The real reason Steven was fired....

[saber_]

Ok, I need to clear something up here.

I keep reading various theories about other reasons for Steven's firing.

Yes yes, we know- he was kicking heroin while trying to play civil war and couldn't hack it during the recording. But given the level of abuse by other members, I think there was a double standard applied if we believe the official story.

However, with regard to the Farm Aid gig, I think his performance has been wrongfully maligned. I hate how Duff and Slash get free passes for sloppy playing, but you will be hard pressed to find a show of Steve really screwing up bad.

Anyway, what IS the story?

He gave Axl's girl a speedball? Did he sleep with her?

I've heard various accounts, some including he sheltered Erin when she was going through a tough time.

I just want to know the *truth.* And yes yes, I know Steve can be a lot to handle, but some of his behavior is par for the course in rock n roll. And his peers in GNR certainly did their fair share of drug usage and sloppy playing during the live shows.

So, if you do not accept the premise that it was Steve's involvement with Erin Everly that caused his departure, would you agree it contributed, along with his drug-influenced behavior?

[Vincent Vega]

Ok, I need to clear something up here.

I keep reading various theories about other reasons for Steven's firing.

Yes yes, we know- he was kicking heroin while trying to play civil war and couldn't hack it during the recording. But given the level of abuse by other members, I think there was a double standard applied if we believe the official story.

However, with regard to the Farm Aid gig, I think his performance has been wrongfully maligned. I hate how Duff and Slash get free passes for sloppy playing, but you will be hard pressed to find a show of Steve really screwing up bad.

Anyway, what IS the story?

He gave Axl's girl a speedball? Did he sleep with her?

I've heard various accounts, some including he sheltered Erin when she was going through a tough time.

I just want to know the *truth.* And yes yes, I know Steve can be a lot to handle, but some of his behavior is par for the course in rock n roll. And his peers in GNR certainly did their fair share of drug usage and sloppy playing during the live shows.

So, if you do not accept the premise that it was Steve's involvement with Erin Everly that caused his departure, would you agree it contributed, along with his drug-influenced behavior?

I think it's been stated even by Slash and Duff that Steven went for him not being able to function in the recording studio due to drugs, which pushed back work on the Illusions. Steven had been a downhill slide for about 2 years. I think they had to replace him at some gigs in '88 with Fred Coury cause he was in rehab. With Steven it was one thing after another.

There is a difference between ''sloppy playing'' and not being able to function in a studio sense. Slash, Duff, Izzy were all addicts but they still managed to get their shit together when it was most important. Steven couldn't. I don't think any of them have seriously worked in a band or anything with Steven since then. Yeah, Slash let him on ONE song on his record, but I don't think he's had much to do with any of the others. Look who got the call when VR was formed--Matt, not Steven.

I can see this is a subtle attempt to try to place the blame for Steven's dismissal largely on Axl. Did the Everly thing figure into it? Probably, but it was a mountain of things, and it was something the whole band agreed on. Axl didn't say "He has to go!" with the other guys objecting; They all wanted him gone by that point.

Edited October 23, 2010 by Indigo Child

[Vincent Vega]

Explain this:

If Steven's firing was all Axl's fault, why haven't any of the other ex-members joined together in a band or group with him since?

[31illusions]

Read steven's book to find out.

I think his track record proves why he was booted. DRUGS.

[saber_]

Ok, being an open minded person, I can accept those rationales.

And remember, I never said "Axl FIRED STEVEN because it was personal!"

I just wanted some clarification.

Thank you to the poster who is well versed in GNR history. Plenty of pictures to corroborate Steve's broken hand.

[Orsys]

We'll find out. Mama's gonna write a tell all....

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=148179&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blabbermouth+%28Blabbermouth.net%27s+Daily+Headlines%29&utm_content=Twitter

[Mike Honcho]

We'll find out. Mama's gonna write a tell all....

