According to blabbermouth.net, former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman has once again mentioned that money was major motivator for him when he was approached about taking part in a reunion of the band’s Rust In Peace lineup nearly a decade ago. Friedman had met with Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson at the 2015 NAMM show in Anaheim, California to discuss a reunion of the Rust In Peace lineup, which would have seen him and drummer Nick Menza back in the mix.
The guitarist opened up about his reasons for turning down the Megadeth reunion in his autobiography, Dreaming Japanese, which was released on December 3, through Permuted Press. Reflecting on the “salary offer” the band’s then-manager Ron Lafitte made for him to rejoin the band, Friedman wrote: “Let’s just say he wasn’t even in the ballpark. Hell, he wasn’t even in the parking lot for the ballpark. The amount they offered was right around the first salary I got when I joined Megadeth in 1990.”
The artist adds: “If I’d had any idea they would lowball me like this, I never would have met with them in Anaheim. Had I taken that offer, I would have been paid less in a week than I made in a normal day in Japan. I was stunned and angry and told them I couldn’t even consider it. I made a counteroffer, which was the bare minimum I could accept, and far less than I have received from any of the artists I’ve toured with in Japan.”
When referencing the fact that Lafitte floated the possibility of a band tour with Iron Maiden as the first order of business after the reunion of the Rust In Peace lineup, Friedman said: “I was willing to take the financial hit because a reunion tour with Megadeth opening for Iron Maiden could open doors for me again in America. And what followed could be a bigger tour than anything we had previously done. Even if they met my rate, the tour would have been a huge windfall for them. They easily could have agreed to that, and the reunion would have been on, but they said I wanted too much money.”
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