- Dizzy Reed
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Dizzy Reed 
Reed performing in 2006 with Guns N' RosesBackground information Birth name Darren Arthur Reed Also known as Dizzy Born June 18, 1963
Hinsdale, IllinoisGenres Hard rock, heavy metal Occupations Musician, keyboardist, pianist, actor Instruments Keyboards, piano, clavinet, accordion, guitar, organ, synthesizers, digital synthesizers, bass synthesizers, bass, mellotron, calliope, percussion, vocals, saxophone, vibraphone Years active 1990–present Labels Geffen Associated acts Guns N' Roses Website www.gunsnroses.com Dizzy Reed (born Darren Arthur Reed; June 18, 1963) is a contemporary rock musician, and occasional actor. He is best known for his tenure as the keyboardist & pianist for the rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has played, toured and recorded since 1990. Aside from frontman Axl Rose, Reed is the longest standing and only member of Guns N' Roses to remain from the band's Use Your Illusion era.
Contents
Early life
Reed was born as Darren Arthur Reed on June 18, 1963 in Hinsdale, Illinois, and was raised in Colorado.[1] As a child, Reed was described as reclusive and introverted. His grandmother began teaching him to play the organ when he was a young child, and before he was out of elementary school, he formed small local bands.[1][2] At the age of fifteen, he took up keyboard playing as a release from the constant bullying he endured at school.
Music career
As an adult, Reed pursued a music career in Los Angeles. He was a founding member of the club band The Wild in the late 1980s, with whom he spent five years.[3] He also replaced August Worchell as the guitarist of the group Johnny Crash although the band split up shortly after he joined.
Reed met the original lineup of Guns N' Roses in 1985; his band, The Wild, rehearsed in a neighboring studio.[1] He kept in touch, and in 1990 was invited by friend Axl Rose to join the group for the recording of the two Use Your Illusion albums. His induction into GN'R was far from smooth: former bandmates Slash and Izzy Stradlin have said that no one in the band but Axl talked to Reed for the first two weeks.[4]
In spite of the rough start, Reed soon became an accepted member of the group and his work was heard on the majority of tracks on both albums. As a member of Guns N' Roses, Reed has become well-known for his keyboard, piano and backing vocal work during live performances, music videos and on such songs as "Dust N' Bones", "Live and Let Die", "Bad Obsession" "November Rain", "Garden of Eden", "Don't Damn Me", "Bad Apples", "Civil War", "14 Years", "Yesterdays", "Knockin' On Heaven's Door", "Get in the Ring", "Pretty Tied Up" and "Locomotive", as well his contributions to some of the band's new tracks, including "Chinese Democracy", "Shacklers Revenge", "Better", "Street of Dreams" "If the World", "There Was a Time", "Catcher in the Rye", "Scraped", "Riad N' the Bedouins", "I.R.S" and "Prostitute", and when not playing keyboards or piano, Reed frequently provides backup on percussion and vocals during live Guns N' Roses performances. He's also known for playing percussions during live performances of songs such as "Mr Brownstone","Nightrain", "Welcome to the Jungle" or "Rocket Queen".
Dizzy continues to record and play live with the current Guns N' Roses line-up, and has now been a member of Guns N' Roses longer than any other member besides Axl Rose. Since he joined the band in 1990, five years after its formation in 1985, he cannot be described as an original member. However, apart from Rose, he remains the only remaining link to the Use Your Illusion era and Guns N' Roses's heyday in the early 1990s. Although Reed did not co write any songs during the Illusion sessions, for Chinese Democracy he co wrote "Street of Dreams" with Axl Rose and Tommy Stinson and "There Was a Time" and "I.R.S" with Rose and Paul Tobias, as well as the non-album single "Oh My God" with Rose and Tobias. It has also been confirmed that the unfinished demo that did not make the cut on Chinese Democracy called "Silkworms" was written by Reed himself and the bands other keyboardist Chris Pitman. As well as singing during Guns N' Roses live performances, Reed also serves as a backing vocalist, more notably with the current lineup than the old lineup, he sung backing vocals on a few songs on the Use Your Illusion albums, notable examples were "November Rain", "Garden of Eden", "Bad Apples" and "Civil War" as well as "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" from "The Spaghetti Incident?" which was a Duff solo track where Dizzy was the only other member of the band that sung on that track. On Chinese Democracy, one of Reed's biggest roles in the band today is serving as a backing vocalist.
