Complex sentence: After the departure of Guns N'Roses' original rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin in August 1991, Navarro was the first choice of lead singer Axl Rose to replace Stradlin; despite four attempts to have him come in and play with Slash, he never showed up.
Split into simpler sentences: After the departure of Guns N'Roses' original rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin in August 1991, Navarro was the first choice of lead singer Axl Rose to replace Stradlin. However, despite four attempts to have him come in and play with Slash, he never showed up.