Last week, Slash and Bruno Mars stole the show at a private event that took over the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York, as they made an unlikely pairing on a host of classic tunes.
It's being reported that the 1,800-capacity venue was hired out by holding company Eldridge Industries, which is headed up by billionaire Todd Boehly. If this was its Christmas party, it sure beats bowling and pints.
Slash and his Guns N' Roses bandmate Duff McKagan starred alongside Chad Smith and super producer Andrew Watt as the heart of the all-star covers band, while Mars, Yungblud, Eddie Vedder, and Brandi Carlisle were among a smattering of stalwart singers to get in on the festivities.
They were billed as The Dirty Bats, with Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis donning a cowboy hat for his cameo, which included covers of Motörhead's Ace of Spades and Iggy and the Stooges' Search and Destroy. But it was the Mars-fronted portion of the set that stood out.
Mars gave some grit toWhole Lotta Love, excelled on a cover of the Police's Roxanne, and sounded impassioned on Jimi Hendrix's Fire with a Stratocaster in his hands.
He keeps hold of the Fender electric guitar as he howls his way through an adrenalized take of Nirvana’s smash hit, Smells Like Teen Spirit – one that Wolfgang Van Halen has taken inspiration from for Mammoth’s latest album.
Gear-wise, Slash is saddled up with a sunburst Gibson Les Paul (shock, horror), with a row of his signature Magnatone amps behind him. There are also a few Fender combos seen in front of the drum kit for the likes of Eddie Vedder and Mars to hook up to.
It was a pretty exhaustive setlist in all, with everyone coming together for the final two songs: Johnny B. Goode, a track synonymous with Back to the Future, and Rockin’ in the Free World.
The show came hot on the heels of Guns N' Roses releasing two new singles, Atlas and Nothin’. An album may soon follow in its wake.
“There’s so much material at this point – it’s a matter of having the discipline to sit down and fucking get into it,” Slash recently told Guitar World of a long-awaited new GNR record. “Everybody is thinking about it.”
