Last month, former Guns N' Roses manager Doug Goldstein made headlines after sharing a theory about the band's breakup. He said the collaboration between Slash and Michael Jackson in the 1990s did not sit well with frontman Axl Rose. A few weeks after that news spread, Slash responded, calling the story a fabrication and "B.S."
"I've been hearing a lot about this particular interview from a lot of people that he really pissed off. And I've heard that. And I don't think there's any truth to that," the guitarist told radio host Elliot Segal, Ultimate Classic Rock noted. "I mean, obviously, the band stayed together for years after that whole thing. And it wasn't a big deal at the time. And if it did piss anybody off, it was something that went away. So I don't think it had anything to do with the original Guns N' Roses demise [...] I don't wanna read or hear that guy's B.S., so I just avoid it. That way I stay sane."
Goldstein had said that Rose was unhappy with the partnership because of the child abuse allegations against the King of Pop. The former manager said that since Rose was molested as a child, the singer could not forgive the guitarist for working with Jackson.
"He thought Slash would support him and be against all abuse. From the point of view of Axl, that was the only problem. He could ignore the drugs and the alcohol, but ... never the child abuse," Goldstein said.
Slash recorded two songs with Jackson, "Black or White" and "Give It to Me," for his 1991 release Dangerous. The two also played a few gigs together, which, Goldstein claims, did not help the whole situation.
The original Guns N' Roses lineup suffered its first loss in 1990 when drummer Steven Adler got the ax for his drug habit. Rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin left a year later. Slash and Duff McKagan were the last original members to leave the band, exiting in 1996 and 1997.
Rose, the sole remaining original member, released Chinese Democracy in 2008 and has toured periodically with a new lineup ever since. The singer reportedly made Slash and McKagan sign over the rights to the GN'R name in the '90s, which is why he still performs under that banner. The frontman has called those claims false, though.
