Rock n Roll Trivia

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Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses was born William Bruce Rose Jnr but Senior his father left when he was two-years-old and his mother remarried. Rose grew up with his stepfather’s name, Bailey, not knowing of the existence of his biological father. He was a teenager when he learned of his bio father but never met him. He did however adopt the name Rose. After moving to Los Angeles, he started a band called AXL. A friend suggested he adopt that name for himself, which he did, changing his name legally to W. Axl Rose just prior to Guns N' Roses signing their recording contract in 1986. The question is: did the fact that Axl Rose is an anagram for Oral Sex play a role in the name change? He has never said and there is no indication on the net. 

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The only guy in ZZ Top who doesn’t have a beard is drummer Frank Beard. 

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Freddie Mercury, real name Farrokh Bulsara, spent his final months at his home before his death from HIV-related bronchopneumonia in 1991. He was 45. Mercury’s fans would paste messages on the brick wall at the front of the £20million home Kensington and on the door. His partner Mary became sick of cleaning the wall and door. She had the tribute wall cleaned, painted the lodge’s famous green door black, put perspex over it and added signs warning of CCTV surveillance cameras. She also added a warning that “Graffiti is a crime”. 

Before

After

The house, Garden Lodge, has long been a place for Queen fans to visit because the singer's actual resting place remains unknown. 

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Barry Manilow’s 1976 hit, I Write the Songs, wasn’t written by him. 

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Before recording "That's All Right, Mama," Elvis auditioned to be a singer in a local band in Memphis and was told by the bandleader, "Stick to driving a truck because you'll never make it as a singer!" 

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At age 47, the Rolling Stones' bassist, Bill Wyman, began a relationship with 13-year old Mandy Smith, with her mother's blessing. Six years later, they were married, but the marriage only lasted a year. Not long after, Bill's 30-year-old son Stephen married Mandy's mother, age 46. That made Stephen a stepfather to his former stepmother. If Bill and Mandy had remained married, Stephen would have been his father's father-in-law and his own grandpa. 

Bill Wyman & teenbride Mandy Smith 

Stephen Wyman and Patsy Smith. 

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Cass Elliot (Mama Cass of The Mamas & Papas) and Keith Moon of The Who died in the apartment of the same singer/songwriter: Harry Nilsson. 

Mama Cass 

Keith Moon 

Harry Nilsson