Alan Niven Shares Stories of Managing Rock and Roll Royalty

On June 24, longtime manager Alan Niven will celebrate the release of his first memoir, Sound N’ Fury: Rock N’ Roll Stories. Ahead of that, he joined Loudwire Nights on Thursday (June 19) to discuss what it was like writing the book.

Listen to the full conversation in the player near the end of this article.

“For decades I avoided it,” Niven admitted to host Chuck Armstrong.

“I hate rock and roll books. I did try writing a manuscript and I found it tedious, depressing, a chore. I kept thinking of all the hiccups, the failures, the mistakes and what could have been as opposed to what was. I didn’t enjoy it in any way, shape or form.”

He eventually sent his partially finished manuscript to a friend, hoping they’d respond and say, “Don’t publish this.” But that’s not what happened.

“I got this message back from Slash,” he shared.

“[He said,] ‘Great. Finish it.’ And I’m like, oh no, what I wanted was an excuse to shelve it and someone else to blame.”

When Guns N’ Roses Said ‘No’ to the Rolling Stones

Niven’s memoir isn’t simply a tell-all of his life; it’s a collection of different experiences he’s had with the many bands he’s worked with, most notably when he managed Guns N’ Roses from 1986-1991.

In one of the most unforgettable stories — the aptly-titled chapter, “Stoned In L.A.” — Niven opens up about why he didn’t want Guns N’ Roses to tour with the Rolling Stones.

As he retold the story to the Loudwire Nights audience, he recalled going to see Metallica with Bill Elson, who was the booking agent for the Stones. At the show, they met up with Cliff Burnstein and Peter Mensch, who co-founded Q Prime Management and managed Metallica and who would be overseeing the tour.

“My first gut reaction was a freaking ping of cramp in my stomach,” he said about the offer for Guns N’ Roses to open for Stones.

“There’s no way that I can see [Steven] Adler and Slash living through a Rolling Stones tour, that environment, that pressure. The condition they were in at the time, that’s not going to happen.”

As the story goes, Niven did the unthinkable: He turned down the tour.

“Mick Jagger is pretty rich as it is,” he said. “I don’t feel an obligation to fill his coffers that he keeps in the islands in the Caribbean.”

Niven’s decision led to the opportunity for his band to open for the Stones for only a handful of shows, all at the L.A. Coliseum.

READ MORE: Slash Dives Into Latest Solo Album, ‘Orgy of the Damned’

The total payment for these shows? One million dollars.

“It was perfect,” Niven said.

“It was hometown, which means that our expenses are minimalized [and] we could keep some sort of stability in dealing with people’s addictions and states of mind and we weren’t having to race across the country. It was optimal. It was the best.”

What Else Did Alan Niven Discuss on Loudwire Nights?

• What’s on the horizon for him: “The analogy I give is that rock and roll is like malaria, it’s always in the bloodstream and the difference is whether you get a fever or not. I have to get a fever to involve myself in something and it’s been a while since I’ve had one, you know?”
• How he felt once he finally finished Sound N’ Fury: Rock N’ Roll Stories: “I feel pretty much like I did once I’d finished producing an album: Apprehension. When we take the baby out, there are people [who will] go, ‘Oh, he’s cute.’ Or are they going to go, ‘Oh my god, what did you give birth to?'”
• Whether or not he’s interested in writing another book: “I had a conversation with Mick Wall just last week. In terms of being a rock and roll writer, Mick Wall is at the top of the game, he really is. And he very kindly said, ‘Welcome to the brotherhood of authors.’ And I went back and I said, ‘Oh, you’re at the apex of this game. I’m just an enthusiastic amateur for the moment.’ And he came back and said, ‘Yeah, you don’t get off that easy. Welcome to the brotherhood, and by the way, it’s a curse’ … The curse is the truth, because you have to be honest. You have to tell the truth [and] not everybody is going to want to read the truth.”

Listen to the Full Interview in the Podcast Player Below

Alan Niven joined Loudwire Nights on Thursday, June 19; the show replays online here, and you can tune in live every weeknight at 7PM ET or on the Loudwire app; you can also see if the show is available on your local radio station and listen to interviews on-demand.