2004 to never return. I'm glad I had the pleasure to see Buckethead performing the old songs, it was a treat for me. He's an incredible guitarist.

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I don't really know but I would say that back in early 00s, things were very clear for Axl Rose: "Conquer the world with the new band and erase the old band from everybody's mind". That, of course, didn't happen and it wasn't because it was impossible, but because Axl didn't try. I guess, Axl promised Buckethead a lot of things, and being in a monumental band never hurts.

Whatever happened, we all know how it ended. Buckethead left the joke of a band in 2004 to never return. I'm glad I had the pleasure to see Buckethead performing the old songs, it was a treat for me. He's an incredible guitarist.

Yep - saw him live in Leeds, UK in 2002 - great gig.

Funnily enough, I've seen Guns 4 times - 2002, twice in 2006, and 2012. Different line up each time!

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Someone I know worked crew on a Buckethead show once (B played the venue where she worked). She said that Buckethead, with or without the mask, is painfully, terminally shy and reserved to the point where he doesn't look people in the eye if he doesn't know them. That's probably old knowledge here, but it's a pretty valid reason why bullying or shunning might have really contributed a lot to his exit, along with the other points mentioned. Bumblefoot also mentioned the shunning/bullying/alienation and he seemed to find a way to handle it, but Buckethead probably wasn't the sort of guy who could tell them to fuck off and threaten them the way Ron eventually did.

As to the illness, there are still some articles online about it, but it seems very vague. This one just says that it was a "serious stomach ailment" http://www.mtv.com/news/1444113/guns-n-roses-reschedule-european-tour/

And this one says it was internal bleeding. Ouch. http://www.pollstar.com/news_article.aspx?ID=496296

Before he was BH ....he was at MIT with my guitarist and bass player . I remember him as an introverted geek. Painfully awkward and just ass backward in demenor. You got the impression that he was intimidated by everyone....while at the same time a bit arrogant about his playing and his musical knowledge. Obviously his expression is best through the guitar.. but socially he has that creepy Michael Jackson feel... like GOD DAMN this guy is talented but he is just not right in the head.

Take the whole BH mystique.. the macabre, gore and the whole chicken sympathy schtick... as an act... its good.. but I think it distracts from his very real and obvious talent.

At the time (86,87) he hated the scene... the whole Hollywood scenario... and according to my guitarist hted bands like GNR because of thier aggressive way they seemed to express themselves...the drugs the sex and the women that they commanded. In his opinion most were talentless hacks who managed to get famous by accident. More than anything he hated the swagger gunslinger he man attitude..the mysogynistic . He was terrified of women.

THey were everything he could never be in other words...

His practice bands were good but they got boring after about 20 minutes of his techno riffing . BAck then you were at a show to party. You were there to get your groove on and to get laid. A GNR show pre AFD.. promised that and a fight as well. You went to see those bands for thier arrogance, thier defiance, their message.. their image... the swagger and the expression... music ?? that was nice too..

At the time and on the scene were guitarists like Paul Gilbert( his mentor) Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Tony MacAlpine setting the bar higher for technical approach..and there were guitarists in MIT that were absolutely amazing talent equal or better to BH even.

His interview while a member of GNR given by Herbie the Scok Puppet... that was where BH jumped the shark with me as a member of GNR.. that , and his own act in the middle of a GNR show seemed like Axls reach as exceeding his grasp to keep GNR going. His image is fine but it was vastly so different from the street rats that GNR had built their reputation on. I as an original fan, hated the image that GNR was fronting when it came back... just seemed a joke.. and unbelievable and I think it dragged the whole GNR legacy into a black hole.

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He seems like a fun person to party with :P I'm sure the intense shyness is just part of the persona he puts on

http://youtu.be/4b6G9X_TlSY?t=33m11s

:rofl-lol:

That's someone being original and having fun while not giving a fuck about what others think. Buckethead is awesome.

I wish Axl was at least a tad more normal and respected Buckethead enough to not insult him with promises he can't keep like being a fuckin' leader of his band.

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Before he was BH ....he was at MIT with my guitarist and bass player . I remember him as an introverted geek. Painfully awkward and just ass backward in demenor. You got the impression that he was intimidated by everyone....while at the same time a bit arrogant about his playing and his musical knowledge. Obviously his expression is best through the guitar.. but socially he has that creepy Michael Jackson feel... like GOD DAMN this guy is talented but he is just not right in the head.

Take the whole BH mystique.. the macabre, gore and the whole chicken sympathy schtick... as an act... its good.. but I think it distracts from his very real and obvious talent.

At the time (86,87) he hated the scene... the whole Hollywood scenario... and according to my guitarist hted bands like GNR because of thier aggressive way they seemed to express themselves...the drugs the sex and the women that they commanded. In his opinion most were talentless hacks who managed to get famous by accident. More than anything he hated the swagger gunslinger he man attitude..the mysogynistic . He was terrified of women.

