Axl Rose Sad Threat At The Rolling Stones Show Revealed

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Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan was interviewed on Marc Maron’s podcast recently. On the show, Duff shared a story which Guns N’ Roses shared the same stage as iconic rockers, The Rolling Stones. During the Maron podcast, McKagan told a story in which Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose threatened around the time of the show that if certain members of the band didn’t stop “dancing with Mr. Brownstone,” which is a lyric from a Guns N’ Roses song whose subject matter is drug-related, Rose would quit the band. Alternative Nation reporter Mike Mazzarone transcribed Duff and Maron’s comments. 

Duff: By the time we played the show with The [Rolling] Stones, I think we played three shows with them at the Coliseum, I think it was in 1989.

Maron: L.A. Coliseum?

Duff: L.A. Coliseum, sorry, yeah. It was a big deal, they had asked us, specifically because we were on the cover of the Weekly’s and stuff: “Guns N’ Roses, the New Rolling Stones” and all of this. Too much pressure, we didn’t think we were the new Rolling Stones, we thought we were just us, Guns N’ Roses, and we were doing our thing. Axl [Rose] was fed up, he was fed up and he let the band know, or the three guys that were dancing with Mr. Brownstone during this, this was on stage, that they either stop, or there was no more band.

Maron: I think I kind of remember it. 

Duff: It was pretty genius.

Maron: It got press, right? 

Duff: I’m sure it did, I kind of remember that but I was living in my own little corner.

Maron: Your own little bass corner? 

Duff: Well no, just like – our band got big and there was no internet, no how-to manual either.

Maron: Yeah.

Duff: I’m still like this punk rock guy, thinking: “I’ve got these punk rock values, I don’t want to be big and be recognized” but on the cover of Rolling Stone, you go to Ralphs to get vodka and you’re on the cover of the Rolling Stone right by the cash register. All of a sudden, your humor is way funnier than it was recognized before, I was the funniest guy around and all of the girls realized how good looking you are, I’m squared away, I must be coming into my own here.