Why Dave Navarro Threw All His Guitars Into a Concert Crowd

Dave Navarro recalled the moment he lost it during a Jane’s Addiction show and threw every guitar he owned into the crowd.

It was an angry reaction against frontman Perry Farrell during the first Lollapalooza festival in 1991. It led Navarro to suffer instant regret – but it turned out to have an unexpected positive effect on his career.

“Back then, drugs and alcohol were a big factor in our band’s life,” he told Guitar World in a recent interview. “Sometimes we’d be at the same level and have a great time, and sometimes people would go in different directions.

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“On that particular night I went in a different direction. Three songs in we got into a physical altercation and I decided, ‘I’m done playing this fucking show.’ I took all my Ibanez guitars and threw them into the audience. I looked at Perry and I was like, ‘What are you going to do now?’ Like, ‘Ha ha ha, I got you! I don’t have any guitars to play now!’”

He continued: “Five minutes later, I was like, ‘Oh shit, what am I going to do now?’ I was so focused on getting back at him that I didn’t realize I’d just cut my own feet off.”

Fortunately help was at hand. “The guitarist of the Rollins Band, Chris Haskett, was playing with Corey Smith. At the next gig he said, ‘Why don’t you borrow one of my guitars and see if you like it?’ So for the second Lollapalooza show I was playing a PRS, and I said, ‘I fucking love this.’”

Why Jane’s Addiction Are Having More Fun Than Ever

Since that time Navarro has remained with PRS. “They overnighted two or three guitars,” he said. “I used them for the rest of Lollapalooza and the rest of my career.”

He reported that the reunited Jane’s Addiction – who just released “Imminent Redemption,” their first song to feature the original lineup since 1991 – are having more fun on stage than ever before, extending and experimenting with songs as they go.

“It makes playing those songs fun again,” he said. “You’re on the edge of a cliff and you don’t know if you’re gonna fall off. So far, we haven’t. And even if we did, that would be kind of a memorable moment!”

Watch Jane’s Addiction’s “Imminent Redemption” Lyric Video