Abraham, Josh

Josh Abraham produced 'Contraband' with the band. He has previously worked with artists such as Korn, Limp Bizkit, Orgy, Depeche Mode, Power Man 5000, Ice Cube and Cold Chamber.

Some of his influences from early on include Pink Floyd. He says: "[..] because they touched on whatever technology was available back then and they applied it to what they were doing. I compare myself to how they were doing back then. I take advantage of as much of technology as possible and nothing is done in a religious manner. Everything is done in an unorthodox manner. Like distortions are not for guitars they’re mainly for drums or vocals or whatever kind of syncopated pattern’s going on."

He was working with Scott on his second solo album, the follow-up to 1998's 12 Bar Blues, and according to reports 9 songs were already finished when Scott started working with VR and shelved his solo work.

Andreadis, Teddy

Teddy 'Zig Zag' Andreadis has a link to Velvet Revolver because he played keyboards on VR's Pink Floyd cover 'Money', that appeared on the Italian Job movie in May 2003. He was also a member of Slash' Blues Ball (1997) and Slash's Snakepit (2000).

Teddy Andreadis has gained a reputation as a rock-solid keyboardist, a wailing harmonica player, a soulful singer and an insightful musical arranger.   In 1999 he was voted "Outstanding Keyboardist of the Year" by the L.A. Music Awards. Having shared the stage with a potpourri of diversified and celebrated names like Carole King, Guns n' Roses, Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Alice Cooper, Bruce Willis and the Boxing Gandhis, Teddy Andreadis has - and continues to - successfully garner the backing and enthusiasm of his peers and audiences alike.

In addition to his own 1996 album, Innocent Loser, Andreadis has contributed his talents to the albums of many renowned musicians.  Included among this impressive list, he performed vocals, organ, piano, synthesizer and harmonica on three albums with Carole King, lended his talents to former Guns n' Roses band member, Slash, for his debut album with Snakepit and played keyboards on the latest release by the Boneshakers.

In early 2004, Teddy Andreadis came back with Gilby Clarke's Blues Mafia.

Arkeen, West

West Arkeen (b. June 18, 1960; Neuilly Sur Seine, France) was best-known for co-writing some of the greatest Guns N' Roses songs. He died on Friday May 30, 1997 in Los Angeles. He grew up in San Diego, and started playing guitar at the age of 14. He was basically self-taught after he had only a single guitar lesson. He spent hundreds of hours practicing with a metronome in the family room of our house and moved to L.A. at the age of 21.

After several years of struggling to make it in the music industry, he had befriended a group of guys, later to be known as Guns 'N Roses. One of his first songs made it to their debut album: 'It's So Easy' was on GNR's 'Appetite for Destruction'.

Arkeen co-wrote "It's So Easy," "Patience," "Bad Obsession," "The Garden" and "Yesterdays" for Guns n' Roses and also penned "Make Your Play" and "Pressure" for Brother Cane.

After working on other songs with the band for their double set 'Use Your Illusion I & II', Arkeen had been working on his own project, The Outpatience, a band he formed two years ago with vocalist Mike Shotton, bassist James Hunting, guitarist Joey Hunting, drummer Abe Laboriel Jr. and keyboardist Gregg Buchwalter. The band released their debut album, Anxious Disease (1996), in Japan and were shopping the record to labels in the States. The album boast strong G n' R connections: Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan appear as guests (Rose sings backup on the title track), and former GN' R member Izzy Stradlin co-wrote one of the songs.

Izzy Stradlin and Duff McKagan are most closely associated with Arkeen. The trio played in the 'The Drunkfucks' side project together; and Arkeen co-wrote two of the tunes on McKagan's solo record.

Bach, Sebastian

The former Skid Row singer (b. Sebastian Bierk, April 3, 1968; Bahamas) was one of the finalists for the vocalist spot but lost out against Scott Weiland. Bach is good friends with Duff, Slash, and Matt. He met Slash at a Camp Freddy Show. Slash gave him a tape of five instrumentals and told him to do his thing.

Here's a bio from AllMusic.com:

The onetime frontman for hair-metal hitmakers Skid Row, singer Sebastian Bach was born Sebastian Bierk in the Bahamas on April 3, 1968. A veteran of short-lived, little-known bands including Herrenvolk, Madame X, V05 and Kid Wikkid, he was living in Canada when in 1987 he received a demo tape from an unknown New Jersey band in search of a lead singer; the group was Skid Row, formed a year earlier by ex-Bon Jovi guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo.

