“The first gig we did… there was a guy there dancing in front, it was like a Battle of the Bands… very first show we ever did and this guy was dancing… I kind of thought he was making fun of us but it turned out it was Axl (Rose).”
— Greg Steele / Faster Pussycat classic guitarist
MS NEWS / May 18th 2026 — In a brand new video interview with The Hair Metal Guru the guest is classic Faster Pussycat guitarist Greg Steele.
Steele shares his music history which started in the Bay Area and eventually landed him in the heart of Hollywood during the mid 1980’s.
Steele admits he was shy but little did he know a by-chance meeting with Taime Downe who at the time was forming his new band, would land the pair a major label record contract with Faster Pussycat.
The guitarist credits Downe with a lot of the band’s early success as the singer was really connected and knew everyone in the scene from his days working at Retail Slut on Melrose to running sound & lights at the Troubadour.
Steele soon found himself in the thick of things with Poison, Guns N’ Roses and the Sunset Strip in general at a time when bands were flocking to Hollywood from near and far.
Lots of subjects are covered including stories about the band’s early days with manager Vicky Hamilton who helped them get signed to Elektra Records, working with Ric Browde who produced the band’s 1987 debut and touring with Kiss, Alice Cooper and the aforementioned Guns N’ Roses.
Steele describes the elation that Faster Pussycat experienced when they peaked during a tour withMötley Crüe on the Dr. Feelgood tour in early 1990: “I have a picture ofTaime (Downe) throwing… we were a Top 30 Single, Top 50 Album, we were on tour with Mötley… andTaime was like… he threw food everywhere and just destroyed the dressing room and I have a picture of him like (throws his hands up smiling) it was pretty funny… I still have that picture of him. It was the highlight of everything at that time.”
There are also stories shared of the unfortunate situation when the band’s classic drummer (Mark Michals) was arrested for Fed-Ex‘ing himself illegal substances while the band was in the middle of a tour.
The drummer issue was quickly rectified while still on that tour when Frankie Banali (Quiet Riot) was flown out to save the day before getting a full-time replacement in Brett Bradshaw.
Steele also expresses his appreciation for the late Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley saying: “Those (guitar) Solos were like Vocals, just Amazing!”
As the interview closes Steele starts to share details surrounding the demise of the band, especially after Grunge exploded…. he then tells listeners how years after being dropped by their label he was working as a delivery man and found himself delivering packages to the same Elektra Records office he once used to walk into as a signed artist.
Watch the full 80 minute interview with Greg Steele on The Hair Metal Guru shared below.
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