Dave Navarro

David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is an American guitarist.

He is best known as a member of the rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded four studio albums.

David Michael Navarro was born on June 7, 1967, in Santa Monica, California, the only child of James Raul Navarro and Constance Colleen Hopkins.

His paternal grandparents were Mexican immigrants.

His grandfather Gabriel Navarro was close friends with Mexican silent film actor Ramón Novarro, who allegedly adopted his artistic surname.

He attended Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California, where he was a member of the marching band with future Jane's Addiction bandmate Stephen Perkins.

Navarro's mother and aunt were murdered by her ex-boyfriend, John (Dean) Riccardi, in March 1983.

Navarro joined the band Jane's Addiction in 1986 as the lead guitarist after he was recommended to vocalist Perry Farrell by drummer Stephen Perkins, who was a childhood friend of Navarro's. The band became successful and was popular in the alternative-rock music scene.

Over the next five years, Jane's Addiction released three albums, Jane's Addiction (1987), Nothing's Shocking (1988) and Ritual de lo Habitual (1990).

Navarro has been married three times: celebrity makeup artist Tania Goddard-Saylor (1990–1992, divorced), Rhian Gittins (1994, annulled), and model and actress Carmen Electra (2003–2007, divorced).

Riccardi was arrested in 1991, thanks to a viewer tip after Riccardi was featured on the television series America's Most Wanted.

Personal tensions, however, led to their breakup in 1991.

The Lollapalooza festival was created by Farrell as a farewell tour for Jane's Addiction.

After the departure of Guns N' Roses' original rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin in August 1991, Navarro was the first choice of lead singer Axl Rose to replace Stradlin; despite four attempts to have him come in and play with Slash, he never showed up.

Between 1993 and 1998, Navarro was the guitarist of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, recording one studio album, One Hot Minute (1995), before departing.

In 1993, Navarro formed Deconstruction with Jane's Addiction's Eric Avery on vocals and bass and Michael Murphy on drums.

Navarro joined Red Hot Chili Peppers in September 1993.

His first large-scale performance with the band was at Woodstock '94.

The band put out one self-titled album in 1994.

Rick Rubin was involved in the production and Butthole Surfers singer Gibby Haynes makes a guest appearance.

They did not tour due to Avery's exhaustion after Jane's Addiction.

The only album on which Navarro played with Red Hot Chili Peppers, One Hot Minute, was released in 1995.

However, he later went on to play on the 1999 Guns N' Roses song "Oh My God", which was featured on the End of Days soundtrack.

He has also released one solo album, Trust No One (2001).

Navarro has also been a member of Jane's Addiction-related bands Deconstruction and the Panic Channel.

AllMusic's Greg Prato described Navarro as "one of alternative rock's first true guitar heroes", with an eclectic playing style that merges heavy metal, psychedelia, and modern rock.

"He's one of the last great guitarists," said Henry Rollins, former Black Flag singer, who saw him playing with Jane's Addiction.

During his appearance on America's Most Wanted in 2004, Navarro stated that he was supposed to visit and stay with his mother on the night of her murder but at the last minute went to stay with his father.

Navarro is also a host and judge on Ink Master, an American tattoo competition reality series that aired on Paramount Network (formerly called Spike) from 2012 to 2020 and Paramount+ since 2022.

Navarro was a performer at the Republican National Convention in 2012 in which Mitt Romney was nominated for president.

In 2015, Navarro released the documentary Mourning Son, which details his mother's murder and his spiral into drug addiction, as well as the pain he has had to overcome in the years since her death.

In 2016, he described his views in a tweet as "Libertarian".

Navarro had stated he was supporting Marianne Williamson as a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries.

He subsequently expressed support for Tulsi Gabbard, including having her on his show.

He said that "When I was very young, it was always Jimi Hendrix."

He was also fascinated by Yngwie Malmsteen for a brief period.

Navarro also stated that he learned a lot from Robert Smith of the Cure and Daniel Ash of Bauhaus.

He also said: "And I have always loved all the different guitarists that have been in Siouxsie and the Banshees".

He considers that "The great innovators, for me, are still Hendrix and [Jimmy] Page."

Van Halen's debut album was another reason why he learned to play guitar.