Signing to Atlantic, Skid Row issued its self-titled debut album in 1989; an opening slot on Bon Jovi's U.S. tour, combined with heavy MTV airplay of the video "Youth Gone Wild," launched the band to stardom, and the singles "18 and Life" and "I Remember You" both reached the Top Ten. Bach, with his wildman persona and photogenic looks, quickly emerged as the focus of fan and media attention, a situation compounded in late 1989 when, during a concert in Springfield, MA, he was hit in the head by a bottle thrown onstage; the singer proceeded to hurl the bottle back into the crowd, where it hit the face of an innocent girl, before physically assaulting another audience member as well.

Sentenced to three years probation, Bach then appeared on MTV wearing an offensive T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan "AIDS Kills Fags Dead," prompting outcries from the gay community. Despite the bad publicity, Skid Row's second album, 1991's Slave to the Grind, debuted at number one, although it quickly fell off the charts; in the wake of 1995's disappointing Subhuman Race, Bach was dismissed from the group, briefly forming a band with ex-Breeder Kelley Deal before going solo in 1997. The album Bring 'Em Bach Alive followed two years later.

>>> MTV reports on the 'battle' between Scott and Sebastian

Bowie, David

David Bowie (b. David Robert Jones, January 8, 1947; Brixton, U.K.) is one of few recording artists who kept a sucessful career going from the mid-1960's until now. He's called 'the chameleon of rock' because of his ability to always change his style and find and set new trends. His music has always been ahead of its time, especially in the 1970's, when he released some of his most important records to date. Albums like 'Hunky Dory' (1971), and ' The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars' (1972) have and will always be quoted by musicians young and old as being a big influence.

However critically acclaimed, Bowie did not have much chart success in the seventies. It would take singles like 'Let's Dance' and 'Tonight' in the 80's to reach the hit lists. The height of his commercial success through sales was in the mid-eighties, after which he started the band Tin Machine. In the 90's Bowie went on as a solo artist, releasing albums like 'Outside' (1995) and 'Earthling' (1997). He became one of the wealthiest entertainers by setting up a internet service provider and a construction in which people could purchase shares in his future royalties and earnings. Even today he is writing and putting out new music, and touring the world.

Camp Freddy

Camp Freddy is a "jam" band consisting of guitarist Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction), guitarist Billy Morrison (former touring bassist for The Cult), drummer Matt Sorum, bassist Scott Ford, and vocalist Donovan Leitch (the son of 1960s U.K. folk-rock icon Donovan). They started recording an album of covers with producer Mike Clink in January 2004, and it's due on Sanctuary Records.

Castillo, Randy

On April 29th, Slash, Duff and Matt are joined by former Buckcherry singer Josh Todd to perform at a tribute show (billed as 'Buck n' Roses') for drummer Randy Castillo, who played drums for Ozzy Osbourne from 1985 to 1993. Randy died Tuesday March 26, 2002 from a form of cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. He was 51.

About the tribute show, Matt Sorum said: "It was awesome. We said, 'Let's try to make something work.' "

>>> MTV: Randy Castillo dies at 51
>>> Rolling Stone: Appetite For Reconstruction

Contraband

Velvet Revolver's debut album, released May 18, 2004 through RCA Records. Rumoured album titles in the past were 'Uppers and Downers' (posted by a fan and the band liked it) and 'Comrades'.

From the dictionary:

con·tra·band
n. Goods prohibited by law or treaty from being imported or exported, Illegal traffic in contraband; smuggling, Smuggled goods. Goods that may be seized and confiscated by a belligerent if shipped to another belligerent by a neutral. An escaped slave during the Civil War who fled to or was taken behind Union lines.

adj. Prohibited from being imported or exported.

>>> Discography: 'Contraband'

Cult, The

Originally known as first Southern Death Cult, then Death Cult, the band was formed by lead singer Ian Astbury (b. 14 May 1962, Heswall, Cheshire, England) in 1981.

The band changed personnel as much as names, and the link here is because drummer Matt Sorum joined the lineup for a 1989 tour. He soon left the Cult again to play with Guns N' Roses.

In 1999, Astbury, guitarist Billy Duffy (b. William Henry Duffy, 12 May 1961; Hulme, Manchester, England), Sorum and Martyn LeNoble (b. 14 April 1969, Vlaardingen, Netherlands; bass, ex-Porno For Pyros) re-formed the Cult, although the latter was soon replaced by Chris Wyse. The following year, the band worked on their debut album for Lava Records, Beyond Good And Evil.

>>> Read the full bio at MTV

Cypress Hill

Slash, Matt, Duff and Dave performed "Paradise City" with guest vocalists B Real and Sen Dog from Cypress Hill at the end of March 2003 on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'.