THey were everything he could never be in other words...

*nods* That sounds about right. I would never want to compare him to Michael Jackson because I don't think he's that sort of disgusting pervert, but it seems obvious that he doesn't necessarily relate to the world the way others might. I almost wonder if he has Aspergers or high-functioning autism, because that sort of seems like it would match up with his behavior and demeanor.

If that's the case - if he's so shy and anxious and possibly Aspie - putting on that mask, and that barrier to the rest of the world, might have been the only way he was able to get the courage to get on a stage and do what he does. It does give him a different image than other musicians and perhaps closes some doors for him, but one of the things I REALLY like and respect about him is that he's out there doing things HIS way...he isn't at all interested in being like everyone else.

The thing about the GnR image is, even if the entire original band was there, they'd never be street rats again. Assuming the entire band magically mended their fences, by 2001 they were older, they had kicked drugs (Duff had had his close call by then), several of them were parents, they were millionaires and they were no longer angry 20 year olds. And it was more genuine for them to evolve than it would have been to be 40 and still clinging to that "angry 20 year old drunk living in someone's car" persona that wasn't even who they really were anymore. I felt as though Buckethead fit into Guns N' Roses in the sense that he did his own thing - that individuality was very much a component of the original band's allure. They wanted to be themselves.

Edited by stella
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Before he was BH ....he was at MIT with my guitarist and bass player . I remember him as an introverted geek. Painfully awkward and just ass backward in demenor. You got the impression that he was intimidated by everyone....while at the same time a bit arrogant about his playing and his musical knowledge. Obviously his expression is best through the guitar.. but socially he has that creepy Michael Jackson feel... like GOD DAMN this guy is talented but he is just not right in the head.

Take the whole BH mystique.. the macabre, gore and the whole chicken sympathy schtick... as an act... its good.. but I think it distracts from his very real and obvious talent.

At the time (86,87) he hated the scene... the whole Hollywood scenario... and according to my guitarist hted bands like GNR because of thier aggressive way they seemed to express themselves...the drugs the sex and the women that they commanded. In his opinion most were talentless hacks who managed to get famous by accident. More than anything he hated the swagger gunslinger he man attitude..the mysogynistic . He was terrified of women.

THey were everything he could never be in other words...

*nods* That sounds about right. I would never want to compare him to Michael Jackson because I don't think he's that sort of disgusting pervert, but it seems obvious that he doesn't necessarily relate to the world the way others might. I almost wonder if he has Aspergers or high-functioning autism, because that sort of seems like it would match up with his behavior and demeanor.

If that's the case - if he's so shy and anxious and possibly Aspie - putting on that mask, and that barrier to the rest of the world, might have been the only way he was able to get the courage to get on a stage and do what he does. It does give him a different image than other musicians and perhaps closes some doors for him, but one of the things I REALLY like and respect about him is that he's out there doing things HIS way...he isn't at all interested in being like everyone else.

The thing about the GnR image is, even if the entire original band was there, they'd never be street rats again. Assuming the entire band magically mended their fences, by 2001 they were older, they had kicked drugs (Duff had had his close call by then), several of them were parents, they were millionaires and they were no longer angry 20 year olds. And it was more genuine for them to evolve than it would have been to be 40 and still clinging to that "angry 20 year old drunk living in someone's car" persona that wasn't even who they really were anymore. I felt as though Buckethead fit into Guns N' Roses in the sense that he did his own thing - that individuality was very much a component of the original band's allure. They wanted to be themselves.

Good post. Out of likes.

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He seems like a fun person to party with :P I'm sure the intense shyness is just part of the persona he puts on

http://youtu.be/4b6G9X_TlSY?t=33m11s

:rofl-lol:

That's someone being original and having fun while not giving a fuck about what others think. Buckethead is awesome.

I wish Axl was at least a tad more normal and respected Buckethead enough to not insult him with promises he can't keep like being a fuckin' leader of his band.

Same here. I still feel that we didn't get to see much of Buckethead. By the time we realized the genius he was, he was gone. I would have loved to see him performing more GN'R songs.

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  • 3 weeks later...

You've got this extremely weird, avant-garde dude who only makes robot music and plays in jam-funk bands like Primus

oh boy,

so little you know

yet so much you miss out on

if you had taken the time

you would have known why

nevermind, he will probably never listened to Buckethead aside from the more famous tracks

He is a fan of Kanye West :lol::shrugs::rofl-lol:

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"jam funk bands like Primus" :lol:

I know you really like to label what genre you think bands are, but "jam funk" doesn't describe Primus very well at all.

edit: they are "heavy hometown new wave" - as referenced in Mr Krinkle ;)

Edited by DR DOOM
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