Dave Navarro is a guitarist who played in the prominent rock bands Jane's Addiction and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

David Michael Navarro was born in Santa Monica, California on June 7, 1967 to James "Mike" Navarro and Constance Hopkins. Navarro's parents divorced when he was 7 and his mother died when he was 15. Navarro has two half siblings, a brother and a sister, who are 27 and 31 years younger than him. Navarro has been married three times and divorced twice. He married his first wife, Tanja, in a pagan ceremony in 1990 and his second wife, Rhian, in a civil cermony in 1994. Navarro married his current wife, model Carmen Electra, on November 22, 2003.

Navarro started playing guitar around the age of 12. He formed his first band South Dakota Railroad in junior high (where he also met future bandmate Eric Avery). In high school, he formed the band Dizatre with Stephen Perkins on drums and Rico Quevedo on bass and vocals. Navarro joined the band Jane's Addiction in 1986 with Navarro playing guitar, Perry Farrell on vocals, Avery on bass, and Perkins on drums. The band became successful but personal tensions led to their breakup in 1991 following their headlining of the highly popular Lollapalooza festival tour. Navarro formed Deconstruction with Avery on vocal/bass and Michael Murphy on drums which put out one self-titled album before also breaking up. Navarro joined the existing band, the Red Hot Chili Peppers (Anthony Keidis on vocals, Flea on bass, Chad Smith on drums) in 1993 but their musical styles were different and Navarro left the band in 1998. He formed a new band, Spread, which briefly included Smith. Jane's Addiction also reunited for a few shows in 1997, 1999, and 2001 with Flea and then Martyn Le Noble replacing Avery on bass. Navarro also played bass and guitar with his then girlfriend Monet Mazur's band Nancy Raygun in 1999. In 2002, Jane's Addiction again reunited and recorded a studio album with Chris Cheny now playing bass.

In addition to his musical work, Navarro has briefly appeared in two movies, Floundering (1994) and Uptown Girls (2003). Navarro also wrote a movie review column entitled "Movies & Crap" for Bikini magazine with his cousin Johnny (although they referred to themselves as bothers in the column). Navarro has also written for Details, Nylon, Raygun, and US Weekly magazines and written an as yet unpublished photo book entitled Don't Try This At Home.

Discography

  • with Jane's Addiction
    • Jane's Addiction (live at the Roxy in Los Angeles, CA January 26, 1987) 1987
    • Nothing's Shocking 1988
    • Ritual de Lo Habitual 1990
    • Live and Rare (Japan release)
    • Kettle Whistle (Jane's Relapse) 1997
    • Mountain Song (EP - UK release)
    • The Shocking E.P. (EP - UK release)
    • Three Days/Stop! (EP)
    • Been Caught Stealing (EP)
    • Classic Girl (EP)
    • Strays 2003

  • with Deconstruction
    • Deconstruction 1994
    • L.A. Song promo (EP)

  • with the Red Hot Chili Peppers
    • One Hot Minute 1995
    • Warped (EP)
    • My Friends (EP - UK release)
    • Aeroplane (EP)
    • Love Rollercoaster (EP)
    • Shallow Be Thy Game (EP - Australian release)
    • Coffee Shop (EP - German release)

  • solo work
    • Rhimorse (EP - never released) 1995
    • Trust No One 2001
    • Rexall (EP - UK/Australia release)
    • Trust No One (promo sampler EP)
    • Rexall (EP)

See also: Other important guitar innovators worthy of serious study: