“As a player, I like to get down on my knees, turn delay knobs and make a bunch of noise. That does not work for Guns N’ Roses”: Dave Navarro on the time he turned down joining Guns N’ Roses

Dave Navarro has recalled the time he was offered the opportunity to join Guns N’ Roses, which he ultimately turned down.

In 1991, Navarro was in the market for a new electric guitar gig following Jane’s Addiction’s split. Guns N’ Roses – who were on the hunt for a replacement for the outgoing Izzy Stradlin at the time – came calling for his services, but it wasn’t to be.

According to Navarro himself, there was too much disparity between his own playing style and the musical output of Slash and his fellow GNR bandmates. In other words, it simply wouldn’t have been a good match.

“I don’t think that would have been the right call at the time,” Navarro says in a recent interview with Guitar Player. “I’ve played with Slash a million times since then. I love playing with Slash. But I think I’m a little more left-of-center than they were.

“Guns was pretty much a straight-up, in-your-face rock band, which I fucking love,” he continues. “But as a guitar player, I like to get down on my knees, turn delay knobs and make a bunch of noise like Kraftwerk or some shit. [laughs] That does not work for Guns N’ Roses.”

They did try to work on a compromise, but none could be found. Speaking to the Appetite for Distortion podcast in 2021 (via Blabbermouth), Navarro revealed, “We talked nearly every day about ideas and the way the band could work with me in it.”

Jane’s Addiction, Stop, Dave Navarro!!, at Bush Hall, London, 24 May 2024 - YouTube

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Though he passed on the Guns gig, Navarro soon found himself tasked with replacing John Frusciante as the new guitarist for Red Hot Chili Peppers.

“That was a very difficult role to step into,” Navarro reflects of his time with RHCP. “They were so set on what they were. It really was another trial by fire. All of a sudden, I had to work within another context that had completely different influences, and these were musicians that I’d never worked with in my life.

“There’s no question that I became a better guitar player as a result of having done that. Playing with Flea and Chad Smith was a crash-course masterclass in musicianship.

“I’m really grateful for the time spent with them, but it was a bizarre concept to join the group, and a very bizarre time.”

In related news, Navarro recently sat down for a sprawling interview with Guitar World, during which he recalled the first time he and Frusciante finally played together after decades of friendship.

He also discussed his battle with Long Covid, and revealed he stopped playing guitar for a year after the death of Taylor Hawkins.

Head over to Magazines Direct to pick up the latest issue of Guitar Player, which features the full interview with Dave Navarro.