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=148179&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blabbermouth+%28Blabbermouth.net%27s+Daily+Headlines%29&utm_content=Twitter

OMFG

[insert multiple facepalms]

[Guest Sleeping Like An Angel]

The fact is ALL of the members agree Steven deserved to be fired which is an important point.

I always assumed it was a combination of things including what he did to Erin and maybe they had grown close prior to this which pissed Axl off? Was that the last straw?

Didn't Axl also mention that Stevens drugs and the problems that came with it was 'very scary and he wanted nothing to do with it'. Wasn't there problems with drug dealers etc? Steven must have been VERY fucked up if the likes of Slash and Duff could see he was going too far.

[FuddMckagan]

He could no longer function in the studio, and was a mess live. They couldn't keep going with a drummer who could barely play.

[Dead Flower]

If Steve had been an awesome drummer that was key to the bands sound, he would have survived. Unfortunately, he was considered dispensable.

You can get away with a lot of shitty behavior if you're a star. Just look at any sporting code.

[Signifying nothing]

He wasn't a very accomplished drummer anyway.

[Daedalus]

I went totally off, I was thrown out of the band because they said I was doing heroin, but everyone was, Doug Goldstein (band manager) took me to this doctor, the doc gave me this thing called an opiate blocker, and it works by making you violently sick if you take any opiates. You can absolutely not take it if you have any trace of heroin in your system, because you can die. Now I did have, they put this injection in my buttocks and I have never felt pain like that, I can still remember it now, I was so sick, I will never forget that needle in my ass. I was sick for 6 weeks, and during that time, Slash called up and said that they were in the studio recording Civil War, and I had to get down there. I said shit, man, I can't, he said, but we can't waste the money, so I got up and went and I was so weak and sick that I had to play the song 25 times if not more, Slash and Duff got fucked up, I was not, but I was so sick. I never said nothing bad, I love those guys, Guns N’ Roses was always the five of us. This was something that Axl wanted, there was a whole plan to get rid of me. Then Izzy cleaned up and couldn't stay with them because of the drugs, it hurts me so bad that I didn't play on the Use Your Illusions, if you listen to Civil War it sounds like a totally different band to the rest.

Classic Rock

On the commonly held perception that he was fired from Guns N' Roses because of a drug problem:

Adler: That was a ridiculous official explanation. They were stupid. They said they fired me because of drugs, but I wasn't experimenting with the hard ones. And if I was doing any drugs, they were as well. So, I think [i was fired because] of monetary issues, which is ridiculous too because we were on our way to making loads of money.

Izzy Stradlin (guitar) was the only one who apologized to me. Anyhow, we were a great team, and I hope one day we can reunite.

Ultimate Guitar, 2005

The day after the "Civil War" recording session, Doug called me and asked me to come down to the office to sign some papers. He offered no explanation for his behavior the previous day, and I didn't try to lay on any guilt. I just told him I was still very ill. There was a long silence on the phone, then Dougie told me that the matter was very important and wouldn't take long. He told me he had been instructed by the GN'R attorneys to tell me that my presence was absolutely required. In spite of what had gone down, I still wanted to believe that Dougie was my caring wingman, and when he promised I would be in and out of there quickly, I decided to rally. I cared more for his situation than my own. I could hear the stress in Doug's voice and I didn't want to bust his balls, so I got myself together and Cheryl drove me. When I walked in, Dougie and one of our lawyers, a professional-looking middle-aged woman, had a stack of papers for me to read.

Read!? I couldn't even see. They told me all I had to do was sign at the bottom of all the pages with the colored paper clips attached. I asked what this was all about. Dougie told me, "It's nothing to worry about." In my condition, I wasn't about to read all this shit, but I was a little freaked and my jaw just dropped. In essence, I thought I was agreeing not to party and not to screw up on any band-related activities for the next four weeks. If I fucked up, they would fine me $2,000. I thought, "What the hell, no problem. The band doesn't even have anything scheduled during the next month, and even so, what's two grand?" I signed everything. I just wanted to get out of there, go home, and lie down.

