Controverial opinion: Rocket Queen was better in 2001/02 than in 2016/17

[Sosso]

 

1.) No extended guitar solos by Fortus and Slash 

2.) The drumming is much better 

3.) Buckethead's guitar solo at the end is pure gold

4.) Those versions were as long as the album version. Unlike the like 12 minute versions from the current tour

Edited November 8, 2017 by Sosso

[DieselDaisy]

It needs Adler. It is junk without popcorn. No song suffers so much without his presence.

[EvH]

I don't know how controversial that really is, considering how we're all saying RQ is always one of the low points of the reunion gigs. 

Edited November 8, 2017 by EvH

[Tom-Ass]

Not a fan of NuGuns by any means but I have to agree with this.. It has nothing to do with the extended solos either because I loved when SMKC did extended solos and I loved when they did it during the Illusions days too. 

The videos above actually capture the essence, vibe and feel of the original song.. Something which the current lineup just can't do... I personally attribute that to Frank and Fortus... It doesn't stop with Rocket Queen either.

[WhazUp]

I have to be honest... to my ears I genuinly enjoy this more than the 01/02 versions.  I love the talkbox funk, and even though Fortus' weird 12 tone avante garde soloing at times can get a bit much, overall I dig the vibe of it

[Fashionista]

I agree with the OP...it sounded more 'modern' and also Axl's voice was better overall in 2001 than in 2016 (except with AC/DC).

[MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle]

26 minutes ago, WhazUp said:

I have to be honest... to my ears I genuinly enjoy this more than the 01/02 versions.  I love the talkbox funk, and even though Fortus' weird 12 tone avante garde soloing at times can get a bit much, overall I dig the vibe of it

Agree with you.  I love this version so much I have it in my playlist.  Don't see what all the negative fuss is about tbh.  I like all the self-indulgent jamming.

[AxlRoseCDII]

I do agree with others...this is a lull in the current set list. If it had to be only one song that they let Adler play back when he guested song I wish it would’ve been this one.

Edited November 8, 2017 by AxlRoseCDII

[J Dog]

Bucket and Brain and that gang always did RQ good. They always did a good job with Nightrain too.

[IncitingChaos]

Axl makes all the difference 

[Tom-Ass]

2 hours ago, WhazUp said:

I have to be honest... to my ears I genuinly enjoy this more than the 01/02 versions.  I love the talkbox funk, and even though Fortus' weird 12 tone avante garde soloing at times can get a bit much, overall I dig the vibe of it

That one is decent for this lineup.. It is too bad they couldn't Live Era it and cut Fortus right out of it.. I don't care for anything he does on this song.. From his solo that doesn't fit the song, to the stupid part he does after Slash's solo before he grabs the slide and what he does during the "standing on your own part". Again he tries to show off or something.. The original rhythm part there was simple but very melodic and it worked so well with Slash. Fortus just tries too hard.

1 hour ago, AxlRoseCDII said:

I do agree with others...this is a lull in the current set list. If it had to be only one song that they let Adler play back when he guested song I wish it would’ve been this one.

RQ for me was the single most song I was looking forward to leading up to the reunion but has been a let down. 

Edited November 8, 2017 by Tom-Ass

[Tom2112]

Yeh, the extended solo ruins a great song, it's boring and unnecessary. But 02 Axl sounded weird. For me if it's a nuGuns era, it's 2006/07 or even some of the 2010-2014 performances which by the way definitey had jaw dropping moments (in a good way).

[Tom2112]

2 hours ago, Tom-Ass said:

Not a fan of NuGuns by any means but I have to agree with this.. It has nothing to do with the extended solos either because I loved when SMKC did extended solos and I loved when they did it during the Illusions days too. 

The videos above actually capture the essence, vibe and feel of the original song.. Something which the current lineup just can't do... I personally attribute that to Frank and Fortus... It doesn't stop with Rocket Queen either.

Both of them can and have played the song much, much closer to the original... This version is something the entire band cooked up, I know that doesn't work with your narrative though😉

[themadcaplaughs]

2 hours ago, Tom-Ass said:

Not a fan of NuGuns by any means but I have to agree with this.. It has nothing to do with the extended solos either because I loved when SMKC did extended solos and I loved when they did it during the Illusions days too. 

The videos above actually capture the essence, vibe and feel of the original song.. Something which the current lineup just can't do... I personally attribute that to Frank and Fortus... It doesn't stop with Rocket Queen either.

I don't know if Frank or Fortus are the sole problems. I considered "Rocket Queen" one of the highlights when I saw the band in 2011. I have just never enjoyed the over indulgent "Rocket Queen" performances, dating back to 1992. 

[BorderlineCrazy]

It's really hard to believe how bad Frank and Richard destroy this song. Not really surprising from Frank since he sucks at every single Appetite song (as well as at many others) but I think it's Richard's lowest point in the whole show too. His solo is awful and completely meaningless and that funk stuff he plays during Slash's solo is a fn' abomination.

Nothing will ever beat the way the orignal band played it (both live and on the record) but I'll take the 01/02 version over the current one too. SMKC's version was even better, though. At first it was the closest thing to the real deal you could find (except for the vocals), then Slash made it worse by adding a 20 minute solo (I love watching him jam but not in the middle of the fn' song). I watched a 2010 SMKC show the other day and Rocket Queen was glorious!!

