Tom Zautaut who famously signed Motley Crue and Guns N’Roses, has called Johnny Depp “the worst guitarist I’d ever seen”.
Much celebrated A&R executive Tom Zutaut spoke about seeing an early audition involving the actor pre Hollywood fame.
Following victory in a much publicised defamation court case with his ex wife Amber Heard, Johnny Depp released several new tracks, collaborating with the late Jeff Beck, including the track, ‘The Death And Resurrection Show’.
Johnny Depp Was “worst guitarist I’d ever seen”
Speaking on the X5 podcast, Tom Zutaut felt from the outset that Johnny Depp was not destined for a life as a musician.
“I thought that Johnny Depp wasn’t going to be a rock star”, he stated.
He continued, “You know, he auditioned for me twice. This is a funny story. I go to a rehearsal, the manager’s a friend of mine, and he goes, ‘I got this band from Jacksonville, they’re great.’ I go see ’em, and they were terrible. Johnny Depp was the worst guitarist I’d ever seen — but his charisma was insane, you know?”.
He also added, “Afterwards, I look at his manager, and I said, ‘Listen, buddy, he can’t make it, but you should get this kid an agent and put him in TV or on a movie; this kid’s a star. But the songs suck, and musicianship is terrible”.
A few months after this audition, Zutaut revealed that Depp secured an acting agent, landing a role in TV series 21 Jump Street.
The Pirates of the Caribbean star is currently part of a band with Alice Cooper and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry. So far, the band have released two albums, and have embarked on several world tours together.
Depp has also featured on several high profile recordings, including tracks from Oasis, Iggy Pop and the late Shane MacGowan.
