What is GNR exactly? Sure they had some personalities in the band back in the day but to me a band has always centered around it's main songwriter. The guys who back that songwriter up are only secondary. Is it the same, not at all, but it's still Axl writing the music and I highly doubt we'd have anything different if Slash was still in the band. The only difference is people would be out there talking about how amazing this album is vs how crappy it is because Slash is no longer in the band. For that matter to put it in perspective, Slash not being in GNR could be like Russ not being in Ion Vein or Scott not being in Twelfth Gate. This is what we have in 2008 and as long as the core songwriter is there it's enough for me to live with it. I guess maybe that outlook is why I'm okay with Savatage no longer being around since Jon gives us the music through JOP. Would people be more accepting of this if it was called Axl Roses Pain? From a business stand point it'd be dumb for Axl to drop such a huge name.
What I was getting at is that Axl should have left well enough alone. Thanks. I agree that the time it has taken for Axl to finally birth this thing definitely doesn't match the quality of the tunes. You get my Dr. Pepper, haha!
Axl wrote the music to their older stuff? Is that true? Now I have to check this out cuz I always thought Slash/Izzy wrote the music & Axel the lyrics...except for Novembers Rain, which he wrote both (but music was originally all on piano...then embelished for UYI).
01. Welcome To The Jungle - Axl & Slash 02. It's So Easy - Axl, Slash, Duff & West Arkeen 03. Nightrain - Axl, Slash, Duff & Izzy 04. Out Ta Get Me - Axl, Slash & Izzy 05. Mr. Brownstone - Slash & Izzy 06. Paradise City - Axl, Slash, Duff & Izzy 07. My Michelle - Axl & Izzy 08. Think About You - Axl & Izzy 09. Sweet Child O' Mine - Axl, Slash & Izzy 10. You're Crazy - Axl, Slash & Izzy 11. Anything Goes - Axl, Izzy & Chris Webber 12. Rocket Queen - Axl, Slash & Izzy 01. Reckless Life - Axl, Izzy & Chris Webber 02. Nice Boys - Rose Tattoo 03. Move To The City - Izzy, Chris Weber & Del James 04. Mama Kin - Steven Tyler & Joe Perry (Aerosmith) 05. Patience - Izzy & West Arkeen 06. Used To Love Her - Axl & Izzy 07. You're Crazy - Axl, Slash & Izzy 08. One In A Million - Axl 01. Right Next Door To Hell - Axl, Izzy & Timo Caltia (from Rose Tattoo) 02. Dust N' Bones - Izzy, Duff & Slash 03. Live And Let Die - Paul & Linda McCartney 04. Don't Cry (Original) - Axl & Izzy 05. Perfect Crime - Axl, Slash & Izzy 06. You Ain't The First - Izzy 07. Bad Obsession - Izzy & West Arkeen 08. Back Off Bitch - Axl, Slash, Paul Tobias & Chris Weber 09. Double Talkin' Jive - Izzy 10. November Rain - Axl 11. The Garden - Axl, West Arkeen & Del James 12. Garden Of Eden - Axl & Slash 13. Don't Damn Me - Axl, Slash & Dave Lank 14. Bad Apples - Axl, Slash, Duff & Izzy 15. Dead Horse - Axl 16. Coma - Axl & Slash 01. Civil War - Axl, Slash & Duff 02. 14 Years - Axl & Izzy 03. Yesterdays - Axl, West Arkeen, Del James & Billy McLoud 04. Knockin' On Heavens Door - Bob Dylan 05. Get In The Ring - Axl, Slash & Duff 06. Shotgun Blues - Axl 07. Breakdown - Axl 08. Pretty Tied Up - Izzy 09. Locomotive - Axl & Slash 10. So Fine - Duff 11. Estranged - Axl 12. You Could Be Mine - Axl & Izzy 13. Don't Cry (Alt. Lyrics) - Axl & Izzy 14. My World - Axl Who really knows who is responsible for what parts but Axls name is attached to almost every GNR song written. Anyway, I guess my point is every band goes through lineup changes and in general most fans don't really put up to much of a fight about it. With GNR most people don't seem accepting of the fact that the band has also gone through line up changes. Heck Slash wasn't even in the first incarnation of the band. I'm not here to defend them but more or less point on that it makes no sense for people to use that as justification.
