Slash (musician) - Wikipedia

Thank you my friend Maj Marty Hogan for making us aware that July 24 is the anniversary of the birth of musician Saul Hudson who adopted the stage name of Slash and joined Guns N’ Roses in 1985.
I found it interesting that he was diagnosed with a cardiomyopathy and apparently decided to reform his life. I was diagnosed with a cardiomyopathy in 1995 which turned out to be mitral valve disease.
Happy 54th birthday Saul Hudson with many happy returns.

Slash Raised on the Sunset Strip (Documental)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WVt7glej8A

Images:
1. Slash and Perla Ferrar with their children Cash Hudson and London Hudson on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Hollywood on July 10th, 2012.
2. Axl Rose and Saul 'Slash's Hudson Guns N Roses
3. Saul 'Slash' Hudson in black with tophat and Gibson guitar
4. Slash's Snakepit October 2000 album 'Ain't Life Grand'

Biographies:
1. .imdb.com/name/nm0805298/bio]
2. allmusic.com/artist/slash-mn [login to see] /biography

1. Background from {[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0805298/bio]}
"Slash Biography

Overview (3)
Born July 23, 1965 in Hampstead, London, England, UK
Birth Name Saul Hudson
Height 5' 10" (1.78 m)

Mini Bio
Saul Hudson, mainly known as Slash, was born on July 23, 1965, and was raised in Stoke-on-Trent. Both his parents worked in the entertainment business, his mother being a clothing designer (she did some of David Bowie's costumes) and his father being an art director for a record company. When Slash was 11 he moved with his mother to Los Angeles, leaving his father behind in England, although he eventually joined them in L.A. years later. Slash became sort of an outsider at school since he didn't really fit in with other kids. In the mid 70s his parents separated and Slash moved in with his grandmother. During this time Slash got interested in BMX riding, and went on to win several awards and money in competitions.

When he was 15 he got his first guitar, and his schoolwork started to go downhill as he skipped class to sit playing guitar all day. Slash eventually got so tired of school that he dropped out in 11th grade. As he lived in Los Angeles, a city flourishing with new, young rock bands, he quickly got in touch with people to jam with. After meeting Steven Adler the two of them formed a band called Road Crew. Then he met Izzy Stradlin who played in a band with Axl Rose, and after hearing Axl sing live, he was set on getting him in his band. Soon a bass player answered one of Slash's ads in the paper, and Slash (guitar), Steven (drums), Izzy (guitar), Axl (vocals) and Duff McKagan (bass) formed Guns N' Roses in 1986. Soon enough, GNR were known across the globe as the new rock n' roll sensation. Album sales went sky high and the band was having a blast on their world tours, and during this time Slash worked with artists like Michael Jackson on the Dangerous album and Lenny Kravitz, just to name two. But after the Use Your Illusion tour, GNR decided to take a break. Slash however, needed to play music and so he formed his own band Slash's Snakepit. With the success of this bands album It's Five O'Clock Somewhere (1995), Slash told the public that Slash's Snakepit would be back again. During this time Slash and Axl were having some heated arguments about Guns N' Roses and what would happen next. Guns N' Roses as we knew them then, was terminated by the result as Slash decided to leave the band, handing all rights of the band name over to Axl.

After this Slash did a few gigs here and there, formed a band called Blues Ball who played blues covers, and even brought back Slash's Snakepit as he said he would, although they didn't last very long this time either. In 2000, Slash met Perla Ferrar and on October 15, 2001, married her. It's not surprising that he wore black leather pants, a white shirt and his faithful black leather jacket to the wedding! His new status as a married man didn't slow him down, though. In 2003, Velvet Revolver was formed by the former members of Guns N' Roses; Slash, Duff and Matt (who replaced Steven in 1990), Scott Weiland (vocals) from Stone Temple Pilots and Dave Kushner (guitar) from Wasted Youth. Velvet Revolver's debut album Contraband (2004) was long-awaited and sold incredibly well. They are now going to show up on the second Live Aid concert along with many other huge artists, which will be held in London. Velvet Revolver's plans to become a rock band of great magnitude are definitely in the works, and Slash himself has earned his title as one of the greatest rock n' roll guitar players in history.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: Fred Shands

Spouse (2)
Perla Ferrar (15 October 2001 - present) (filed for divorce) (2 children)
Renee Suran (10 October 1992 - 1997) (divorced)

