Jeffrey Dean Isbell (born April 8, 1962), known professionally as Izzy Stradlin, is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.

He was a co-founder, rhythm guitarist, and backing vocalist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he recorded four studio albums and left at the height of their fame in 1991.

[2] During his ill-fated first show with the band, audience members began attacking the musicians; Stradlin recalled, "I just grabbed a cymbal stand and stood on the side trying to fend them off, yelling, 'Get the fuck away from me, man!'

That was my introduction to the rock scene in L.A."[3] His two-month tenure in Naughty Women was followed by a stint in punk band The Atoms, before his drum kit was stolen from his car and he switched to bass.

In January 1984, the band recorded a five-song demo featuring the tracks "Killing Time", "Anything Goes", "Rocker", "Shadow of Your Love", and "Reckless Life", which were released in 2004 as part of the compilation album The Roots of Guns N' Roses.

[12] Stradlin wrote or cowrote most of its songs, including the hits "Sweet Child o' Mine" and "Paradise City".

In 1989, opening for The Rolling Stones, Rose made an on-stage announcement in which he threatened to leave the band if Slash and Adler did not stop "dancing with Mr. Brownstone,"[6] a reference to their song of the same name about heroin.

After being sentenced to a year's probation for urinating in public aboard an airplane (after which the band nicknamed him "Whizzy"), Stradlin decided to attain sobriety; he returned to his house in Indiana, where he detoxed from drugs and alcohol.

[16] By the release of the Use Your Illusion albums, Stradlin had become dissatisfied with life in Guns N' Roses: "Once I quit drugs, I couldn't help looking around and asking myself, 'Is this all there is?'

"[10] On November 7, 1991, it was announced that he had left Guns N' Roses,[6] having played his final show as an official member on August 31 at Wembley Stadium.

"[2] Some of Stradlin's guitar playing recorded during the Illusion sessions appears on Guns N' Roses' 1993 covers album "The Spaghetti Incident?

[19][20] In May 1993, Stradlin reunited with Guns N' Roses for five shows in Europe and the Middle East to fill in for his replacement, Gilby Clarke, who had broken his wrist in a motorcycle accident.

[10] Released in March 1998, the album was recorded over a period of two years and featured his former bandmates Duff McKagan and Rick Richards, as well as former Reverend Horton Heat drummer Taz Bentley, whose work Stradlin admired.

[24][25] Stradlin was then asked by his former Guns N' Roses bandmates Duff McKagan, Slash, and Matt Sorum to join the supergroup Velvet Revolver.

Although he contributed to the songwriting process while the band was in its formative stage,[26] Stradlin ultimately declined to join due to his aversion to life on the road and his unwillingness to work with a lead singer, although he offered to share vocal duties with McKagan.

[27] In 2003, Stradlin recorded his sixth album, Like a Dog, with guitarist Rick Richards, drummer Taz Bentley, and bassist JT Longoria.

[30] In May 2006, thirteen years after his last performance with Guns N' Roses, Stradlin made a guest appearance at the band's show at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York; he played on "Patience", "Think About You", and "Nightrain".

"[32] In July, a remixed version of Miami was released through iTunes; Stradlin called the new mix "much louder and more powerful sounding.

In addition to his regular collaborators, Stradlin also invited Duff McKagan to play bass on three songs, including the title track.

[14] Stradlin then released two more albums through iTunes: Smoke, which came out in December 2009, and Wave of Heat, which followed in July 2010 and again featured McKagan, who appears on seven tracks.

[34] In April 2012, Stradlin was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the classic lineup of Guns N' Roses.

In a statement released through Duff McKagan's blog for Seattle Weekly, he thanked the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame "for the acknowledgement of our works over the years," his former bandmates, and his fans for their continuing support.

[41] Amidst rumors and speculation, Stradlin joined Twitter,[42] and confirmed in a statement to Rolling Stone that he would not be involved with the 'reunited' Guns N' Roses lineup in 2016.

[44] In 2018, journalist Alan Niven reported that Stradlin participated in a soundcheck with Guns N' Roses sometime in 2017, but ultimately left before guesting at the show.

[46] "Sunshine" by Jonathon Edwards and "Stuck in the Middle with You" by Stealers Wheel were acoustic videos made available through YouTube,[46] whilst "Walk N' Song",[47] "F.P.