Motley Crue Drummer Randy Castillo
Here are the highly anticipated 20 Questions with Randy.
Question #1 was already previewed in a post about a week and a half ago and Randy's answer has made it's way all across the internet. Well here are the rest of the questions along with Randy's quality answers.
Randy put some great effort into this. Enjoy.
What have I been up to? Well it`s a been a very intense year for me so far. Earlier this past june before the Motley Maximum Rock tour was to begin I was playin` a gig w/my other band "Azul" at the CatClub & right in the middle of the show I started feelin` faint & nauseous. I made it through the show, barely & afterward I decided to take a cab home. On the way home I started getting a pain in my stomach that felt like I was being stabbed w/an ice pick. I told the driver to take me to Cedars because (luckily) it was right on the way home. By the time we pulled up to the emergency entrance I could barely walk. I passed out right at the door & the next thing I new I was in a wheel chair being pushed down a hallway. I asked what was goin on & the nurse told me to get ready cuz I was headed for surgery! She said "we have to put a tube up yer penis & in yer nose & up yer butt!" So I said please put me under before you do that plllleeeease. She said "ok". I woke up the next afternoon with tubes & cathaters & a morphine blanket on my brain. My surgeon came in & said "we almost lost you kid, another 10 min. & that shit would have gotten in your blood stream & you`d have been a gonner"! I had someone watching over me that night. What happened was I had a duodenal ulcer which ate a hole through the lining of my stomach & once it opened up all that acid in the tummy just pours into your lower intestines & wreaks havoc! My doc said my ulcer was caused by a bacteria that is contagious called "h-pylori". I thought it was my love of drink & good times that at least contributed but no it was a bug that apparently many people have & don`t even realise that they do! I was one of them! Well that put an end to my summer tour W/the Crue cuz it was only 2 wks before the tour was to begin. Bummer...so I sit out the summer recouperating & feelin sorry for myself.
Thought that was bad?
Well get a load of this....around the beginning of last august I was shaving when I noticed a small painless lump under my right jaw line. I wrote it off figuring it was the beginning of a cyst or something. Wrong...a month later it was the size of a ping pong ball! I finally stopped my denial & went & had it checked out. It was "the big C" alright. "Squamous Cell Carcinoma" to be exact & it was mean & aggressive. There is nothing like the wave of emotion that hits you when you get told "You have cancer". Nothing can prepare you for the doom you feel inside upon hearing those words. I went outside walked around in a daze & asking why me then took a deep breath, came back inside & said "well what do we do now?" I am probably ramblin` too much for you all but there is good reason which I`ll explain later. On Oct.13th yup friday & a full moon to boot I had surgery to remove the tumor which by this time was the size of a lime! So much for joining the Crue in Japan & Australia. Bigger Bummer cuz I love Australia ...& Japan. So that brings me to now. I am currently getting radiation every day 5 days a week & Chemo-Therapy once every three wks for six months...cancer is a bitch. I ain't bald yet but they say some people don`t lose hair...who knows, anyway I don`t care, it grows back. So lately I`ve been gettin my creative ya-ya`s through my art. I have a bit of time on my hands lately so I`ve been painting my ass off. You can check it out at www.fcukingcontagious.net click on "art". The reason I rambled is because I just want anybody out there to know that if you ever have the slightest inkling of a symptom, wether it be a lump or a sore anywhere on your body or anything that looks or feels suspicious go get it checked out fast because with cancer time is of the essence. You could save yourself & all who care about you a shitload of grief by catching it early. Anyway I`m gonna be fine...I gotta do a mean dance w/the devil but I'm gonna beat this thing & return more badass than ever! I promise.
2. Are you healthy enough to answer our questions right now or do
you need a female fill-in to help you out?Yes I feel healthy enough, I only feel bad after Chemo cuz that shit is so toxic it`s like havin`a river of fire flowin`through your veins. however a female to fill in would be nice as long as she could spell & has a body from hell!