Here's a little background information on Cypress Hill, from AllMusic.com:

DVX, the original incarnation of Cypress Hill, formed in 1986 when Cuban-born brothers Sen Dog (born Senen Reyes, November 20, 1965) and Mellow Man Ace hooked up with fellow Los Angeles residents Muggs (born Lawrence Muggerud, January 28, 1968) and B Real (born Louis Freese, June 2, 1970). The group began pioneering a fusion of Latin and hip-hop slang, developing their own style by the time Mellow Man Ace left the group in 1988. Renaming themselves Cypress Hill after a local street, the group continued to perform around L.A., eventually signing with Ruffhouse/Columbia in 1991.

Cypress Hill were notable for being the first Latino hip-hop superstars, but they became notorious for their endorsement of marijuana, which actually isn't a trivial thing. Not only did the group campaign for its legalization, but their slow, rolling bass-and-drum loops pioneered a new, stoned funk that became extraordinary influential in '90s hip-hop — it could be heard in everything from Dr. Dre's G-funk to the chilly layers of English trip-hop. DJ Muggs crafted the sound, and B Real, with his pinched, nasal voice, was responsible for the rhetoric that made them famous. The pro-pot position became a little ridiculous over time, but there was no denying that the actual music had a strange, eerie power, particularly on the band's first two albums. Although B Real remained an effective lyricist and Muggs' musical skills did not diminish, the group's third album, Temples of Boom, was perceived by many critics as self-parodic, and the group appeared to disintegrate shortly afterward, though Muggs and B Real regrouped toward the end of the '90s to issue more material.

Davis, Clive

A Harvard Law School graduate, Clive Davis, disheartened by his lack of status as a young lawyer, joined Columbia Records in 1960 as a contract lawyer. One of his first assignments was to renegotiate Bob Dylan's contract, which had apparently become void after the singer had turned 21. Davis outsmarted Dylan and, by forcing him to renew, the young lawyer caught the eye of Columbia's head Goddard Leiberson. Through hard work and internal squabbling, Davis worked his way through the ranks, becoming vice-president of CBS Records.

In 1967, Davis took over as president and transformed the lagging label into an industry powerhouse by updating its roster to coincide with the emergence of rock music. Attending the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, Davis realized the potential of rock music and signed Big Brother & the Holding Company, as well as Santana and the Electric Flag; other acts such as Chicago, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen followed. And, even though Davis played a substantial part in the development of those early careers, by the time he published his memoirs in 1975 he had forgotten everyone else who was involved, giving sole credit to himself.

Behavior like this was typical, and by 1973 many at CBS had grown tired of Davis and were looking for a way to get him out. The opportunity came when one of Davis' go-fers, David Wynshaw, was investigated for reputed mob ties. Searching Wynshaw's office at CBS, authorities found that he had faked invoices and expense accounts on his boss's behalf. Evidence emerged that Davis had used company funds to bankroll his son's bar mitzvah. In a move that shocked the industry, Davis was fired not long afterwards. After pleading guilty to tax evasion, Davis was hired at the record division of Columbia Pictures. He renamed the company Arista and immediately built a strong reputation by signing Barry Manilow. Arista was later home to acts such as the Grateful Dead and Whitney Houston.

Davis was forced out of Arista in June 2000. He launched J Records in August of that year as a 50-50 joint venture with BMG, which invested $150 million. In November 2002 he became chairman and chief executive of BMG North America. In his new role, Davis oversees a newly formed group that combines the operations of BMG labels including Arista, J, RCA, and Jive headed by Barry Weiss.

Davis, 70, will also oversee BMG Distribution, BMG Strategic Marketing, and BMG Canada. "It's thrilling. Things come full circle," Davis said in an interview. "Yeah. It's gratifying. I'll be with all my old friends at Arista."

Day, Adam

Adam Day is Slash's Guitar tech. He has ben Slash's guitar guru for nearly 16 years and has previously worked with Dokken and Lynch Mob axeman George Lynch.

This is a piece from an interview from a few years ago. From MarshallAmps.com: The big question is how on earth do you get to be the guitar tech for a mega star like Slash?

That's definitely one of those sixty four thousand dollars questions! When I got my break, luck definitely played a part. I knew a guy who worked for Guns'n'Roses from the very beginning and every time I would see him anywhere I'd always say: "Hey, if anything comes up, gimme a call". That's what you say when you're a working tech jumping from tour to tour - you put the word out that you're looking whenever you can.

And, in this instance, it paid off. Guns 'n' Roses made some crew changes near the end of the Appetite For Destruction tour when they were opening for Aerosmith, Slash had heard that I'd worked for George Lynch [of Dokken fame] and apparently he was into George's playing at the time so that, along with referrals from other guys on their crew who knew me, got me the gig. I started at the end of '88 and the very first week I was with the band, the album went to number one which made me go 'hello!' And, to be able to stay on like I have, what can I say? It's been great. I mean, I've been with Slash for nearly nine years now.