Dizzy Reed

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Dizzy Reed
Dizzy Reed, c. 1992.
Background information
Birth name	Darren Arthur Reed
Born	June 18, 1963 (age 43) Hinsdale, Illinois
Genre(s)	Hard rock
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instrument(s)	Keyboard Piano Guitar Percussion
Years active	1990-Present
Label(s)	Geffen Records
Associated acts	Guns N' Roses Hookers N' Blow
Website	www.gunsnroses.com

Dizzy Reed is the keyboardist for the rock band Guns N' Roses. He has been a member of Guns N' Roses since 1990, playing on their 1991 blockbuster albums Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II, as well as, on the band's 1993 punk cover album, The Spaghetti Incident?. He is the band's original keyboardist and, aside from lead singer Axl Rose, is the only remaining member from what is considered the band's heyday. However, because Guns N' Roses was formed in 1985 with Dizzy joining in 1990, he cannot be described as an original member.

1 Early life
2 Music career
3 Personal life
4 Album appearances
5 References
- 5.1 Footnotes
- 5.2 External links

[edit] 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, Dizzy 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. ^[2] ^[1] At the age of fifteen, he took up keyboard playing as a release for the constant bullying he endured at school.

[edit] Music career

As an adult, Reed pursured a music career in Los Angeles. He was a founding member of the club band The Wild in the late 1980s, and also replaced August Worchell as the guitarist of the group Johnny Crash. However, 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 GNR was far from smooth: former bandmates Slash and Izzy have said that no one in the band but Axl talked to Dizzy for the first two weeks.

In spite of the rough start, Reed soon became an accepted member of the group. As a member of Guns N' Roses, Reed has become well-known for his keyboard work on such songs as November Rain, Estranged and Civil War, as well as, on some of the band's new tracks, including "I.R.S", "Madagascar", "Silkworms" and "The Blues". When not playing keyboards, Reed frequently provides backup on percussion during live Guns N' Roses performances.

Dizzy continues to record and play live with the current Guns N' Roses line-up, and has now been a "Gunner" (a member of Guns N' Roses) longer than any other member besides Axl Rose. His presence in the band remains a point of contention amongst fans. Some fans feel Reed's work took away from the "street" sound Guns demonstrated on its first album Appetite for Destruction, while others are grateful for the more complex musical sound Guns achieved on the Use Your Illusion albums partly thanks to Reed's keyboard and piano work, as well as, for the fact that he has remained in the band providing an additional link to its famous past beyond Axl himself. His acceptance by fans has steadily improved since he joined, but many older fans consider Reed to be inconsistent with the hard rock image which Guns N' Roses became associated with.

Outside of Guns N' Roses, Reed played on albums for his former bandmates Slash, Duff McKagan, and Gilby Clarke in the mid 1990s. He has also guested on current GNR bassist Tommy Stinson's 2004 solo effort Village Gorilla Head. 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, set to be released in 2007, and Celebrity Art Show.

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 has played keyboards, guitar and occasionally sung lead vocals.

[edit] Personal life

Reed has been married to Lisa, an author and teacher, for almost 17 years. They have two children. When not touring, he likes to unwind by spending time with his wife, whom he describes himself as very faithful to, his children and tending to his stamp collection.

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.^[3].

[edit] Album appearances

[edit] References

[edit] Footnotes

^ ^a ^b ^c "This week in local music: Dizzy Reed's Hollywood Bulldozer: Interview with Kate Bredimus.", Richmond.com, September 16, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-2-22.
^ "Dizzy up the Girl": Interview with Debbie Rao.", glammetal.com, May 9, 2004. Retrieved on 2007-2-22.
^ http://www.sp1at.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=80&Itemid=28

[edit] External links

v • d • e Guns N' Roses

Axl Rose • Dizzy Reed • Robin Finck • Tommy Stinson • Chris Pitman • Bryan Mantia • Richard Fortus • Bumblefoot • Frank Ferrer

Ole Beich • Rob Gardner • Tracii Guns • Steven Adler • Izzy Stradlin • Gilby Clarke • Slash • Matt Sorum • Duff McKagan • Josh Freese • Paul Tobias • Buckethead