[Tom-Ass]

6 minutes ago, Tom2112 said:

Both of them can and have played the song much, much closer to the original... This version is something the entire band cooked up, I know that doesn't work with your narrative though😉

Well Slash, Duff sound great on that Apollo version. Even Frank sounded a little better on that one.. I don't think anyone is whispering in Richards ear and asking him to play like a douche bag.. Duff and Slash most likely don't want to ruffle any feathers and play with the hand they were dealt...

[IncitingChaos]

It’s crazy how much shorter RQ was in 2006 

[Tom-Ass]

1 minute ago, themadcaplaughs said:

I don't know if Frank or Fortus are the sole problems. I considered "Rocket Queen" one of the highlights when I saw the band in 2011. I have just never enjoyed the over indulgent "Rocket Queen" performances, dating back to 1992. 

I personally love the extended jams especially the SMKC ones but I have seen plenty of people say it was too much them.  With both this lineup and SMKC.  I don't necessarily think this band does a great job at it but it has gotten better since the reunion started.

I used to seek out the SMKC versions and ate up every minute of them.. There were a couple 30 minute versions and I would watch the whole thing in Glory!!! 

[MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle]

3 minutes ago, Tom-Ass said:

Well Slash, Duff sound great on that Apollo version. Even Frank sounded a little better on that one.. I don't think anyone is whispering in Richards ear and asking him to play like a douche bag.. Duff and Slash most likely don't want to ruffle any feathers and play with the hand they were dealt...

I have no proof, it's just a hunch, but I'm guessing Slash and Duff don't think as badly of Frank and Fortus as you (and others) do.  I don't have an ear for drums so I don't know and can only take others word for it that Frank is that bad.  I like Fortus.  He does a fair to good job.  Good enough for this line-up anyway.  I still think that Apollo show was a bit of a turning point for the band...seemed to me they clicked better after that.

[Sosso]

5 minutes ago, Tom-Ass said:

I personally love the extended jams especially the SMKC ones but I have seen plenty of people say it was too much them.  With both this lineup and SMKC.  I don't necessarily think this band does a great job at it but it has gotten better since the reunion started.

I used to seek out the SMKC versions and ate up every minute of them.. There were a couple 30 minute versions and I would watch the whole thing in Glory!!! 

GN'R is not Led Zeppelin. I can hear a 30 minute version of No Quarter and can feel like that I haven't wasted a single minute of my day because it's so great. I actually think the opposite about those extended jams during GN'R songs.

Edited November 8, 2017 by Sosso

[Tom-Ass]

1 minute ago, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

I have no proof, it's just a hunch, but I'm guessing Slash and Duff don't think as badly of Frank and Fortus as you (and others) do.  I don't have an ear for drums so I don't know and can only take others word for it that Frank is that bad.  I like Fortus.  He does a fair to good job.  Good enough for this line-up anyway.  I still think that Apollo show was a bit of a turning point for the band...seemed to me they clicked better after that.

If I was making that much money I would think greatly of them too  Honestly all that money can't hurt. They probably like them as people and don't want to ruffle any feathers.  I have no proof either, but following all these guys for 30 years I honestly can't believe that they truly feel that Frank and Fortus are the best two for the job. Like you said.. Fair to good at times.. Good enough to make it passable. There are certainly songs they do a good job at but others not so much. 

[MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle]

Just now, Tom-Ass said:

If I was making that much money I would think greatly of them too  Honestly all that money can't hurt. They probably like them as people and don't want to ruffle any feathers.  I have no proof either, but following all these guys for 30 years I honestly can't believe that they truly feel that Frank and Fortus are the best two for the job. Like you said.. Fair to good at times.. Good enough to make it passable. There are certainly songs they do a good job at but others not so much. 

Serious question.  Have you been listening to Slash and Duff on the CD songs lately?  Say, the last 3-4 weeks?  

The 'liking them as people' is an important point.  We all know Axl has the capacity to fire someone on a whim, but this band has been together a while now (and Fortus is practically part of the furniture) and let's face it, even if Axl wanted to include Izzy and Steven, he's not likely to just dump Fortus and Frank on their asses.  He'd show a certain amount of loyalty to them, more than past era NuGuns members because I think this lot get along better.  So yeah, while Slash and Duff can probably think of other musos better for the job, they'll take 'fair to good' and 'getting along' over 'brilliant' and 'tension/drama'.

[AxlRoseCDII]

For me, I like Fortus but Frank has began to wear on me as a drummer throughout this tour...he’s just not good and I’d honestly prefer anyone else to him at this point. 

[Hollywood Gunner]

pretty much any song sounded better in 2001 than 2017 simply because axl was 16 years younger. forget the braids or the dude with the bucket on his head. axl was just able to bring his A game more often than he is now

[RONIN]

25 minutes ago, Hollywood Gunner said:

pretty much any song sounded better in 2001 than 2017 simply because axl was 16 years younger. forget the braids or the dude with the bucket on his head. axl was just able to bring his A game more often than he is now

2001-2002 was probably the last time Axl was Axl. That's why no matter how much that era may have sucked, it's still special unlike the years that followed where he sold out and became a corporate rocker with his b-list lineup. 

As for RQ, it hasn't sounded good since the Illusion tour imho.