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Use Your Illusion 1 - could've been better than Appetite?


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2 hours ago, RONIN said:

Okay, here's a hypothetical:

Cull the UYI songs to the top 14-15. Give it the right production (let's say they slightly refine Slash's "raw mixes"). Adler drumming. 

Given the above scenario, there is a good case to be made that UYI would have surpassed AFD. The songs taken at face value showcase GnR at their peak, it's the circumstances around the release that let it down (too many fillers, bad production, no Adler,etc.)

 

Yes, if all those cases were present it might've topped AFD, but you also gotta remember that AFD captured GNR when they were "young, raw, and hungry".

also, I'm sure my top 14 UYI songs are different from yours, and both of ours are different from anyone else's.

Edited by rocknroll41
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6 hours ago, Sprite said:

Sort of like their version of That Smell. Whiskey bottles, brand new car. Oak tree you're in my way. 

Its almost like an artistic statement saying this lifestyle isn't what you think it is. Wont you pour his apathy.

Axl's a wordsmith. His writing is always the from the plight of the individual which is a trait a lot of great writers have.

Sometimes I think he became the Catcher after that, but he was fighting against it. Once you lose the "religion" of rock n roll you have to find something else. Maybe why some can't relate to what he was writing about on CD. On Bad Apples it still has the swagger, this sucks in fatalistic cool way, but then it was this sucks in a beautiful way. 

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On 5/14/2015 at 6:09 PM, Gordon Comstock said:

This. To those saying UYI II is the better album, you're wrong.

 

I'm right with you and Towelie. I honestly am quite surprised with the number of people touting UYI2. I've always felt UYI2 was the more popular album among casual fans whereas UYI1 was the generally the choice of the more hardcore fan. Apparently I was partially wrong about that...

I love both albums, but if I was forced to choose between them it would be UYI1 all day, everyday and twice on Sunday. As others have pointed out, UYI2 simply has the weakest tracks on either album. Get in the Ring, Shotgun Blues, My World, and an average at best version of KOHD are chief among them. Breakdown is among my favorite songs on both albums, and Locomotive, Pretty Tied Up, Estranged, etc. are fantastic however there is far more weakness on the album than on UYI1 and I don't think it's close.

But to each their own.

Edited by thunderram
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Everyone has different opinions about what the best songs on each album are.  It's a matter of personal taste, it's not math... you can make a definitive statement that "Track X is the best."  Hell, depending on one's mood, their personal ranking of the songs will change.

 

I guess it's fun to talk about to kill time, but you simply can't cut any songs from the UYI albums without pissing people off (with the possible exception of My World)

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It's all subjective, kids. I prefer the UYI records because it's more diverse musically and lyrically more personal. Of course there's filler on it, that's usually the case, especially with double albums. But it's not like AFD is perfect from beginning till end, Anything Goes could qualify for filler too in my opinion.

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Not sure I can separate the Illusion albums - but I do think I is definitely more consistent.  It's a shame it wasn't just one truly exceptional album rather than merely two very good ones, but I think the process of culling tracks to make a single Illusion would have broken the band up even earlier...so maybe its sprawling nature was for the best...

For what it's worth, this is my Ultimate Illusion:

1) Civil War
2) Dust 'n' Bones
3) Bad Obsession
4) Perfect Crime
5) You Ain't The First
6) Breakdown
7) November Rain
8) Yesterdays
9) The Garden
10) Pretty Tied Up
11) Locomotive
12) Estranged

...the first half features more of the Izzy-style rock 'n' roll, before it moves off into the Axl/Slash epics...difficult to top that closing trilogy...

3CBx

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Don't Cry & Nov Rain theoretically could've been on Appettite. Also Back Off Bitch, Bad Obsession (which I don't care for). Also YCBM from II. Knocking. I'm sure I'm overlooking others off the top of my head.

Whats mind blowing, is Appettite could've been a double album. Think of that. Most of it was all there.

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26 minutes ago, Fitha_whiskey said:

Don't Cry & Nov Rain theoretically could've been on Appettite. Also Back Off Bitch, Bad Obsession (which I don't care for). Also YCBM from II. Knocking. I'm sure I'm overlooking others off the top of my head.

Whats mind blowing, is Appettite could've been a double album. Think of that. Most of it was all there.

I don't think so. Ballads like those two songs would have been out of place on AfD. Songs like Back off Bitch would have worked better on that album.

Edited by Sosso
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6 minutes ago, Sosso said:

I don't think so. Ballads like those two songs would have been out of place on AfD. Songs like Back off Bitch would have worked better on that album.

Out of place on Appettite as we know it, sure. Just saying- it could've been a crazy double. But nobody's gonna put out a double debut by a totally (except for the Strip) unknown band...

 

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On 03/03/2017 at 1:39 PM, downliner said:

I think UYI1 is the album which cemented my belief that Izzy was the best songwriter in the band, certainly the only member who I felt was in it for the music and not for the fame, celebrity status and headlines. Whilst Axl and Slash were jerking off to 10 minute long epics like November Rain, Estranged, Coma, Locomotive etc I loved the raw RNR sound found in the simplicity of tunes like You Aint The First.

I rarely listen to the UYI albums these days. I definitely prefer the Stradlin tunes, but credit where credits due, Civil War is f'n badass to this day and pretty sure Izzy doesn't even appear on that song? Breakdown is killer too.

HEY!, there's nothing wrong with jerking off.

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Don't know about UYI 1 but if you just put 10-12 of the best from each into 1 album it's giving AFD a run for it's money that's for sure. I don't lose too much sleep over it though i think both Illusions are great and have grown to appreciate them more over time actually, i only dislike maybe a couple off each.

Edited by Silverburst80
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10 hours ago, EvanG said:

It's all subjective, kids. I prefer the UYI records because it's more diverse musically and lyrically more personal. Of course there's filler on it, that's usually the case, especially with double albums. But it's not like AFD is perfect from beginning till end, Anything Goes could qualify for filler too in my opinion.

UYI I is much more entertaining than AFD, a lot more variety and styles. So it has it's qualities. 

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