2020.04.23 - Sofa King Cool/Blabbermouth - Bumblefoot Says Coronavirus Pandemic Is 'A Reminder That We Are All Just Mere Guests In This World' (& related articles)

Ex-Guns N' Roses Guitarist Bumblefoot Says Coronavirus Pandemic Is 'A Reminder That We Are All Just Mere Guests In This World'

Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal was on tour with Sons Of Apollo in early March when the coronavirus outbreak forced the band to postpone most of the shows and return home. The former Guns N' Roses guitarist recounted the experience in a recent interview with Sofa King Cool, saying (hear audio below): "Sons Of Apollo, we were touring Europe. We had a 20-show tour [booked], and after four shows, we had to pull the plug and get out. We saw how this thing was escalating and the direction it was going and figured out how far can we get, how many shows can we do before we can't? And things started to get canceled. We knew we wouldn't be able to do the bus run, which was two-thirds of the dates. We started off [by] doing shows where we fly everywhere, and it was a lot of Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, and then after that, we were gonna grab the bus and hit Milan and then Zurich and all the places that were the first to really get hammered. And there was no way that it was gonna happen. So we knew that we couldn't get past the fly dates and we wouldn't be able to do the bus dates. So we canceled the bus. We started talking to promoters. One promoter was saying to us, 'We're gonna sue you. There's no cases here. Everything is fine. You guys are being pussies.' All that kind of stuff. And a week later, the same promoter, their country was completely shut down, they were inundated with cases, and they were saying to our tour promoter, 'Wow, was I wrong? I hope you guys are okay. And we look forward to rescheduling when we can. And everyone be safe and be healthy.'"

Thal went on to say that Mother Nature is sending the human race a huge warning and forcing people to reflect during the coronavirus pandemic.

"This is a very humbling thing," he said. "It's a reminder that we are all just mere guests in this world. This is not our world. We don't run it. We are not the supreme beings of it. We are guests, and all Mother Nature has to do is take a look at us and tilt her head a little bit, and we're gone. We should be very gracious and grateful and appreciative of anything we have, starting with our health, and be good to each other. And let this be a reminder that we are not almighty."

The guitarist's remarks come as many around the world are in lockdown or following stay-at-home orders as the coronavirus has spread to infect more than three million people worldwide, killing at least 215,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

https://blabbermouth.net/news/ex-guns-n-roses-guitarist-bumblefoot-says-coronavirus-pandemic-is-a-reminder-that-we-are-all-just-mere-guests-in-this-world

A few days prior, Bumblefoot released an instrumental titled "Planetary Lockdown". Blabbermouth, April 14, 2020:

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Former Guns N' Roses Guitarist Bumblefoot Releases 'Planetary Lockdown' Solo Instrumental Song

Former Guns N' Roses and current Sons Of Apollo guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal has released a new instrumental song called "Planetary Lockdown". You can now stream the track below.

Thal said: "It was early March 2020, on tour with Sons Of Apollo in Europe, as the Covid-19 coronavirus numbers were quickly escalating. We made it through four shows of our 20-show European tour before we had to pull the plug, leave half our gear in storage and urgently head for home. It was a race to get back as the door was slamming shut behind us. Europe was shut down. And within days, the world. This song was inspired by that feeling of urgency, that race... completed while in self-isolation, the song was fittingly titled 'Planetary Lockdown'.

"This too shall pass. Wishing you all to be safe and healthy."

He added: "No guitar parts were sped up or unnaturally edited — solos were played in real-time, using a Line6 Helix pitch-delay effect."

https://blabbermouth.net/news/former-guns-n-roses-guitarist-bumblefoot-releases-planetary-lockdown-solo-instrumental-song

In May he released "Barefoot 2" EP; Blabbermouth, May 8, 2020:

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Listen To Bumblefoot's Entire 'Barefoot 2' Acoustic EP Of Cover Songs

Former Guns N' Roses and current Sons Of Apollo guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal has just released a new acoustic EP of cover songs, "Barefoot 2".

Thal says: "In 2008 I released the first 'Barefoot' acoustic EP, a collection of Bumblefoot songs played as stripped-down acoustic versions. It's a pleasure to now release 'Barefoot 2', acoustic EP of cover songs."

"Barefoot 2" track listing:

01. Wasted Years (Iron Maiden acoustic cover)
02. Vienna (Billy Joel acoustic cover)
03. Every Little Thing (The Police acoustic cover)
04. How Can I Be Sure (The Young Rascals acoustic cover)
05. Maybe I'm Amazed (Paul McCartney acoustic cover)

https://blabbermouth.net/news/listen-to-bumblefoots-entire-barefoot-2-acoustic-ep-of-cover-songs

And in June he released "Barefoot 3" EP. Blabbermouth, June 3, 2020:

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Former Guns N' Roses Guitarist Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal Covers Soundgarden, Asia And More On 'Barefoot 3' EP

Former Guns N' Roses and current Sons Of Apollo guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal will release a new acoustic EP of cover songs, "Barefoot 3" on June 5 exclusively via Bandcamp.

"Barefoot 3" takes the "Barefoot" series up a notch, with intricate guitar arrangements, big backing vocals, and drummer Kyle Hughes.

Track listing:

01. Sleepwalking (Bumblefoot acoustic cover)
02. Tiny Dancer (Elton John acoustic cover)
03. The Day I Tried To Live (Soundgarden acoustic cover)
04. Only Time Will Tell (Asia acoustic cover)
05. Come On Eileen (Dexys Midnight Runners acoustic cover)
06. Tell Me Something Good (Rufus & Chaka Khan acoustic cover)

https://blabbermouth.net/news/former-guns-n-roses-guitarist-ron-bumblefoot-thal-covers-soundgarden-asia-and-more-on-barefoot-3-ep