bigcountry

I have seen guns twice on the AFD tour and another 2 times for UYI and 3 times for the decade long CD tour.

During UYI days both times it was Nightrain and it was kind of a bummer for me to kick off a show it just didn't get everyone fired up.

CD days WTTJ and CD, WTTJ was better as an opener than CD but I just feel WTTJ should come later in show around song 5, CD is a good opener too but most there just don't get the song.

AFD days both times it was ISE and to me it is a perfect opener and really got the crowd going but didn't overshadow the other rockers, kind of like they were building on the excitement of ISE later in the set with the other rockers . They followed it the first time with WTTJ and the 2nd time Mr. Brownstone. Both shows flowed so good as far as the setlist order they put together.

My pick

It's So Easy

I don't really think it is Axl that is holding up a release, I think UMG is, I feel the record company has more to do with the lack of new material than what people think.

They pushed back CD 2 times that I have read about.

I just don't see them making it smooth process after what happened before and after the release of CD, UMG did not get there way with Axl by that I mean a reunion, not going to go into that, so Axl and UMG butted heads about the album release and they are still butt hurt over it, just as Axl is I am sure.

I have nothing to prove this but add it up and it makes sense.

I'd bet money that Axl re-did some of the vocals for this and that's why it took so long to come out.

I'd bet money that Axl re-did some of the vocals for this and that's why it took so long to come out.

Well then you'd probably lose money...

Axl did not redo any vocals at all, and that's not why it took so long to be released

First I am just glad it is out there for people to see and I could really careless if Axl redone some of the vocals but................

I watched about 45 mins of it and I don't know if it was the feed and the sound was not quite in sync with the video.....

I noticed several times Axl would pull the mic from his face and there was still vocals coming through. Axl several times moved it so far away from his mouth and you could see his mouth and he wasn't singing, yet there was still vocals coming through.

I know alot of times they put effects at the end of a line being sung but that wasn't it.

It didn't happen all the time but it was there.

But to be honest like I said I could careless if he did re-record the some of the vocals. I am just glad it out the for people to see.

From what I have seen so far some of the vocals were redone. Since I have had Directv I have not had a video and audio sync problem, not saying it doesn't happen just that I have never seen it.

CD didn't take so many years to be completed. There were years of inactivity related to Axl having to go to court and do depressing shit.

What he did wrong was to announce too early that he was working on an album. Had he said in 2006 "and now I've started working on something that will be called Chinese Democracy..." there wouldnt have been such scandal among fans, media, etc.

But he'd already released OMG in 1999 and played CD songs from 2001. Had he not have played new songs then, his continuance of the GN'R brand would have been even more criticised. He had to prove he had new music in order to justify his return with a new band.

If I remember correct OMG was only a demo the record company had and they put it in the movie with no approval from Axl, but at that time they didn't have to run it by him.

I firmly believe the original band members had alot to do with the the time it took CD to come out. I sure they didn't want Axl to continue on with the GNR name and if he did he should owe them royalties from anything that was sold under the GNR name.

I also firmly believe the UMG were holding out for a reunion, it was said they rejected the album 2 times and all the managers they called in to work with Axl had one motive which was to get the old band back together, why else would you call in Azoff???? I think in 2008 Azoff told UMG that the reunion was not going to happen and Axl basically told Azoff and UMG here it is this all you get, hence all the lyric mistakes in the booklet, Axl most likely sent them the artwork, song credits, thank yous and then UMG tried to figure out the lyrics for themselves and put in in the booklet. Axl never would have put lyrics in there for the songs and them be wrong, I just don't see it happening. Then the lack of promotion from both sides was a pissing contest between Axl and UMG filled with fuck yous. Then they get a tour booked and Azoff quits because it is 100% no reunion is going to happen.

But don't get my wrong Axl done plenty of damage himself. I say everyone involved on the business side of things got fucked, fucked themselves or both with the handling and releasing of CD.

I think the biggest loser was Best Buy!! Everyone burned bridges with Best Buy over how CD was handled. Best Buy was a terrible choice though, just not enough stores.

I know but I felt it was a necessary evil.

I knew you got what I was getting at. You just can't have a thread with a pic of axl in it and not have a fat remark, just keepin' the streak alive!

