QUIET RIOT Guitarist Discusses Stripping Down 'November Rain'

January 30, 2007

"Chinese Hypocrisy", the latest release by TributeAlbums.com, features a beautifully stripped down acoustic rendition of the GUNS N' ROSES classic "November Rain" performed by current QUIET RIOT/HOOKERS N' BLOW guitarist Alex Grossi, along with vocalist Zoli Teglas of California punk outfit IGNITE, and Finland's Marko Pukkila of ALTARIA. Grossi recently had a chance to sit down and answer a few questions about covering GN'R, the influence they had on him as a musician, and what it's like to perform on tribute albums.

TributeAlbums.com: Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora are often credited with kicking off the popularity of rock artists re-creating their hits in acoustic form with their performance of "Livin' On A Prayer" and "Wanted Dead or Alive" during the 1989 "MTV Music Video Awards". Why do you think acoustic versions of otherwise fully produced songs have become so popular?

Alex Grossi: I think in a lot of cases, certain songs may be too "rock" for your average listener, making them acoustic can get them to a wider audience. Look at how many rock bands had their biggest, and sometimes ONLY hit, with an acoustic song....How many soccer moms do you think were pissed when they heard the REST of that MR. BIG record?? LOL!

TributeAlbums.com: Paul Stanley of KISS once said "If a song doesn't sound good on an acoustic guitar, it's just a crappy song." Your acoustic version of GUNS N' ROSES' "November Rain" shows that the song itself is quite solid. Taking a song like "November Rain" that has such full instrumentation, and stripping it down to an acoustic version cannot be a simple task. How did you approach the arrangement?

Alex Grossi: I based what we did off a demo that has been floating around forever of GN'R doing it from the pre-"Appetite" days. Just a couple guitars and a vocal... Straight and to the point.

TributeAlbums.com: What song (or for what artist) would you like to record for a tribute album?

Alex Grossi: I would love to do an EDDIE MONEY song (I am a huge fan),or something a little different than people would expect. I always think it's cool when bands cover stuff outside their genre. I mean, do we really need to hear the BULLETBOYS cover a PRETTY BOY FLOYD song?

The full interview can be found at www.TributeAlbums.com.

Find more on

Prev More News Next

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).