Trade Mark: Long curly hair, partly covering his face; Always uses Gibson Les Paul guitars of various colors, with extremely few exceptions.; His guitar riffs and high screeching guitar solos; Almost always had a cigarette hanging from his mouth in his early days but quit smoking when he mother died of cancer;Leather pants and sunglasses. Wears a tophat every time he plays live.
Trivia (43)
1. He became famous as the guitarist of the hard rock and heavy metal band Guns N' Roses, one of the most iconic rock groups to emerge in the 1980s and considered by many to be one of the greatest bands of all time.
2. 1998: Left Guns N' Roses in 1996 after numerous failed attempts at co-existing with longtime bandmate Axl Rose.
3. 1/22/90: Created controversy after giving a profanity-laden acceptance speech at the American Music Awards.
4. Has not spoken to his friend and former bandmate Axl Rose since 1996. They communicated their song selection for the 1999 Guns N' Roses live album "Live Era" only through intermediaries.
5. Released two albums with his new band, Slash's Snakepit.
6. Attended middle and high school with longtime Guns N' Roses bandmate Steven Adler.
7. Before Guns N' Roses, was in a band called Road Crew with future GNR bandmates Duff McKagan and Steven Adler.
8. Wife Perla gave birth to a 9 lbs 4 oz baby boy, London Emilio Hudson, on August 28, 2002, and to an 8 lbs 13 oz baby boy, Cash Anthony Hudson, on June 23, 2004.
9. July 2001: Voted the West Midlands' best guitarist in Total Guitar Magazine's poll of the greatest British guitarists.
10. Auditioned for the heavy metal band Poison.
11. On the show Kid Notorious (2003), he plays himself, the voice of reason, next-door neighbor and good friend of Robert Evans (Kid Notorious). In real life, he actually is the next-door neighbor and good friend of Evans (although he says he is hardly the voice of reason).
12. His pulse once stopped after a drug overdose at a hotel. Doctors were able to revive him with a shot of adrenaline into his chest.
13. His favorite book is "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S. Thompson.
14. His father is Anthony Hudson, album cover designer for Geffen Records, including Joni Mitchell's "Court and Spark".
15. Mother is clothing designer Ola Hudson. Her work includes costumes for David Bowie in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) and The Pointer Sisters.
16. He attended Beverly Hills High School with Lenny Kravitz in the early 1980s, but did not graduate.
17. Velvet Revolver was named after The Velvet Underground and their feelings that they were at a point where they were revolving around the world as opposed to the world revolving around them.
18. Has recorded with British heavy metal band Phil Campbell, American singer and longtime friend Lenny Kravitz and Michael Jackson.
19. Lives in Los Angeles, California with his family.
20. As a child, he once lived next door to David Geffen.
21. Has a dual United Kingdom and United States citizenship.
22. His father is a white Englishman and his mother is African-American.
23. Although he now currently plays authentic Les Paul Gibson guitars, the Les Paul guitar that Slash played on Guns N' Roses debut album "Appetite for Destruction" is actually a Max Webster copy of a 1959 Les Paul flametop.
24. The youngest member of Guns N' Roses.
25. He is a keen collector of vintage Les Paul guitars.
26. Received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6901 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California on July 10, 2012.
27. When he was a guest band member on Conan for the Basic Cable Band; Conan announced a website and added a picture of Slash's head in place of the normal "/" you would see on a web link. It got such a great response from the audience, Conan has kept this gag going to this day.
28. A longtime friend of Matthew Cassel, the guitarist's nickname "Slash" was given him by Matthew's actor father Seymour Cassel.
29. He stole his signature top hat from a street shop, along with a belt. He cut the belt in half and wore it around the hat.
30. In 2001, at age 35, he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a form of congestive heart failure caused by his many years of alcohol and drug abuse. Originally given between six days and six weeks to live, he survived through physical therapy and the implantation of a defibrillator.
31. He quit smoking in 2009 following his mother's death from cancer.
32. Although he has lived in the United States since he was six years old, he did not officially become an American citizen until 1996.
33. Has released two songs and two videos with his new band, Velvet Revolver, and is now is the studio recording with them. [August 2003]
34. Velvet Revolver album "Contraband" comes to stores May 18, 2004. [May 2004]
35. Velvet Revolver's album "Contraband" was released on June 8, 2004 and enters the Billboard charts at number one, moving roughly a quarter million copies during its first week. [June 2004]
36. In the studio recording a new album with Velvet Revolver. [October 2006]
37. Embarking on a book tour to promote his newly published memoir titled "Slash." [October 2007]
38. In conjunction with IK Multimedia, the guitarist developed the "AmpliTube Slash" app for PC and iOS devices. [2015]
39. In July 2016, while on a reunion stadium tour with Guns N' Roses, Slash made a surprise appearance at rehearsals for the stage production of School of Rock in New York City. While the young cast were rehearsing "Sweet Child O' Mine", the guitarist simply strolled out unannounced and began casually playing the song with them and smiled when the kids finally noticed him. He continued to play with them through their rendition of "Paradise City.".
40. After leaving Guns N' Roses in 1996, Slash auditioned for the British band The Stone Roses after they'd just lost founding member John Squire. When Slash showed up wearing leather pants he was ultimately rejected.
41. As an homage to Slash's look on the Appetite for Destruction cover, Rockabye Baby! (a band who does lullaby renditions of famous rock, pop, rap, R&B, etc. songs and playfully parody their album art using teddy bears) replaced his trademark cigarette with a pacifier to make it kid friendly.
42. Several years before Guns N' Roses' inconceivable reunion, he said in a CNN interview there is not enough money in the world for him to reunite with Axl Rose. His lover Meegan Hodges happens to be longtime best friends with Axl's storied ex Erin Everly and together they convinced them to reconcile.
43. Not even his close friends and family refer to him as Saul Hudson, he prefers Slash.

