Episode 43: What Is The 50 First Gigs with Guns n Roses Podcast?

This week our guest is Jason Porrath, who has an amazing podcast called ’50 First Gigs’ where he chronicles the beginnings of Guns n Roses!

2:16 – Who is Mark Canter? Mark was the “Angel Investor” for Guns n Roses, aka the first roadie, the first investor, the first photographer, and in a way the first fan. Without Mark Canter, there wouldn’t be a Guns n Roses. The way he first connected with Slash is a classic gnr story.

11:30 – Mark Canter took a ton of pictures and video of Guns n Roses, and they have sat in storage until very recently. Because of the 50 First Gigs Podcast and Reckless Road book, they are finally being seen by the fans. Mark trusted Jason with this process of bringing this valuable content to the public.

22:05 – We discuss the beginnings of the book and how it evolved into the project that exists today.

31:30 – Why was Los Angeles the epicenter of music in the 1980’s? It seems that punk, classic rock, hair metal, new wave, hip hop, rap, and several other genres were centered on the Sunset Strip and other parts of Los Angeles. Why was this happening, and why specifically in Los Angeles? What role did KROQ play in all of this?

39:55 – A discussion about Axel Rose and his road to releasing Chinese Democracy with his newly formed ‘Guns n Roses’ band. We talk about the changes the band went through, especially regarding Axel Rose and Slash.

47:45 – Guns n Roses still has a grip on fans today, old and new, and we discuss why that might be. There are fans in their teenage years as well as lifelong fans, and very few bands still have that influence.

50:00 – The book originally released was an ‘enhanced book,’ which was part of the reason the book was able to get published in the first place. With today’s prevalence of Podcasts, we are given the opportunity to have a new era of learning the bands history.

56:30 – Jason’s original vision was to have a Netflix style documentary, however it was going to be impossible to get the music rights for it. We discuss the production and story that Jason wants to tell with the series.

1:17:00 – How did it all come together to tell this story of Guns n Roses origins? As of now, the podcast isn’t making any money, so it was a matter of finding fans to come together and volunteer to build it. This also helped because Jason was able to make sure the content they were creating was content that the fans wanted. Jason tells the story of how this all came together, what content he had to build from, and where it all came from.

1:24:30 – Scott asks if the 2005 interviews from Guns n Roses still exist. We learn about them, and what their role will be in the 50 First Gigs Podcast.

1:27:00 – Right now, the podcast is only available on Patreon. The reason for that is because it needs to be funded by the fans. It’s not about making money, it’s about funding the project in the first place.

1:30:00 – What is compelling you to create this history of Guns n Roses? Why is it so important to provide this information for the fans?

———— Quickly- I’m Scott Groves – Husband, Father, Loan Officer, Coach, Author, Podcaster, and Recent Blue Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. This podcast is paid for and brought to you by…. by me, Scott Groves :-)Because I think these kind of long form conversations are valuable, I pay for 100% of the production of this show out of my pocket. This channel is FAR from monetization and because of the subject matter, may never be monetized. I am a Mortgage Loan Officer & Loan Officer Coach in real life. It’s the money that I earn, from helping home-buyers and home-owners obtain home-loans, that pays for this show. If you, your friends, or your family are looking for a home loan from an honest Loan Officer, please contact me at [email protected] I can do the loan for you (our team is licensed in 8 states) – OR – I can refer you to an amazing loan officer in the state where you’re searching. ON WITH THE SHOW!!! New Full Episodes are released every THURSDAY at 10:00am and clips are released frequently throughout the week. SO MAKE SURE YOU SUBSCRIBE!!!

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