3. You played with Ozzy for years. What is your best Ozzy story?
Yes I played w/Ozzy collectivelly for about 8 yrs. Longer than anyone else! Now thats an accomplishment! Lets see my favorite ozzy story hmmmm.... it was the ultimate sin tour w/mettallica in `87. We used to have this huge monster w/a forked tongue that looked like Ozzy. Ozzy would climb into his lap before the show & be lifted about 30 ft. into the lightng rig, he was strapped in w/ a seat belt. I would then get on my drum riser & then rise up into the rig right behind Ozzy. The curtains would fall then ozzy would slowly be lowered to the stage during the big opening fanfare. On this one particular night his monster w/him in it got caught on the edge of my riser as he was being lowered to the stage.Well he had his wireless mic on & all we could hear through the sound system was ..."HELP...HELP...STOP THIS FUCKIN` THING!HEEEEELLLP! My drum tech who was also scared to death of heights had to try & kick the thing lose w/out falling which surely would have killed him...all this in front of 20000 screaming fans! Well my tech got it lose & it swung & rocked all the way down! when it finally landed Ozzy walked out white as a sheet from his near death experience & we were all trying to play while cracking up about the whole thing...a real spinal tap moment!
4. What hard rock/heavy metal band should give it up and call it a day?
"Spinal Tap" it`s begining to wear a bit thin.
5. Rate the following drummers on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 being somebody with no timing and 10 being a drum master. Samantha Maloney =
Tommy Lee =
Eric Singer =
Rikki Rockett =
Bobby Blotzer =
Brian Tichy =
Mike Portnoy =
Blas Elias =
Tommy Aldridge =
Carmine Appice =
oh you know I`m freinds w/every single one of them & I`m gonna be the diplomat here b`cause I`ll never hear the end of it. You know what? Theyre all fuckin 10`s because they have all achieved some degree of success in a business that is really fuckin hard to get even the slightest iota of recognition. There are a lot of players out there that would give their right arm to be ambidextrous & most of them wish they could at least have a taste of what these drummers have experienced! So there ...don`t like that answer? too bad...
6. Is Motley paying you while you are sitting on the self?damn straight...10 grand a week & all the hustlers & playboys & maids & booze i could ever want!
7. If you could have stopped aging at any point in your life up to the present, how old would you want to remain?
physically I would stay at 33 but mentally I hope to know everything by the time I`m 55, because I just keep on learnin more shit everyday!
8. There was a rumor that you had a pretty heavy 'nose candy' problem. What's the status of that past and present for yourself?
I can count on one hand the people I know in this business that didn`t have a "nose candy"problem back then! I enjoyed the times I had without feeling overly guilty about my excesses but like anything else in life too much is too bad & besides I don`t like waking up feeling like shit & smelling like the carpet of the rainbow anymore. Despite my cancer I am cleaner & healthier now than I ever was in the past.
9. Are you bummed that most Motley fans have embraced Samantha and probably would rather her stay in the band?
I don`t know who you have been talking to but everyone I hear from wants me back & pronto! That said...hell no I aint bummed...I`m happy that Samantha got to make a small dream come true by playing with Motley. More power to her.
10. Rate the following chicks on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 being a mess
and 10 being a hottie. Donna D’Errico =
Heidi Mark =
Sharon Osbourne =
Britney Spears =
Bobbi Brown =
Pamela Anderson =
Carmen Electra =
Gerri Miller =
Courtney Love =
Lita Ford =
#10 all 10 get 10`s don`t like it? too bad!
11. What rock star deserves a smack in the mouth and why?
I do because I never should have smoked. Thats why I got the big C.
I don`t coun`t...I can`t count, & besides you would be disapointed .
