One More Mistery Of The Universe Solved: SLASH’S Name Isn’t SLASH

Slash

In an interview with Steve Jones, Slash solved one more mistery of universe: his moniker. Read here:

Your real name is Sal?

“Not Sal. Jesus… [Laughs] Saul. S-A-U-L.”

Does anyone call you Saul?

“No. Police. Because it’s on my driver’s license. [Laughs] As I refuse to change it legally and make a big deal out of it. My dad calls me Slash, my mom calls me Slash. I think the last person that really called me Saul was my grandmother. Rest in peace.”

Where did you get that name from?

“My best friend’s dad is a really cool actor named Seymour Cassel. Whenever I used to go over there, he used to just call me Slash. And it was just one of those things because we all hung out there. So my friends started to call me Slash and it just became a thing.

“Now, I found out from Seymour years later, I think in like 1991 or ’92, I was in Europe and I ran into him. We went to lunch and I said, ‘Where did that come from?’ He goes, ‘Because you never stopped to talk to anybody, you never had time, you’re always hustling and s**t.’

“So that’s where it came from. Had nothing to do with knives or any of that kind of stuff.”

But what’s that got to do with not talking to someone?

“Because I was always on the go. Every time you saw me, I whizzed by, ‘Hey,’ and kept going. Like a flash, but slash. Something like that, I don’t know.”

Makes no sense to me.

“[Laughs] It made sense to him.”