I discovered later that what I had actually signed away was my life. What the legal papers actually stated was that they were going to give me $2,000 for my contribution to Guns N' Roses. Everything else, my royalties, my partnership in the band, my rights, was gone! Of course, I didn't know this at the time. I'm sure with all these papers I naively signed, they thought they had my fate sealed. They had a signed, ironclad deal against me.

The next afternoon, I received another call from Doug. "The guys don't want you to be on the next record. They are going to use someone else."

I was still feeling like shit, and at this point I guess I saw it coming. "Yeah, whatever." I just hung up the phone and started crying. I'd had enough, but I couldn't help but be depressed. I didn't even bother calling Slash. What was the point?

To blunt the pain, I went on a party binge, smoking weed, drinking Jagermeister, and popping whatever pills I could find. Cheryl was there with me, and she would never say anything to upset me. She was there by my side, but I didn't care and wasn't even aware of her. I just locked myself away in my room.

Andy and I were jamming in the shed when we heard a pounding at the door. I opened it, and there was Laura with Axl's fiancée, Erin Everly.

Erin was completely out of it and could barely stand up. I asked, "What the fuck is she on?"

Laura said, "Nothing. She and Axl had a fight. Can you give her something?"

"What? I ain't giving her shit," I yelled, and grabbed Erin, who was swaying back and forth, eyes closed. "Erin, are you okay? You better—"

Laura interrupted. "C'mon, Steven, just give her something."

"What is she on? What did you give her?" I yelled at Laura.

She said, "Steven, she and Axl went at it, so I gave her some Valium."

I screamed, "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Erin could barely stand so I carried her into my bedroom and set her down. "Erin, are you okay?"

Her eyes opened slightly. "Axl and I had a fight."

Laura came in. "Steven, chill. I just gave her a few pills," she repeated, not the least bit concerned.

"How many?" I yelled.

Erin was starting to go out and I panicked. I wasn't taking any chances with this. I called an ambulance and tried not to freak the fuck out. I did not need to be involved in this situation. She was Axl's bride-to-be for chrissakes. The paramedics arrived, checked her vitals, and told me they would have to induce vomiting. Before they whisked her away, they assured me that her pulse was strong and she would probably be okay.

Later I discovered that Erin already had heroin in her system. When questioned, they said that I was the one who had given it to her. Axl called and threatened me: "I'm coming over there and I'm going to fucking kill you!"

I yelled, "I didn't give her shit."

"Bullshit!" he said.

I was livid and screamed back, "I didn't. Fuck you!" I hung up the phone.

My heart raced, and I truly believed that Axl was furious enough to want to kill me. I began to fear for Cheryl's and my well-being, so we rounded up the dogs and took off for Palm Springs. Axl told the press that I shot Erin up, and no one had any reason to believe otherwise. Not that it could do any more damage, but the guys in the band thought I was an even bigger asshole than before.

I would never shoot heroin, or any drug, into Erin. I always adored her, and probably helped to save her life that day, but it didn't mean shit. I couldn't fucking stand it. I was completely mis¬erable and my existence became even more unbearable, if that was possible.

My Appetite For Destruction

[dalsh327]

There's prob. a bunch of reasons why they kicked him out. But I also don't think it was just Axl having this master plan to have complete control. If anything, he could've talked Adler out of another 5 percent. But I do think they all played a part in it. It was a band decision, and they felt they needed someone else to play drums.

As far as what happened to Erin (and didn't the incident happen after he was kicked out?), it's almost 20 years ago, maybe she'd talk about it now, but would she be honest about what happened that night or in her relationship with Axl? Is it our business?

But me? I think some of it's the same reason why Pete Best was fired from The Beatles and replaced with Ringo. Except The Beatles were still regionally popular, and hadn't made it big yet. Replacing someone once the band makes it big will always be controversial.