Aaron West Arkeen (June 18, 1960 – May 30, 1997) was an American musician best known for co-writing several
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...
songs. He died in Los Angeles of a drug overdose.
Early life
Aaron West Arkeen was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France and grew up in San Diego, California. He was the son of Morris Arkeen, a retired U. S. Army Master Sergeant. As an infant, he suffered from
craniosynostosis
Craniosynostosis is a condition in which one or more of the fibrous sutures in a young infant's skull prematurely fuses by turning into bone (ossification), thereby changing the growth pattern of the skull. Because the skull cannot expand perpe ...
, a birth defect in which the skull grows irregularly, often constricting brain growth. The condition required surgery that left an ear-to-ear scar over the crown of Arkeen's head.
After his parents divorced in 1963 he was raised by his father with his older brother, Abe, in San Diego, California. His mother was a “non-factor” in the brothers’ lives and this was the root of West’s later substance-abuse issues.
Arkeen began playing guitar when he was 14 years old. Though he took a single guitar lesson, he was largely a self-taught musician. Arkeen cited
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
,
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
,
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...
,
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...
, and
Ted Nugent
Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American rock musician and activist. He initially gained fame as the lead guitarist and occasional lead vocalist of The Amboy Dukes, a band formed in 1963 that played psychedelic rock an ...
as musical influences from his youth.
He worked briefly in the oil industry in East Texas and as a slot machine repairman in Las Vegas, then moved from San Diego to Los Angeles to pursue a music career at age 23. Arkeen’s longtime girlfriend Wendy Gosse described him seeing bands at local L. A. clubs and befriending them to jam and write songs, sometimes deep into the next day.
Music career
After several years of struggling to find success as a musician, Arkeen befriended a group of musicians in Los Angeles which would soon rise to international fame as
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...
. Arkeen lived in an apartment next to Guns N' Roses bassist
Duff McKagan
Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan (born February 5, 1964), sometimes credited as Duff "Rose" McKagan, is an American musician. He played bass for twelve years in the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late ...
and 1960's
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
pioneer
Sly Stone
Sylvester Stewart (born March 15, 1943), better known by his stage name Sly Stone, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer who is most famous for his role as frontman for Sly and the Family Stone, playing a critical role in the ...
, and he and McKagan quickly formed a friendship and began writing songs together.
Though never a member of the band, the group's vocalist
Axl Rose
W. Axl Rose (born William Bruce Rose Jr.; born February 6, 1962) is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and lyricist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, and has been the band's sole constant member since its incep ...
considered adding him as a third guitarist, primarily for his prolific songwriting abilities.
Arkeen would ultimately leave his mark on the band by co-writing the songs "
It's So Easy," "Crash Diet", "Bad Obsession", "
The Garden", "Sentimental Movie" and "
Yesterdays" with Rose. Arkeen also penned "Make Your Play" and "Pressure" for
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
band
Brother Cane
Brother Cane is an American rock band that released three albums in the 1990s. Formed in Alabama in 1990 by singer and guitarist Damon Johnson and bassist Glenn Maxey, the line-up was completed by guitarist Roman Glick and drummer Scott Collier. ...
, as well as co-writing "My Misery" for
Phantom Blue.
After working on other songs with the band for their double set ''
Use Your Illusion I
''Use Your Illusion I'' is the third studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released on September 17, 1991, the same day as its counterpart ''Use Your Illusion II''. Both albums were released in conjunction with the Use Your Illu ...
'' and ''
II'', Arkeen started his own project in 1995,
The Outpatience. Featuring vocalist
Mike Shotton, bassist James Hunting, guitarist
Joey Hunting, drummer
Abe Laboriel Jr
Abraham Laboriel Jr. (born March 23, 1971) is an American session drummer. He is the son of Mexican bass guitarist Abraham Laboriel, nephew of Mexican rocker Johnny Laboriel, and brother of record producer, songwriter, and film composer Mateo ...
. and keyboardist
Gregg Buchwalter, the band released their debut album, ''
Anxious Disease
The Outpatience were an American hard rock group formed in California by guitarist West Arkeen, who is best known for co-writing several Guns N' Roses songs, in 1995. They released one album, ''Anxious Disease'' in 1996; however, the group soon d ...
'' in 1996 in Japan. The album has connections to Guns N' Roses:
Axl Rose
W. Axl Rose (born William Bruce Rose Jr.; born February 6, 1962) is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist and lyricist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, and has been the band's sole constant member since its incep ...
,
Slash
Slash may refer to:
* Slash (punctuation), the "/" character
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Slash (Marvel Comics)
* Slash (''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'')
Music
* Harry Slash & The Slashtones, an American rock band
* Nash ...
and
Duff McKagan
Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan (born February 5, 1964), sometimes credited as Duff "Rose" McKagan, is an American musician. He played bass for twelve years in the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late ...
appear as guest artists and
Izzy Stradlin
Jeffrey Dean Isbell (born April 8, 1962), best known as Izzy Stradlin, is an American guitarist. He was a co-founder and rhythm guitarist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, which he left at the height of their fame in 1991, and with whom he ...
co-wrote one of the songs.
Izzy Stradlin and Duff McKagan are most closely associated with Arkeen. The trio played in The Drunkfuxs' side project together, and Arkeen co-wrote two of the songs on McKagan's debut solo record, ''
Believe in Me''.
Death
On May 30, 1997, Arkeen was found dead in his Los Angeles home at 36 years old. Arkeen had been at home recovering from severe burns from his indoor barbeque that exploded. His death was ruled an "accidental opiate overdose."
Legacy and influence
Duff McKagan
Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan (born February 5, 1964), sometimes credited as Duff "Rose" McKagan, is an American musician. He played bass for twelve years in the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late ...
credits Arkeen with teaching him about alternate tuning on guitar.
Slash
Slash may refer to:
* Slash (punctuation), the "/" character
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Slash (Marvel Comics)
* Slash (''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'')
Music
* Harry Slash & The Slashtones, an American rock band
* Nash ...
stated that Arkeen was "the only one that always came through when any of us needed anything; for a long time he literally was the only one we could trust" Arkeen’s bluesy style affected GNR’s songwriting style.
The Guns N' Roses album ''
Live Era: '87-'93'' was dedicated, in part, to his memory.
Discography
References
External links
West Arkeen @ Discogs.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arkeen, West
1960 births
20th-century American composers
Singer-songwriters from California
American male singer-songwriters
Guns N' Roses
1997 deaths
Drug-related deaths in California
People from Neuilly-sur-Seine
20th-century American singers
20th-century American male singers