Appetite for litigation: Former Guns N' Roses manager sues band in Arizona
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Alan Niven, the former manager for Guns N' Roses, pictured here in 1988, is suing the band in federal court in Arizona. Photo: Larry Marano/Getty Images
Welcome to the desert, where famed rock band Guns N' Roses faces a lawsuit from its former manager, a longtime Arizona resident.
The big picture: Alan Niven, the rock band's manager through their rise to superstardom, is suing the group for blocking the release of his autobiography.
- Niven filed the suit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Prescott, where he lives.
State of play: Niven's book, "Sound N' Fury: Rock N' Roll Stories," chronicles his six years with Guns N' Roses, as well as his experiences with bands including Motley Crue and Great White.
- In May, the band sent him a letter arguing the book violates a confidentiality agreement he signed when he was forced out in 1991, and it has blocked publication with legal threats and is "attempting to use their superior resources and bargaining power to silence him and threaten his livelihood," per the lawsuit.
- Thousands of copies of the book now languish in a warehouse, incurring storage costs, the complaint says.
Yes, but: The lawsuit argues that former band members have repeatedly violated the confidentiality agreement since Niven split with the band, including inflammatory and derogatory remarks about him. It goes on to say the band has waived its rights to enforce the confidentiality clause.
- Niven has also given numerous public interviews about his time with the band and members have invited him to participate in documentaries about Guns N' Roses, and one member encouraged him to write a book, the lawsuit says.
- The complaint states that the confidentiality agreement had to be signed by all band members to be effective, and it wasn't signed by lead singer Axl Rose.
Zoom in: Niven moved to Prescott not long after splitting with Guns N' Roses, his attorney Eric Bjorgum told Axios.
- "He always loved it out there, and he wanted to get out of LA," Bjorgum said.
- More than a decade ago, Niven founded a Prescott-based heavy metal label called Tru-B-Dor Records.
- After the Granite Mountain Hotshots tragedy in 2013, Bjorgum said, Niven organized a benefit concert at the Prescott Rodeo Grounds headlined by iconic Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash.
Flashback: The New Zealand-born Niven got his music industry start in 1974 at Virgin Records under Richard Branson, per the lawsuit.
- He worked with Motley Crue and Great White before joining up with Guns N' Roses, which he managed during what the lawsuit called the band's "most prolific period" from 1985 to 1991.