Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler reveals his heroin habit started with bandmates Slash and Izzy Stradlin: 'I wanted to be a part of what they were doing' Have YOU got a story? Email [email protected] By Cassie Carpenter For Dailymail.Com Published: 06:44 BST, 20 September 2024 | Updated: 07:20 BST, 20 September 2024 e-mail 3 View comments Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler just revealed the root of his notorious heroin habit back in the eighties was simply trying to fit in with his fellow bandmates Slash and Izzy Stradlin.
'Who the hell do you think I was doing them with?' the 59-year-old percussionist asked during episode three of Paramount+ docuseries Nöthin' But a Good Time. 'When I started doing heroin, I wanted to be a part of what Slash and Izzy were doing.' Steven (born Michael Coletti) continued: 'I took two hits, I was never so sick in my whole life.
And wouldn't you know what an a**hole I am, I had to try it one more time. And the third time was the charm. I fell in love with it.
' Adler originally joined the three-time Grammy-nominated band in 1985 but, by 1989, he entered rehab for the first time for his addictions which would eventually lead him to suffer a heart attack and two strokes. Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler (L, pictured in 1988) just revealed the root of his notorious heroin habit back in the eighties was simply trying to fit in with his fellow bandmates Slash (2-R) and Izzy Stradlin (R) The 59-year-old percussionist (R, pictured August 8 with director Jeff Tremaine) asked during episode three of Paramount+ docuseries Nöthin' But a Good Time: 'Who the hell do you think I was doing them with?' 'Steven didn't leave the band,' frontman Axl Rose clarified to MTV News ' Kurt Loder in 1990. 'Steven was fired.
We gave him every ultimatum. We had Steven sign a contract saying if he went back to drugs, he was out. He couldn't leave his drugs.
' The Ohio-born, LA-raised musician was promptly replaced by Matt Sorum and he reportedly received a back-payment check of $2.25M and 15% royalties for the songs he recorded as part of his lawsuit against GNR, which was settled out of court in 1993. 'I've always loved the whole team thing.
That's why putting a band together was so important to me, where we work together and create something,' Steven explained. 'And then when my team threw me out, I didn't know what to do. I know I could either have gotten better, or continued doing what I was doing.
I continued doing what I was doing. I was that hurt.' Indeed, Adler spiraled and went on to face charges of heroin possession, disturbing the peace, and battery in 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998.
The Mr. Brownstone rocker attempted to tackle his addictions to heroin, valium, alcohol, cocaine, and marijuana in the second and fifth seasons of VH1's Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew in 2008 and 2011 as well as the spin-off series Sober House in 2009.
Steven - whose last rehab stint was in 2013 - reunited with Guns N' Roses bandmates Rose, Stradlin, Slash, Duff McKagan, Matt Sorum, and Dizzy Reed in 2012 for their official induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Steven (R, pictured in 1986) continued: 'When I started doing heroin, I wanted to be a part of what Slash and Izzy were doing. I took two hits, I was never so sick in my whole life.
And wouldn't you know what an a**hole I am, I had to try it one more time. And the third time was the charm. I fell in love with it' Adler (born Michael Coletti) originally joined the three-time Grammy-nominated band in 1985 but, by 1989, he entered rehab for the first time for his addictions which would eventually lead him to suffer a heart attack and two strokes Frontman Axl Rose clarified to MTV News' Kurt Loder in 1990: 'Steven didn't leave the band.
Steven was fired. We gave him every ultimatum. We had Steven sign a contract saying if he went back to drugs, he was out.
He couldn't leave his drugs' The Ohio-born, LA-raised musician was promptly replaced by Matt Sorum and he reportedly received a back-payment check of $2.25M and 15% royalties for the songs he recorded as part of his lawsuit against GNR, which was settled out of court in 1993 (pictured in 1988) Steven explained: 'I've always loved the whole team thing. That's why putting a band together was so important to me, where we work together and create something.
And then when my team threw me out, I didn't know what to do. I know I could either have gotten better, or continued doing what I was doing. I continued doing what I was doing.
I was that hurt' (pictured in 1986) Indeed, Adler spiraled and went on to face charges of heroin possession, disturbing the peace, and battery in 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998 (pictured August 19) The Mr. Brownstone rocker attempted to tackle his addictions to heroin, valium, alcohol, cocaine, and marijuana in the second and fifth seasons of VH1's Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew in 2008 and 2011 as well as the spin-off series Sober House in 2009 Steven - whose last rehab stint was in 2013 - reunited with Guns N' Roses bandmates Rose, Stradlin, Slash, Duff McKagan, Matt Sorum, and Dizzy Reed in 2012 for their official induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Guns N' Roses - which released their latest single The General in January - have sold over 100M records worldwide and continue to amass 30M monthly listeners on Spotify (pictured October 6) Jeff Tremaine's three-part rock-doc - which premiered Tuesday - also features interviews from Bret Michaels, Stephen Pearcy, Nuno Bettencourt, Dave 'Snake' Sabo, Riki Rachtman, Corey Taylor, and Steve-O.
And in 2016, Adler joined the LA hard rock band for four concerts of their $584.2M-grossing, 175-date Not in This Lifetime..
. Tour. 'I just loved being part of a team,' the My Appetite for Destruction author gushed.
'And Guns N' Roses, the five of us, were a great f***ing team.' Guns N' Roses - which released their latest single The General in January - have sold over 100M records worldwide and continue to amass 30M monthly listeners on Spotify. Jeff Tremaine's three-part rock-doc, which premiered Tuesday, is based on Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock's 2021 book Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion.
Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal also features interviews from Bret Michaels, Stephen Pearcy, Nuno Bettencourt, Dave 'Snake' Sabo, Riki Rachtman, Corey Taylor, and Steve-O. Paramount Plus Share or comment on this article: Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler reveals his heroin habit started with bandmates Slash and Izzy Stradlin: 'I wanted to be a part of what they were doing' e-mail Add comment.