Personal Quotes (11)
1. Sex and drugs go hand in hand when you're a rock 'n' roll musician. If I were a violinist, it might be a different matter.
2. Jeff Beck is one of the most amazing guitar players the world has seen when it just comes to rock and roll guitar. He's a real organic player.
3. For me to sound like "me" I have to have a Marshall. That's just the way it is.
4. [on writing his memoir, "Slash"] The only reason I wrote it is because a lot of the stuff I was reading and seeing about the band got pretty frustrating. I just had to straighten out some shit.
5. He's a huge hero of mine and the fact that he knew who I was was a huge compliment. Bo Diddley created a myth that was uniquely his own. An entire rhythm is owed to just one guy and that's pretty rare. He was such a trooper and a timeless individual. I'm hoping the pioneers of rock like Bo Diddley won't be forgotten.
6. I learned some of Brad Whitford's solos, and from Joe Perry I think I just picked up slam-bam dynamics. I've always worked hard towards being able to play what I hear in my head. I don't like to over-think. If something comes into my head, I want to be able to play it instantly. That's what improvising is all about, and that's why I go and jam a lot.
7. Axl is like a magnet for problems. I've never met anybody like him. He's the kind of guy that would get a toothbrush stuck down his throat because that particular toothbrush happened to be defective.
8. I don't see why the subject of kicking dope is such a big deal. It's personal, really. It's like asking how I go to the bathroom or what do I wash when I take a shower.
9. [2010] In the 1970s, my family moved from England to the Laurel Canyon area, and my parents were very much dialed in to the whole Sunset Strip scene," said the rocker. "They were both in the music business, and the whole reason we lived where we did was because of the recording industry. So I have very vivid memories of the Rainbow and the Roxy, and the Whisky was a huge point of interest at that time. And we practically lived at Tower Records. It was all so great; that's where I brought my band up. It was a such a scene. I still live close to the Strip, just up the hill, and when people are visiting from out of town, the first place I send them is the Rainbow. I still go to the Roxy and the Viper Room every so often. The Rainbow and Viper Room are almost like in a time warp. They are cryptically unchanged. You see people you haven't seen for 20 years, and they pretty much look the same now as they did then. It's sort of a trip because I'm probably one of them. The Rainbow is like the community center of the area. It's a cool place - they've got a bar, they play rock music, it's the last vestige of cool rock 'n' roll in the city. People go there religiously, and that's probably why I go there.
10. [on Axl Rose] As volatile as he is, all the things that you might find complicated or difficult about Axl is what fuels him to be such an amazing performer and such an amazing songwriter.
11. [on Axl Rose continuing to use the name Guns N' Roses] A lot of people think it's sacrilegious to do that but he doesn't really give a hot fuck."

2. Background from {[https://www.allmusic.com/artist/slash-mn [login to see] /biography]}
"Artist Biography by Steve Huey
As the lead guitarist for Guns N' Roses, Slash established himself as one of hard rock's finest and most soulful soloists during the late '80s, technically adept yet always firmly grounded in the gritty Aerosmith and Stones licks he loved. Slash was born Saul Hudson on July 23, 1965 in Stoke-on-Trent, England, to artistic parents both involved in the entertainment industry; his mother was a clothing designer who worked on David Bowie's film The Man Who Fell to Earth, and his father designed album art for such artists as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell. The family eventually moved to Hollywood, where Hudson attended junior high, received his first guitar, and met future GNR drummer Steven Adler. With Hudson adopting the nickname Slash, given to him by a family friend, the two formed a band called Road Crew; although it proved unsuccessful, it was the vehicle through which they met and eventually joined up with the other members of Guns N' Roses.