13. What’s the most amount of drugs and alcohol you consumed in 24 hours and where did it happen?
lets see it was new years of 89 & I threw a party at my apartment in hollywood.a ton of people came over & of course all the goodies were there. tons of booze, blow, acid, shrooms & exctacy...well three days later we were still goin`just me, a certain drummer friend & what was leftof the party favors. we managed to finish all that too & on the fourth day he finally left. I was 6 months sober after that one!
14. Have you ever been arrested, and if so, for what?yes...once for unpaid speeding tickets...nothing major.
15. Do you think guys who are in their very late 30s and are millionaires should be sporting dreadlocks and sounding like they are from the ghetto?
I really don`t give a shit ! if a guy is in his 80`s & has a million bucks & feels like sportin dreads, right on! who really cares about such trivial bullshit as long as he spreads a little love around...and a couple of bucks!
16. What exactly do you do everyday since you aren't healthy enough to tour? Give us the typical day for Randy Castillo.
well my day starts out at 5.30 am I get up shower & head over to cedars sinai cancer center for my daily dose of that glow in the dark radiation shit. i get radiated from 6;30 to 7:00 then I go to nicks, my favorite coffee shop & have breakfast then come home & watch some tube & dose off. later in the day I practice on my practice kit, do a little art work & go out for a bike ride if I`m not too tired. at night I get tons of movies from my friends so I watch a lot of movies lately...not very rock & roll but I dig it ...
17. The name Castillo actually sounds kind of Italian, yet you look Indian. Is Castillo a stage name and is your real last name something like Running Bull or Soaring Eagle?
Castillo is spanish however when I was in Italy I looked up the name in a phone book & there were a few Castillos there too. I am of Native American descent too,but I have no such name as "Dog Bark Fucking"or anything like that. how about "Big Pole Sliding"! That could be cool!
18. What's the most fucked up thing you ever saw Ozzy do?the most fucked up thing I eaver saw Ozzy do was slap Sharon in a fight but she actually beat the shit out of him before it was over...he paid dearly for that indescretion.!
19. Do you realize if Tommy called Nikki tomorrow and wanted to come back to Motley that you would probably be given the boot without second thought?
As much as I don`t believe that will happen I also realise that nothing surprises me in this business. And even if he did come back, so be it, buts its not something I lose sleep over. The band will go on with or with out me just as they did without tommy& besides after having cancer all the things you used to worry about become trivial little pimples on your ass.When I toured w/Vince he swore he would never go back,so what does that tell you? I have a Motley Album under my belt that I`m proud of & a tour that was a totall blast. If it all ends tomorrow It will be as friends & I will have a lot of great memories from the experience.
20. Time for Metal Sludge's Word Association. We mention a name and
you give us your thoughts.
Nikki Sixx = friend, musical mastermind unrelenting
creativity
Poison = candy floss metal band harmless so chicks
dig em.
Jani Lane = a blast to be on a bus with, goes for the allnighter
Marilyn Manson = Johny 5 one of my favorite guitarists
if it wasnt for Johny I probably wouldn`t care.
Fred Durst = I don`t listen to that shit & I don`t
know a thing about him, I like Korn.
Phil Soussan = As sharp as a staight razor
I don`t know a smarter guy in dis business.
Jake E Lee = A total enigma never said much ,played
some great guitar though then dissapeared.
Creed = ok songs but a bit like Alice N Chains JR.
Vince Neil = the king of the Havana Room.
Zakk Wylde = the coach sports the baddest guns in
rock & you can feel the fury comin through every brewtal note, &
a good bro.
Jizzy Pearl = gotta be better than Pearcy right?but
get rid of them roaches.
Lars Ulrich = he can be an annoying little shit sometimes but I like Lars cockier
than thow additude it serves him well. His drummings overrated, but he`s
perfect in metallica.
So there you have it Sludgsters...hope you like it & rock till your
big hair hurts!
Love & Luck...RRRRRRRRANDY
Thanks to Randy for being a good sport and giving us the scoop
on his health. The entire staff at Metal Sludge wishes Randy a speedy
recovery!