2021.01.22 - 80's Metal Recycle Bin - Interview with Gilby

Excerpt from Ultimate Guitar:
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GN'R Guitarist Explains What Axl Thought About Nirvana & Grunge, Recalls Fans Ridiculing Slash

During a conversation with '80s Metal Recycle Bin, guitarist Gilby Clarke talked about the impact of grunge during his 1991-1994 tenure in Guns N' Roses.

Gilby commented:

"There was a lot of talk of the climate changing - a lot of it. Axl [Rose] was always on top of that stuff. He loved Nirvana, he loved Soundgarden; he loved Pearl Jam.

"He liked a lot of those bands a lot more than, I would say, myself, Slash and Duff [McKagan]. We were a little slower to the change.

"I think when we really noticed the big change is when we got off the road.

"I had made a solo record; Slash had made a solo record. We were playing stadiums one year, and next year we were playing clubs - Theaters sometimes and stuff.

"But two or three years earlier, and Slash's solo band would have been playing in an arena. So we could definitely tell the climate had changed at that point.

"I remember one thing that stuck with Slash and I when we were coming out of the Rainbow one time. And this was around probably '92, '93.

"And somebody saw Slash and goes, 'Oh, my God. Look, it's Slash.' But they were laughing - like he was a cartoon character, not Slash from Guns N' Roses, which, three or four years before that, was the coolest motherfucker on the planet.

"So that was a couple of things that we could kind of tell that things were changing a little bit. Some bands were starting to be a little cartoonish rather than having the musical credibility."

https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/gnr_guitarist_explains_what_axl_thought_about_nirvana__grunge_recalls_fans_ridiculing_slash.html

Another excerpt:
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Gilby Clarke Names the One Thing He Didn't Like About Joining Guns N' Roses, Says He Wouldn't Classify Soundgarden as 'Alternative'

During an appearance on the '80s Recycle Bin, former Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke looked back on his 1991-1994 tenure in the band, the changes the world of music was going through at the time with the arrival of grunge, and more.

The musician commented (transcribed by UG):

"At that time - we're talking the late '80s - rock was definitely taking over everywhere. [Clarke's pre-GN'R band] Kill for Thrills, we had put out a record, we had put it out EP, we had done some touring, but that was when the climate was changing a little bit.

"There were a lot more alternative bands starting to come into play. I think Pearl Jam was just coming out, Alice in Chains was just coming out because I remember seeing Alice in Chains at the Cathouse [in Los Angeles, CA]. And funnily enough, Pearl Jam opened, but I really don't remember it.

"I was talking about this last night with Ricky Rachtman, who had the Cathouse, and I don't really remember Pearl Jam, but I was there that night.

"So, while I was in Kill for Thrills, I got the call from Slash to join Guns N' Roses, and obviously, that was like a dream come true.

"But the only thing I wasn't happy about was I was joining the band as a rhythm guitar player. My whole career, I had been a lead guitar player, so it was kind of a way of...

"I really didn't have to do a lot, I just had to learn Izzy's [Stradlin, guitar] parts and find my place within the band.

"But that's when the music scene really started changing. This was about ’91, and we had Blind Melon opening for us - it was an alternative band. We had Faith No More, which wasn't an alternative band.

"We had Soundgarden, which was a rock band. I wouldn't really classify them as an alternative. So at that time, music was definitely making this change from the long hair - I don't even wanna say 'glam' because glam was really just a few bands at that point.

"But you can tell the style of music was really starting to change. Within us, Guns N' Roses, we were a little slower to adapt because in our world, everything was great - we were selling out stadiums and we were selling 20 million records.

"It didn't really affect us until we really came off the road in '94 where we started really noticing the climate change."

https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/general_music_news/gilby_clarke_names_the_one_thing_he_didnt_like_about_joining_guns_n_roses_says_he_wouldnt_classify_soundgarden_as_alternative.html

The second part of this interview has been posted on youtube. I have added the video in the OP.