Shaun Ryder took so many drugs when he was the frontman of Black Grape in the 90s that the band’s career felt like "one long, mad week".
The hellraising singer formed the group in 1993 after his iconic Manchester band the Happy Mondays split, but Shaun admits he has very little recollection of his time fronting the act because he was taking so many different substances, including cocaine, weed, ecstasy and heroin, but his favourite drug of choice was prescribed tranquilliser temazepam.
Speaking to the Daily Star newspaper, he said: "That three years from 1995 to 1998, looking back, just doesn’t make sense time-wise. When we came out the other side, it was actually three years later and we were like, ‘Where have we been for the last three years?’
"Forget cocaine, forget heroin, forget ecstasy, the best drug we could all be on at that point was temazepam."
Shaun was once so high that he woke up in a stranger’s basement sandwiched between two naked waitresses and a gun which appeared to have been fired.
He said: "I remember where the gun came from, but there was three bullets missing from the chamber, and I haven’t a f***ing clue where the bullets ended up."
Shaun, now 56, still tours with Black Grape and a reunited line-up of the Happy Mondays.
The ‘Step On’ hitmaker has been clean of drugs for over 16 years and he credits taking cycling for helping him kick his habit by going cold turkey.
The father-of-six said: "It was cycling that got me off drugs. I’d get on my bike very early in the morning and keep cycling until very late at night, day after day, until it was out of the system. I was pedalling from 8am until 11pm. But once that’s done, you still have to deal with the mental stuff."
Shaun had previously tried to quit heroin by using a stomach implant but it was an utter disaster.
He said: "Trying to quit heroin using a stomach implant was disastrous. I tried it in 1995 when it was still a new thing. The problem was that they withdraw you while you’re out unconscious, and I expected to wake up feeling fine. But I didn’t. I woke up and it was f**king murderous."
Shaun Ryder admits Black Grape days were a haze
