Double Talkin Jive

this is a genuine rare bird book

Rare Bird Books
6044 North Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90042
rarebirdbooks.com

Copyright 2022 by Matt Sorum, Leif Eriksson, and Martin Svensson
Foreword copyright 2022 by Billy F Gibbons

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever, including but not limited to print, audio, and electronic. For more information, address:
Rare Bird Books Subsidiary Rights Department
6044 North Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90042

Set in Dante

epub isbn : 9781644282601

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Sorum, Matt, 1960- author. | Eriksson, Leif, 1957- author. |
Svensson, Martin, 1978- author. | Gibbons, Billy F., 1949- writer of foreword.
Title: Double talkin jive: true rock n roll stories from the drummer of
Guns n Roses, the Cult, and Velvet Revolver / Matt Sorum,
with Leif Eriksson and Martin Svensson ; foreword by Billy F Gibbons.
Description: Los Angeles, Calif.: Rare Bird, 2021.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021020049 | ISBN 9781644282212 (hardback)
Subjects: LCSH: Sorum, Matt, 1960- | Drummers (Musicians)United
StatesBiography. | Rock musiciansUnited StatesBiography. | LCGFT:
Autobiographies.
Classification: LCC ML419.S668 A3 2021 | DDC 782.42166092 [B]dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021020049

A fun readall the essentials about Matts rock n roll success story are here. I found it particularly illuminating about his time in and relationships with Guns N Roses and negotiating all the personalities involved!

Billy Idol

Matt lights up rooms, corridors, clubs, theaters, arenas, and stadiums with the kind of infectious rock n roll energy that is increasingly becoming obsolete. His dedication to his craft remains virtually peerless, and when the sticks are resting, youll have to go a long way to find someone cooler in rock n roll. Dive into these shenanigan-saturated pages immediately and find out for yourself!

Lars Ulrich , Metallica

A colorfully dark look into the f***ed-up psyche of a legendary and badass drummer. I want to read it over and over.

Jonas kerlund , director of Lords of Chaos and Spun

Matt is a true journeyman drummer whos got the chops and the showmanship to have a great career with all the ups, downs, and sideways that you would expect from a cat like him, though with his share of surprises he really needed to get his story told. Double Talkin Jive is his version of what its like to have the best seat in the house with some of the wildest, hardest rockin bands to come down the pike.

Joe Perry , Aerosmith

Still alive and playing like hell This is the stuff from which rock documentaries are made.

Robin Zander , Cheap Trick

I have witnessed the sheer power, drive, and determination of Matt from the outside for a long time now, as the drummer for the likes of The Cult, Guns N Roses, and Velvet Revolver, but I have also seen him from the inside when we have shared the stage as the Kings of Chaos. Always smiling, always ready, and as solid as Mt. Rushmore, you could say hes one of the last of a dying breed, a big hitter who can also show restraint, the real deal.

Joe Elliott , Def Leppard

Contents

FOREWORD

by Billy F Gibbons

Matt Sorum and his journey of decadent decades through his personal rock n roll did this, done that is all here for the taking. Unselfishly, Matt takes us on a terrific and sometimes terrifying tack, tripping through his almost never-ending touring trail.

These are the kinds of trials and tribulations, through and through, that tall tales are made of. Yet, in this case, at each corner, Matts unflagging adventure down his rock n roll avenue is quite matter-of-factthat unnerving thing that leaves you on the edge of your seat. And then some.

And at the heart of all this wildness is Matts insatiable appetite for the backbeat. ving these episodes page by page is the unrelenting ferociousness of the Sorum style of drumming. Loud, crisp, and clear, the beat is always at the fore. Its inescapable. Whether its Guns N Roses, The Cult, Velvet Revolver, or the Big Bad Blues tour, the unmistakable force from the drum riser hits ya like a ton o bricks. And thats Matt. And you ask, What drives a man to the depths of this kind of obsession? Its all inside. Read it and freak!

Theres a house afire in here, and just when you thought you knew about rockin the sonically insane path through it all Welljust wait. You havent dreamed this up even in your wildest!

Dig on, Matt. Matt. Matt is where its at. Bueno !

NOTE TO READERS

Some names of individuals mentioned in this book have been fictionalized. All fictional names are indicated by the use of small caps on first mention. Any similarity between the fictionalized names and the names of real people is strictly coincidental.

PREFACE

Im at the after-party for John Stamos and Rebecca Romijns wedding in Beverly Hills. People are everywhere, and Im looking for my girlfriend. Whenever I bump into friends, acquaintances, and people I vaguely recognize, I ask if theyve seen her. No one seems to know where she is.

For some reason, I get the feeling theyre not telling me the whole truth.

The air is hot and sticky. I undo the top button on my shirt and knock back the drink Im clutching. I know that Im far too drunk. I cant feel it, but I can see it on peoples faces when I talk to them. And they all take a slight step back.

Suddenly, I spot her in the Jacuzzi out backnaked with three random dudes. My stomach turns; my legs become weak and heavy. Everything happens very quickly after that. I grab a flowerpot and throw it toward the pool, hurling a chair in the same direction a second or two later. People scatter; theyre probably shouting too, but in my mind everything is silent. The host of the party comes over and tries to calm me down, but its like my entire being has been reduced to a mix of anger and despairthe guy doesnt even have time to put his hand on my shoulder before Ive knocked him out.

Next thing I know, a whole gang is holding me back, dragging me into a car, driving off with me.

My memories after that are pretty fragmented. Two guys hold me down in the backseat as Im lashing out and trying to break free. They eventually throw me out on some street in Westwood, and I struggle to my feet and start running.

I alternate between sweating and freezing, and at some point it dawns on me that Im naked. I hail a cab and give the driver my girlfriends address. He drives me over there, and I climb the fence to get into the house. I pull on a jacket and a pair of pants and get some money for him. Then I go back inside and break everything I can find. My girlfriend has come home by this point. Somewhere in the distance, I can hear her shouting.

I mustve passed out after that, because when I wake up two cops are standing on either side of me, their guns in my face.

My next memory is being locked up in a drunk tank, slumped on the floor. A homeless, disheveled-looking man is sitting in one corner. Hes drooling, doesnt have any teeth. When he spots me, he hisses rather than speaks: Hey, rock starhows it feel to be down here in the gutter with us crackheads?

Long Beach, 1965