Just out of the Air Force in 1961, Libert started The Happenings with four other kids from Paterson.
3 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Two other singles, covers of Go Away Little Girl and My Mammy, hit to Top 15.
David LibertDavid Libert Instagram
I was also the manager of the band.
His big break came when he connected withsupermenschand ubermanager Shep Gordon.
I owe Shep almost everything that I learned about the business, no doubts, Libertonce said.
It was just one big happy family, back then.
Oh God, what have I gotten myself into?
I just quit my nice, convenient, cushy job road managing Rare Earth for this insanity?
I thought I had made the biggest mistake of my life.
What he discovered, however, was that Cooper and his crew were pros.
All the people that worked for Alice were professionals.
They really knew what they were doing,he said.
There was a lot of equipment and props.
Before anyone else, we carried our own lighting systems and sound systems and staging.
It was my responsibility to make it run like a well oiled machine.
It taught me responsibility, discipline and how to work with other people.
Somehow, Libert said, he thrived in that environment.
They were an amazing band, Libert said.
I genuinely love those guys, they are very intelligent, disciplined, politically astute.
It was a pleasure hanging out with those guys.
Who may predict what they would have become, if they stayed together?
I went over there to check them out and was immediately impressed.
Their songs were special and they were extremely disciplined when it came to the music.
They practiced several hours a day, their songs were terrific, and their musicianship was high quality.
I liked everything about them.
They were the real deal.
They were never not Guns N Roses.
They were always Guns N Roses if they were together or hanging out individually.
You knew that there was no way in hell they were not going to make it.
I wanted to manage them.
The issue with landing Guns N Roses was having the money to get them off the ground.
I went looking for money and I failed in that pursuit, he admitted.
So I had to walk away because I couldnt have been a benefit to them.