OK...well, just like I figured...without Slash & Izzy, it's not nearly the same. Axl's name is only on all those songs because of his lyric contributions...not much else I would bet. Much like Scott's name is on every single TG song, but he didn't write one single note of the music. And Slash may not have been the original, but he & Izzy were definitely integral parts to what became the musical mammoth that WAS GnR. Sorry man, I certainly don't mean to argue cuz I couldn't give a fuck about GnR anymore, but just sometimes lineup changes make a HUGE difference in the soul of a band & the quality of their songwriting. Just off the top of my head...Led Zeppelin with Plant but without J Page & JP Jones (or even Bonham actually) would SUCK beyond belief. Sabbath with Ozzy or Dio, but without Tony & Geezer would SUCK beyond belief. AC/DC without the Young brothers would SUCK beyond belief. Oh, and Queensryche without Degarmo SUCKS beyond belief. Sorry, just had to throw that one in there cuz I've had that discussion plenty with our drummer Dan, who loves them even still. See a trend?
That's one thing we'll never know for sure. We know Axl is a good musician so who knows who was responsible for what on certain tunes. Given how he is I find it hard to believe he just had lyrical input on a lot of the songs. Well that's kind of my point. Obviously we know Ozzy and Dio both rocked without Tony & Geezer, the only difference is they didn't use the Black Sabbath name. So basically it's all in the name that predetermines if it's worthwhile or not? It's still up in the air to see what Axl can do without his former bandmates, but I guess it's all in how you label yourself if you want to be accepted by a certain group. I think anybody in his shoes would rather please the millions with the GNR name than please the few of us here who think it's an outrage he's using the GNR name. At this point I'm just looking forward to hearing what he's done and I don't really care what name is attached to it. Oh...and Queensryche started sucking with Degarmo in the band, while things haven't improved much I'm not going to sit here and think about how awesome the band would be if he stayed. Really..Q2K or Hear in the Now...they both belong in the toliet and I don't think the band would be any better off with him as part of it as we saw with some of his input on Tribe.
I've had the whole CD for about a month now. I really am quite disappointed. Its more the Axl Rose project than Guns N' Roses. Slashs guitar sound was such a staple of the GNR sound coupled with Duffs bass. Both are absent from this disc which is the reason I think it would be better to call it something else. It is so apparant that the use of the name is a cash grab. I thought GNR was a band! Not just one! I also hope to god this doesn't sell more than AC/DC. I give AC/DC WAY more credit. They wrote and recorded a great album that SOUNDS LIKE AC/DC!!!!!!!!!!!!If Chinese Democracy outsells AC/DC the music industry is in a sad state of affairs.
I would bet almost anything that there is no way GnR will outsell AC/DC. Even with the quality of the album aside, there's still the fact that many GnR fans still dislike Axl as a person for being such a egomaniacal douchebag & since he's the only one left, they may just not buy it as a big FUCK YOU to him.
WOW....just finished listening to the whole album stream on their myspace.....fucking awesome, i really can't believe how good it is, i didn't expect shit from this release.... and the guitar playing is SICK!!!
^^ Funny. I did try listening to the stream Friday night and it just wasn't grabbing me, as I kind of expected. I will say that Axl does seem to still have the pipes...in the studio anyway.
Part of me wants to dislike it but after many listens I can't..it's solid, real solid..and I agree about the guitar work, some of the best I've heard in years. It's an interesting album in that you get all sorts of different sounds from old school gnr, to very modern to everything in between. It's different and unique, Axl's melodies are there, but you know the band behind him has nothing to do with GNR.
It took me a couple listens..each go around I found a little more that rocked. He still has it live too, at least he did when I saw him in 03. His voice is actually a little cleaner sounding than it used to be.
Perhaps I should try to give it another go around then. I unfortunately never got to see GNR live "back in the day". For me they get lumped into the same bin as Metallica (never saw them live either). I won't see either band live now because it just wouldn't be the same.
There are only a couple songs that I can stand listening to all the way through. It might change, It might not. As for the Slash comment. Look at Velvet Revolver. I can't stand them. So its not a 'Slash would not have been like this'
Eek. I have only heard a few songs off this album, but already can't stand it. It really took him that long to make this? My cat can sing better than Axl. Edit: Anyone cash in on the free Dr. Pepper yet?
Hmmm....it's beginning to look like I may have been in the right ball park about those first week sales...and that's with 2 extra days included in that week. http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=109704 FAH-Q, Axl!!