Appetite for Destruction
GNR debuted in June 1985, and even before Appetite for Destruction was released in 1987, the bandmembers acquired a reputation as notorious alcohol and drug abusers. As their popularity soared, the reserved Slash established himself as an important part of the band's visual image, with a top hat and a mound of shaggy black hair covering his face as he typically staggered around the stage with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. Hedonistic excess consumed most of the band, with such incidents as Slash and Duff McKagan's drunken, profane acceptance of the band's American Music Award on live television. In 1990, opening for the Rolling Stones, Axl Rose's infamous on-stage pronouncement that he would leave the band if certain members did not stop "dancing with Mr. Brownstone" (using heroin) was primarily directed at Slash and Adler; Slash kicked his habit within a year, but Adler did not and was fired. In 1992, Slash courted controversy again with a product endorsement for Black Death vodka. Later that year, he was married to actress and model Renee Sorum, a union that lasted five years.
Use Your Illusion I
Meanwhile, in spite of controversy and personnel turnovers, Guns N' Roses had actually continued to record music. After the Use Your Illusion sets of 1991 and the 1993 punk covers album The Spaghetti Incident?, the band went on hiatus. Slash formed a side project called Slash's Snakepit, which consisted of fellow GNR bandmates Matt Sorum (drums) and Gilby Clarke (guitar), plus bassist Mike Inez and vocalist Eric Dover. The group released an album in 1995 titled It's Five O'Clock Somewhere; Slash hit the road with a slightly different touring lineup, with Brian Tichy and James LoMenzo signing on as the rhythm section. In 1996, Slash put together a different band to play at a blues festival in Budapest, an endeavor that evolved into Slash's Blues Ball. Featuring vocalist/harmonica player Teddy Andreadis, rhythm guitarist Bobby Schneck, saxophonist Dave McClarem, bassist Johnny Griparic, and drummer Alvino Bennet, Slash's Blues Ball devoted themselves primarily to a repertoire of classic blues covers, plus occasional GNR and Snakepit material.
Rumors about the status of Guns N' Roses had been swirling for some time, and in October 1996 it was confirmed that, owing to his unwillingness to follow Axl Rose's interest in industrial and electronic music, Slash was no longer a member of the band (although he left the door open for a reunion if Rose decided to return to guitar-based rock & roll). He gigged off and on with the Blues Ball into 1998, although a rumored live album never materialized. Instead, Slash decided to re-form the Snakepit in 1999 with an entirely different lineup (the original members were by this time involved in other projects, and the Blues Ball was more suited to touring than developing original material). Raspy-voiced singer Rod Jackson and ex-Venice drummer Matt Laug came on board, along with Blues Ball bassist Griparic (now Johnny Blackout) and Teddy Andreadis, who contributed keyboard and harmonica work. After trying out ex-Alice Cooper guitarist Ryan Roxie, Slash settled on rhythm guitarist Kerry Kelly, who had previously worked with Warrant and Ratt.

Ain't Life Grand
The new Snakepit played some gigs together and in the spring of 2000 completed a new album, which was originally slated to be released on Interscope/Geffen. However, feeling that a more traditional guitar rock album would get lost in the promotional shuffle, Slash moved over to Koch, which finally released Ain't Life Grand in October 2000. A few years later, Slash teamed up again with McKagan, Matt Sorum, and Stone Temple Pilots lead singer Scott Weiland to form the supergroup Velvet Revolver, who released their first album in 2004. Velvet Revolver released a second album called Contraband in 2007 and fell apart not long afterward. Slash regrouped by releasing his memoir in 2007 and cutting his eponymous first solo album, drafting a bunch of friends -- including Ozzy Osbourne, Chris Cornell, Kid Rock, and Fergie -- to sing lead vocals. For the supporting tour, Slash had Alter Bridge vocalist Myles Kennedy sing lead. This union proved strong, as Kennedy was the only singer on Slash's second album, 2012's Apocalyptic Love, which hit number four on the American album charts upon release. Two years later, Slash released World on Fire, his second album with Myles Kennedy & the Conspirators; it debuted at number ten on the U.S. charts upon its September 2014 release.
Living the Dream
Slash turned his attention to the reunited Guns N' Roses in 2016. Following a headlining spot at Coachella in 2016, GNR embarked on an international tour called Not in This Lifetime, which lasted into 2018. Even though Guns N' Roses were busy on the road, Slash kept Myles Kennedy & the Conspirators active. Living the Dream, the group's third album, appeared in September of 2018; the band supported it with a brief tour which resulted in a 2019 concert LP Living the Dream Tour."

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Great group !

Hell yes, looked like they were poised to rule the Rock'n'roll world and just like that they fell apart. Big part of my Army life listening to these guys. Mr. Brownstone still one of my all time favorites. Drove from Bitburg to Ramstein for the release of Spaghetti Incident CD was a letdown in many ways IMO. Velvet Revolver was awesome and a super cool band name.
Thanks for the share