He said why in that Eddie Trunk interview.

Is it the That Metal Show interview or the 2006 radio interview?

To get a cigarette. I thought that was obvious.

Took too long to just be a cig. But he may have been just smoking one backstage and lit up another just as he went on stage.

I have always wondered why Axl left the stage during the RQ, he did seem pissed or anything when he left the stage or when he first returned.

Then when he came back on stage he didn't sing for a while and when he did start back to singing he quit before the song was over, then he looks pissed at the end and throws his mic at someone on the side of the stage.

He also wasn't happy when the woman got on stage and hugged him.

I think even with Axl not singing the whole song that it was one of the best performances of the song, it kind of showed off the band which did a excellent job on the song without the vocals.

It was just meant as a joke..............

I could careless if he is considered by many here to be fat now and yes he has extra weight than he didn't in 2006, he was very fit then and people still called him fat so no matter how he looks he will be called fat.

I have seen bits and pieces of this in worse quality but THANKS to the OP for finding this, the quality is still low but I bet that it is the best out there, Thank you again!!!

On the recording when Axl would really use his power it would distort sound to a point you can't really hear him over the distortion. He was sing with power unlike Bach and others. Yes they had power but nothing like Axl. On stage Axl just owned it.

I could careless about the fuck ups it was just 3 bands having fun and playing different songs. Axl had problems with the words to piece of me, you can see him look down several times to find his place, don't know if it was a teleprompter or on paper.

Awesome! I always wondered where this picture was taken, and now I know! Thanks for sharing this!

For those weight watchers out there.......

Axl was much heavier here than in the AFD days.

Just thought I would throw that in there because in every thread there is post about Axl's weight so why not one here

I was a pretty big Danzig fan back in the day. Still like know but I don't follow them much just every now and then.

Yeap Glenn put on a few pounds like alot of people do as they age.

So say will look at the RHCP they still look fit. Not everyone ages the same and no matter how hard one person my try they will never be the same size or in some cases close to the size they where 20+ years age.

Alot of people start have thyroid issues as they age and there weight gain can be huge until they find a medication that will level it out and some never find that medication that works.

I get so tired of most people saying well this person is the same age or older than Axl and looks great but Axl is fat and if he wanted too he could lose some weight. If you look back on bands from the 80's rock era I bet you will see that most are overweight and people that are close to the same size is more of an exception. All you have to do is look around you if you 35+ years old and notice people you seen when you were 16 and I will bet most will be overweight compared to the youthful size.

Like I said there are exceptions to this but most will have gained weight, what about Slash?????? He is pretty heavy now a days himself but he is almost always wearing black which will hide someone being overweight to some degree.

Nacho All solid picks!!!

1. Coma

2. Estranged

3. Rocket Queen This song has a bad ass groove!!

I have just 4 letters that will answer all 3 questions.......

COMA

I agree the rap PC is shit.

Axl looks pretty dang good in the commercial.

If my memory serves me correct he likes to watch soccer, and with everyone saying he is irrelevant in this day and age, now he gets in a promo ad for Budweiser and the World Cup. If you like Bud or not it is a huge brand and has million upon millions of loyal follows, just as the World Cup does and Axl is smack dab in the middle of both in a commercial.

Does that make him any more or less relevant, no but him and PC got picked for big commercial so he still is somewhat relevant.

I hope he and who ever else has to approve GNR song licensing continue with it, just hope they can work out something better than the rap PC and Slash's debacle, both are equally shit to me as far as the remake of the songs.

To those saying he is being a sell out, he has a longgggggggg way to go to equal Slash as a sell out but I got nothing against Slash making money off the songs he helped create, but to say Axl is a sell out is a bit of a stretch.

At about the 1:45 mark, I no it wasn't him but when they show the close up a the guitar being player than hand and the way it moves sure looks like Slash.

Buckethead his very talented also but him and robin made GNR look like a freak show in 2002.

It really looked like a joke of a band when the causal GNR fan seen that on the VMAs they were like WTF is this????? And just shook there head and that was it for them and GNR.

