Alan Niven, who once led Guns N’ Roses During what his lawyers call “their most productive period” in the late 1980s and early 1990s, he took legal action in Arizona against former business partners.
The suit was filed over attempts to block the release of his memoirs. Sound N’ Fury: Rock ‘n’ Roll Stories.
Submitted earlier this week and obtained by VarietyThe lawsuit alleges that a 1991 confidentiality agreement has been broken numerous times by three key band members, Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan, through interviews and published books.
Niven says he has never previously been legally warned or threatened when speaking publicly about his time with the group, making the new attempt to stop the publication of his book unfair.
Niven claims the band sent him a cease and desist order earlier this year to stop the memoir’s publication.
According to the complaint, he believes he should be free to respond to what he describes as “disparaging” comments made over the years.
He also says that thousands of printed copies are currently being stockpiled, costing him money, while they remain hidden from the public.
The lawsuit further alleges that Axl Rose never signed the confidentiality agreement in the first place. Niven sues to continue publishing.
Before you start working with it Guns N’ RosesNiven led Great White throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s.
In 2023, he sued the band’s label, Universal Music Group, saying he was owed nearly $1 million in royalties and fees. That case was dismissed and is now being appealed.
Niven also took legal action against Australian group The Brewster Brothers in 2010, claiming copyright infringement and requesting publishing rights and the return of two guitars.
The judge ultimately ruled in his favor on the copyrights to eleven songs, ordered the return of the guitars and required the band to pay him $295.77, although the remaining claims were dismissed.
Now Niven is focusing on bringing his own story to the public, arguing that efforts to silence him are inconsistent with the band’s history of speaking freely about their shared past.
