It all started in 2014 when drummer Shawn Drover and guitarist Chris Broaderick quit Megadeth. Rumors swirled that Megadeth was about to reunite their classic Rust In Peace lineup – which meant getting guitarist Marty Friedman and drummer Nick Menza back in the fold. That reunion ended up not happening, Megadeth hired guitarist Kiko Loureiro and recruited session drummer Chris Adler for the Dystopia album, and everyone moved on.
In his new book Dreaming Japanese (via Blabbermouth), Friedman reveals that he met with Megadeth in 2015 to discuss a reunion and received a pretty insulting salary offer. Friedman notes he would've been paid less in a week with Megadeth than he makes in a single day through his work in Japan, which is… not great.
"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. 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."
Friedman later speculates that a Rust In Peace-era lineup reunion would've made Megadeth bigger than they'd ever been before, and that it could've very well led to bigger tours with more money. Which then y'know, could've led to the salary Friedman was looking for and everyone would've been happy.
"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."
Friedman added: "I was happy with my career in Japan, doing what I loved, making real money without the kind of drama that comes with Megadeth. They didn't even acknowledge they had just lost their guitarist and drummer and needed me more than I needed them. When I got over my initial anger, I was puzzled and sad."
Sadly, a Rust In Peace-era lineup reunion can never happen now. Drummer Nick Menza died in 2016, and it doesn't really seem like bassist David Ellefson is rejoining Megadeth anytime soon after his video-related extramarital jaunt. If you haven't gotten your copy of Dreaming Japanese just yet, you can get it here.