First impressions are very important and it was an epic fail at the VMAs as far as how the band looked. Yes Axl's voice was consider weak that night but if we had that now we would be jumping for joy. but he is much older.

IMHO Bucket has no place in GNR he is much better doing his own thing which he has a following for.

I think it will be a big loss if Bumble leaves. The man is just so talented and loves the fans, you couldn't ask for more out of anyone.

I am sure BBF has a dark side we have seen it a few times but who doesn't

No one in GNR has been more visible to the fans than BBF he does meet n greets before and after show, clinics, interviews, social media, webcasts and the list goes on.

He plays guitar IMHO better than ANYONE that has ever been in GNR even SLASH. BBF can play any GNR song ever recorded note for note if he wishes but you can hear his own flare added to it to make it more his as he should have he is not slash or any other guitarist that has been in GNR. He can shred and he can go pretty damn blueys too.

When you look at his work in GNR he is the complete package!!!

Can he be replaced yes without a doubt but you will be hard pressed to find a guy with his skill level that is so damn fan friendly though!!

I am sure Axl has told him they would make an album after CD and they may very well have or have been working on it but if he is leaving either there is nothing new anytime in the near future or there are no concrete plans at all for the next album if there is one to be made.

BBF understands what the fans want and that is a new material and as a musician he wants it out there for the fans. Not all the broken promises which he has to deal with because he is so fan friendly and visible and I am sure that gets old.

I liked the fact that BBF would at times stand up to Axl and Axl and TB had to do damage control from time to time.

If this does turn out to be true then we will most likely have to wait even longer for anything new at least for a year or so if ever, I am not saying ever just because BBF maybe leaving it means there are no plans with or without him.

For all we know he told Axl while planning the tour or sometime before it started he is leaving GNR after the last show on the tour pf this tour.

If he leaves I wish him all the best.

If he doesn't I think it is a very good sign as far as new material but I could be reading too much into it but why else would he stay?

GNR will go on either way.

Facebook link to Axls response to retiring after Vegas.

https://www.facebook.com/gunsnroses/photos/a.355783028068.156550.10901008068/10152412827678069/?type=1&theater

The Indiana show to me was a below average show from the UYI era. For this statement I will probably get flogged but that is my take on it.

Axl sounded like shit there was no power he was just screaming with rasp and how in the hell can he be on key singing like that. He had tons of energy even with the fucked up heel and ligament.

Slashes playing was at best average.

The setlist was bad too the concert did not flow very well at all. In their defense they were still feeling out what songs off of UYI would work better live and keep the crowd going.

I think somewhere around early to mid 92 GNR hit their stride, Axl still had way too much rasp but he had control over it most of the time. Axl still had a huge amount of energy but was in better shape and his vocals didn't suffer as much.

The others in the band improved their playing of the songs live which make for a better concert experience.

Anyone can pick a song or 2 from shows back then and say look at this GNR at there best but if you take the time to watch the WHOLE concert you will see most of the time those where exceptions not the rule.

Hell I love the AFD and UYI era GNR, I grew up on it but I don't turn a blind eye just because it was the original or UYI era band so it has to be the best, I have an open mind.

As I have said before late 87 to early 88 was the best I ever heard Axl sound but the rest of the band wasn't quite as refined.

And right behind that is the 2006 GNR you had Axl with clean vocals with some rasp, I will admit mickey mouse did appear from time to time, and the band was very tight. Hell Bumblefoot done a hell of a job considering his prep time for the tour. BBF at times did shred on the old songs too much but as the tour went on he stayed more with the original sound and added some of his own flare at times which he should have done he is BBF not Slash.

I just look at the new GNR like this, accept it, embrace it and enjoy it while it last because we are not far from retirement and there is nothing to suggest a reunion will ever happen and it does I will accept it also.

Really we have no idea what went on behind the scenes. Which is strange because it is one of the biggest band brake ups of all time. Yea we get a statement here and there but it is usually one that could be taken out of context and more read into it than what it really was, Slash has been good at doing this. I know Duff wasn't there for all the Axl and Slash conversations or does he even remember them being so fucked up, but if he did he could write a good factual and unbiased account of the going on behind the scenes.

I blame them both of them. They both had/have huge egos and both of them had a huge fan following just because of who they were in the band and outside of it.

