The Anxieties That Axl Rose Generated Were Crushing Him: Why Izzy Stradlin Was the Rock'n'Roll Heart of Guns N' Roses

My name is Alan Niven, and I'm here to share some stories from my experiences with Guns N' Roses. I took them on a wild ride from the gutters of Sunset Boulevard to Wembley Stadium, introducing you to an interesting cast of characters. Among them were Izzy Stradlin, the heart and soul of Guns N' Roses.

Izzy was the first to make the move to Los Angeles, packing his suitcase and leaving behind small-town Indiana for a new life in the city. He arrived before Axl Rose, who followed soon after. But Izzy's experience in L.A. proved to be a temporary one – he couldn't hack it and retreated back to Lafayette, Indiana, much to Axl's surprise.

On the third date of the band's first national tour, supporting The Cult, Izzy knocked on my hotel room door, looking frazzled. "That motherfucker makes us miserable every fuckin' day," he groaned, referring to Axl Rose. Ax had a voice that reeked of Middle American white boy outrage and anger, but Izzy brought something different – the Night Train, which became a defining feature of Guns N' Roses.

I first saw Izzy on stage at The Troubadour, where he played with effortless offhand grace, handling his hollow-bodied Gibson with ease. He knew exactly when to leave space and syncopate the groove, creating an infectious energy that drew in the crowd. When I picture him playing with Keef and Ronnie Wood, they look like long-lost siblings – a testament to Izzy's casual wisdom and rock'n'roll attitude.

Izzy's lyrics had a street vernacular that felt uncontrived and real, not contrived or manufactured like some of his contemporaries. He was the true original, never trying to fit into a mold or conform to expectations. When Guns were slated to open for Aerosmith, Izzy expressed concern about being in the same arena as someone he had previously dealt with – addiction – but reassured me that if he didn't mention it, Aerosmith wouldn't.

Izzy left Guns N' Roses three months after I was let go by Axl Rose. He found me again when I was working with The White Ones in Switzerland, and the conversation was clear: Izzy couldn't deal with the pressures of fame and expectation anymore. The anxieties generated by Axl Rose were crushing him, and he had to get out before it was too late.

Izzy reserved a suite at the Wembley Stadium Hilton, waiting for Axl to show up so he could join the others for his last performance as a member of the band. But when Axl didn't appear, Izzy finally joined the stage, grounding the rest of the band with his unimpeachable rock'n'roll stance.

When Guns N' Roses was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, Izzy set up a meeting with Axl to discuss reuniting as a one-off. But Axl didn't show up, leaving Izzy waiting for two hours before giving up and driving home to Ojai. This final rejection by Axl Rose made Izzy miserable once more.

A band is like a chemical molecule – not all elements are created equal, and removing even the slightest grain can cause it to collapse. When Steven lost his mind and got fired, it changed the feel of the rhythm section; when Izzy left, the band was no longer the Guns N' Roses I knew and loved – just a shadow of its former self.

Alan Niven is a New Zealand-born band manager who spent time with Guns N' Roses from 1986 to 1991. He oversaw the band's affairs during the recording of Appetite For Destruction, but was fired by Axl Rose before the completion of Use Your Illusion. Alan has also worked with Dokken, Berlin, and Mötley Crüe.

Sound N' Fury: Rock N' Roll Stories

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