Work outside Guns N' Roses
Outside of Guns N' Roses, Reed played on albums for his former bandmates Slash, Duff McKagan, and Gilby Clarke. He also guested on current Guns N' Roses bassist Tommy Stinson's 2004 solo effort Village Gorilla Head. He Also toured with Alice Cooper in 2002. Reed is additionally a fan of Larry Norman, a pioneer of Christian music, and played on Norman's Copper Wires album. Most recently, he has composed music for the film scores The Still Life, released in August 2007, and Celebrity Art Show (2008).
When he is not touring or recording with Guns N' Roses, Reed frequently tours with his hard rock cover band Hookers N' Blow, in which he plays keyboard and guitar and occasionally sings lead vocals. For his work with Hookers N' Blow, Reed was named Outstanding Keyboardist of the Year at the 2007 Rock City Awards ("Rockies"). Hookers N' Blow was also named Best Cover Band.[5]
Reed has also dabbled in acting, appearing as 'Mumbles' in the 2005 film Charlie's Death Wish.[6][7]
Personal life
Reed has been married to Lisa, an author and teacher, since 1991. They have two children. When not touring, he likes to unwind by spending time with his wife, describing himself as very faithful to her and his children.
In 2005, Reed took the unusual step of seeking admission to a college fraternity well after the traditional age of inductees, and on January 22, 2006 was admitted to the Cornell University chapter of Zeta Psi.[6][8]
Discography
With Guns N' Roses
Title Release Date Label Use Your Illusion I 1991 Geffen Use Your Illusion II 1991 Geffen "The Spaghetti Incident?" 1993 Geffen Use Your Illusion 1998 Geffen Live Era: '87-'93 1999 Geffen Greatest Hits 2004 Geffen Chinese Democracy 2008 Geffen Guest appearances
Title Artist Release Date Label Coneheads soundtrack Various Artists 1993 Warner Bros. Believe In Me Duff McKagan 1993 Geffen Records Pawnshop Guitars Gilby Clarke 1994 Virgin It's Five O'Clock Somewhere Slash's Snakepit 1995 Fontana Records Playtime Michael Zentner 1995 Warped Disc Not What I Had Planned Maissa 1996 Sonic Steinway to Heaven Various Artists 1997 Magna Carta Copper Wires Larry Norman 1996 Solid Rock Records Electrovision Doug Aldrich 2001 Pony Canyon Hammered Motörhead 2002 Castle Ready To Go Bang Tango 2004 Shrapnel Village Gorilla Head Tommy Stinson 2004 EMI Strangeland Court Jester 2006 Cellar Records Gilby Clarke Gilby Clarke 2007 Spitfire Backyard Babies Backyard Babies 2008 Universal References
Footnotes
- ^ a b c "This week in local music: Dizzy Reed's Hollywood Bulldozer: Interview with Kate Bredimus.". Richmond.com. September 16, 2004. http://www.richmond.com/music/output.aspx?Article_ID=3249415&Vertical_ID=2&tier=1&position=3. Retrieved 2007-02-22.[dead link]
- ^ "Dizzy up the Girl": Interview with Debbie Rao.". glammetal.com. May 9, 2004. http://www.glam-metal.com/dizzyreed.html. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ "Dizzy Interviewed". Rock Journal. July 11, 2004. http://www.gnrlies.com/dizzyinterview.html. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
- ^ "Interview in Vox". Vox. 1991. http://www.heretodaygonetohell.com/articles/showarticle.php?articleid=71. Retrieved 2008-06-16.
- ^ "Rockies 2007 list of winners". Rock City News. December 2007. http://www.rockcitynews.com/awards/awards07.html. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
- ^ a b "Dizzy Reed does marathon interview". Metal Sludge. January 29, 2006. http://www.metalsludge.tv/home/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1152&Itemid=42. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
- ^ Dizzy Reed at the Internet Movie Database
- ^ "Famous Zetes". Zeta Psi Fraternity website. http://alpha.zetasite.com/about-famous.php. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
External links
- gunsnroses.com - Official Guns N' Roses website
- Dizzy Reed at the Internet Movie Database
- Dizzy Reed on Combat Radio
Preceded by
OriginalGuns N' Roses Keyboards
1990–presentIncumbent Categories:- 1963 births
- American heavy metal keyboardists
- American rock keyboardists
- Guns N' Roses members
- Johnny Crash members
- Living people
- Musicians from Illinois
- People from Hinsdale, Illinois
- Slash's Snakepit members
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