[BJFan99]

Originally Posted by bobby_from_finland

Although Richie has problems with alcohol, he's usually not been too drunk to play live.

Apart from basically all the gigs with Orianthi...

[James_86]

Makes you wonder really why Jon wasn't transparent from the beginning and Hugh wasn't a permenant member from the start.

I get Hugh was/is a session musician but in all likelihood he would have took the gig if it was offered to him.

I always got the sense also that Jon never much cared for Alec in the same way he did for Richie, Tico and Dave.

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[Thinny]

Originally Posted by James_86

Makes you wonder really why Jon wasn't transparent from the beginning and Hugh wasn't a permenant member from the start.

I get Hugh was/is a session musician but in all likelihood he would have took the gig if it was offered to him.

I always got the sense also that Jon never much cared for Alec in the same way he did for Richie, Tico and Dave.

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Alec had the right image at the time, Hugh didn't basically. As soon as the image wasn't so important anymore Alec was gone....no coincidence...

[bonjovi90]

Jon said himself about Alec "He was THE rock star in the band. He was as crazy as the day's long. Guns, knives, alcohol, drugs, women - he did 'em all."
He had the experience, the reputation and the stage presence to really build a strong 3-man leadership on stage.
He came from Phantom's Opera - an amazing cover band. There are musicians who can play anything, but just really aren't good at coming up with ideas on their own. I guess Alec was one of them.
In 1994 - I think it was a bit down to both parties wanting to split ways for several reasons. Difference of opinion on the music, maybe the characters growing in different directions (as we've come to see with Jon and Richie as well), but also Alec's health. As some have said, he was still drinking a lot in 1993 whereas Tico had sobered up after the New Jersey tour and Richie usually wasn't too drunk to have it affect his playing until the mid-2000s. And I think that motorcycle accident had taken its toll on him physically. Not only in terms of his playing having gotten sloppier, but he was also a lot thinner and looked less healthy than a few years prior. The band's ambition to stand their ground after grunge and work tirelessly on it might've been too much for him to take on at that point.

[Johny]

Alec was basically responsible for putting the band together I overestimate a bit but he was the one who brought Tico and Richie in. He was a star, actually a local star and had experience. I read somewhere that Jon was pissed with musicians of his age who didn't take it seriously or didn't know if they wanted to commit to a band full time.
Alec was and had everything. I don't know the deal between him and the band at the beginning of SWW sessions. Hugh stated in a recent interview that there really were all six of them in Vancouver. Alec had his room above Hugh who couldn't sleep because Alec wasn't playing bass in the night learning new lines that Hugh had created.
Maybe he was just the performer, a cover band performer who just wasn't able to come up with his own bass lines and was used to play someone else's ones. However, he was part of the image of the band, he was an integral part of what the public picture of the band was and therefore there was no reason to get rid of him. Until there was one. The times had changed before his departure and he was obviously stuck in the 80s in terms of lifestyle and music in general. If you count his injury, getting older (he was the oldest one), maybe it just wasn't for him anymore.

I got into the band six years after his departure but I adore his times in the band, I'm an 80s man and you know, even he played only in Prayer in HOF performance and he needs a walking stick nowadays, his signature moves, posture.. it was all there. I really really wished they had played one song, Wanted for example, as the original five-piece band. There still is some magic to it.

[Thinny]

Originally Posted by Johny

I got into the band six years after his departure but I adore his times in the band, I'm an 80s man and you know, even he played only in Prayer in HOF performance and he needs a walking stick nowadays, his signature moves, posture.. it was all there. I really really wished they had played one song, Wanted for example, as the original five-piece band. There still is some magic to it.

That would have been incredible!

[Johny]

Originally Posted by Thinny

That would have been incredible!

Imagine the show starting with Wanted.. Jon and Richie only on acoustic guitar for the first intro, first verse and chorus, then the rest of the band kicking in with a full band intro (the keyboards etc). Meaning David, Tico and Alec.
Then Hugh would replace Alec for IML (and Richie would use his talkbox). Then Phil, John and Everett join in for WWWU and Alec joins again for a full band Prayer.

I have other scenarios in my head

[bobby_from_finland]

Originally Posted by bonjovi90

Jon said himself about Alec "He was THE rock star in the band. He was as crazy as the day's long. Guns, knives, alcohol, drugs, women - he did 'em all."
He had the experience, the reputation and the stage presence to really build a strong 3-man leadership on stage.
He came from Phantom's Opera - an amazing cover band. There are musicians who can play anything, but just really aren't good at coming up with ideas on their own. I guess Alec was one of them.
In 1994 - I think it was a bit down to both parties wanting to split ways for several reasons. Difference of opinion on the music, maybe the characters growing in different directions (as we've come to see with Jon and Richie as well), but also Alec's health. As some have said, he was still drinking a lot in 1993 whereas Tico had sobered up after the New Jersey tour and Richie usually wasn't too drunk to have it affect his playing until the mid-2000s. And I think that motorcycle accident had taken its toll on him physically. Not only in terms of his playing having gotten sloppier, but he was also a lot thinner and looked less healthy than a few years prior. The band's ambition to stand their ground after grunge and work tirelessly on it might've been too much for him to take on at that point.

I wonder if he came up with the bass lines when he played in Message with Richie.

[BJFan99]

Originally Posted by Johny

Alec was basically responsible for putting the band together I overestimate a bit but he was the one who brought Tico and Richie in. He was a star, actually a local star and had experience. I read somewhere that Jon was pissed with musicians of his age who didn't take it seriously or didn't know if they wanted to commit to a band full time.
Alec was and had everything. I don't know the deal between him and the band at the beginning of SWW sessions. Hugh stated in a recent interview that there really were all six of them in Vancouver. Alec had his room above Hugh who couldn't sleep because Alec wasn't playing bass in the night learning new lines that Hugh had created.
Maybe he was just the performer, a cover band performer who just wasn't able to come up with his own bass lines and was used to play someone else's ones. However, he was part of the image of the band, he was an integral part of what the public picture of the band was and therefore there was no reason to get rid of him. Until there was one. The times had changed before his departure and he was obviously stuck in the 80s in terms of lifestyle and music in general. If you count his injury, getting older (he was the oldest one), maybe it just wasn't for him anymore.

I got into the band six years after his departure but I adore his times in the band, I'm an 80s man and you know, even he played only in Prayer in HOF performance and he needs a walking stick nowadays, his signature moves, posture.. it was all there. I really really wished they had played one song, Wanted for example, as the original five-piece band. There still is some magic to it.

Couldn't agree with you more!

[bobby_from_finland]

Originally Posted by bonjovi90

Yeah, I'm sure they'd be going: "We've been keeping our secrets for nearly 40 years, but on JT, they wanna know the truth. We GOTTA tell them!"

Alec did his tell-all interview in 94, maybe Richie will say something next.