Saul Hudson, a.k.a Slash
Saul Hudson (born July 23, 1965), better known by his
nickname Slash,
is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former
lead guitarist of the American hard rock band
Guns N' Roses,
with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During
his later years with Guns N' Roses, Slash formed the side project
Slash's
Snakepit. He then co-founded the
supergroup Velvet
Revolver, which re-established him as a mainstream performer in the
mid to late 2000s. Slash has since released two solo albums,
Slash (2010),
featuring an all-star roster of guest musicians, and
Apocalyptic
Love (2012), recorded with singer/guitarist
Myles Kennedy of
Alter Bridge,
along with rhythm section
Brent Fitz, Frank Sidoris and
Todd Kerns,
known on the album as The Conspirators.
Slash has received critical acclaim as a guitarist.
Time named
him runner-up on their list of "The 10 Best Electric Guitar Players"
in 2009, while
Rolling Stone placed him at No. 65 on
their list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" in 2011.
Guitar Worldranked
his solo in "
November Rain" No. 6 on their list of
"The 100 Greatest Guitar Solos" in 2008, and
Total Guitar placed
his
riff in
"
Sweet Child o' Mine" at No. 1 on their
list of "The 100 Greatest Riffs" in 2004. In 2012, he was
inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with
other members of Guns N' Roses.
The separation of Slash’s parents in 1974 due to several
issues like constant separation, Anthony’s dislike of Ola’s mother aiding with
the family and Anthony’s love of alcohol constantly making him insult others led
to Slash becoming extremely troubled and a self-described "problem
child,". When the separation occurred, Slash chose to live with Ola
and he was often sent to live with his beloved maternal grandmother whenever
his mother had to travel for her job. He was given the nickname
"Slash" by family friend
Seymour
Cassel, because he was "always in a hurry, zipping around from
one thing to another."
In 1979, Slash decided to form a band with his friend
Steven Adler.
The band never materialized, but it prompted Slash to take up an instrument.
Slash was originally planned to play the trumpet but since Adler had designated
himself the role of guitarist, Slash decided to learn how to play bass. Equipped
with a one-string
flamenco guitar given to him by his
grandmother, he began taking classes with Robert Wolin, a teacher at Fairfax
Music School. During his first lesson, Slash decided to switch from bass
to guitar after hearing Wolin play "
Brown Sugar" by the
Rolling
Stones. His decision to play guitar was further influenced by
one of his school teachers, who would play songs by
Cream and
Led Zeppelin for
his students. As a result, Slash stated, "When I heard him do that, I said,
'That's what I want to do.'”. A champion
BMX rider, Slash
put the bike aside to devote himself to playing guitar, practising up to
twelve hours a day. In an article in Guitar Player magazine, Slash has stated
that anyone familiar with his guitar playing 'can trace a direct line to Jimmy
Page.
