Alan Niven

Alan Niven is a New-Zealand-born manager of rock and roll bands, a music producer, and songwriter. He is best known for managing the American rock bands, Great White and Guns N' Roses. Niven has also worked with or been associated with bands such as Izzy Stradlin and the Juju Hounds, Dokken, Berlin, Motley Crue, Buck & Evans, and Havana Black, among others. He has had ties with Virgin Records and Enigma Records as well.

Niven co-produced the majority of Great White’s studio albums, including 1987’s ‘Once Bitten’ and 1988’s ‘Twice Shy’. According to Alan Niven (and a few other musicians), it was Niven who gave Great White the idea to cover Ian Hunter’s song, ‘Once Bitten, Twice Shy’. It has been stated by that he reportedly wanted to ‘give the song’ to Guns N' Roses but gave it to Great White because he felt their need was greater. Great White’s version charted at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, and at No. 6 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. The song’s music video was placed on New York Times' list of the ‘15 Essential Hair-Metal Videos’.

Niven served five years as Guns N' Roses' manager before being fired and replaced with Doug Goldstein. The reasons for the termination are often debated.

Mosqueda, Ruben. Sleaze Roxx. 2020, May 11. Interview with Former Great White and Guns N' Roses Manager Alan Niven.