Most of the time when I band has to huge egos in it things just don't get worked out.

As far as Axl getting the rights to the name it has been said before that management and the label pushed for it mainly because he was the most stable at the time as far a drug and alcohol abuse, yes Axl was a loose cannon but he was clean. I am sure Axl wanted it once the proposed it to him.

About a year after AFD was released Axl was fairly clean and it pissed him off that the others didn't do the same.

Like I said I am not on one side of the fence or the other, they both fucked it up and anything said or written in book or interview can be taken with a grain of salt. Until a more neutral person comes forward with information I don't believe much of what I have a read regarding the break up. Yes there is most likely SOME truth to the statements but it is a long way from being anything earth shattering.

I think a reunion would be classified as a disaster much like the release of CD.

There would be an incredible amount of hype if they let the cat out of the bag and much like the hype for CD, there is no way a reunion would live up to high expectations that would be put up for them.

A surprise attack would work much better, where GNR book some shows and when the stage lights came on it would be most of the original band and it would spread like fire but I doubt they could maintain the momentum and sell out anything over 12,000 seat arenas and in the US if they didn't just hit the big cities it would be much the same with lots of empty seats.

There is no way they would rival bands like AC/DC or Metallica.

GnR would have the nitich of around 8000 seat venues and in the large cities they might command 20000+ seat venues.

This board would just blame Axl if it didn't get as big as they think it should have or if it tanked.

As you can see in the N&D forum there a very very very few threads about the old band.

This will be a totally different animal because of how passionate the Slash fanboys are against the new band and how passionate the fanboys of the GNR we have now. I glad people are passionate about anything GNR but with GNR we have 2 different sets of fans when it come to Slash and GNR now.

Just remember I told you so.....

I think it is a terrible idea and will only increase trolling against the GNR we have now and also any post 93 GNR lineup . It will also see more trolling in the treads about the original band especially Slash based threads in retaliation for the trolling of the increase in trolling in the post 93 GNR threads.

I see nothing but more headache for the Admin, mods and forum members.

Slash or any other ex-member are not in GNR right now and why should they be in the same forum as the GNR we have now???????

If you think the trolling in the N&D forum is from forum members that are posting in the Slash or original GNR forum why merge the sub forums it will only make things worse!!!

You said that the people posting in the Slash forum are frustrated because there threads aren't getting replies so they jump over to the N&D forum to cupcake and raise hell. There is a reason the slash forum is not getting replies because not as many people follow that forum, plain and simple.

The demand just isn't there for the Slash forums or original GNR forums or these members would be getting more people to reply.

People mostly come here for New GNR and you seem to be ignoring that fact. At times it is slow but others it is not.

You are just inviting a shit storm, mark my words.

I have no problem with and have alot of respect for the original line up but why would it be helpful to have threads about both eras???

2010 was a good year vocally but for my taste he used too much rasp and it seemed very forced and his movements on stage where just to the ego ramps and that was about it.

2006 he had the cleaner vocals with some rasp, to me it was perfect, but that is was suits my tastes as far as Axl vocally and being more physical.

Also his look in 06 braids and all was badass!!!

In 2006 he had the badass rock star look and 2010 he had the pimp 70's porn star look going.

Most of the time back in the day he song like he had gravel in his voice. Yes he gave 100% and was extreme mobile but he sounded terrible if you ask me.

As I stated before in late 87 and very early in 88 I seen them twice and he had very clean vocals. The next time I seen them was opening for Aerosmith and he sounded like he was very hoarse and very strained, there was nothing clean about his vocals but he gave it all he had and GNR up staged Aerosmith that night, the crowd was more into GNR than Aerosmith and the crowd was also very diverse in age so it wasn't just young people it was people in there 40's through 60's I would say it was 50/50 young and older and GNR was on fire and Axl was Axl even though he sounded terrible he put on a hell of a show.

I been watching youtube videos of the 2006 tour that where proshot and I have to say that Axl had the best tour of his life in 2006!!!

His vocals where very consistent during the whole tour and his physical shape was amazing.

The only time I can think of that he sounded that good was in late 87 and very early 88 he was only missing the rasp back then at the shows I went to.

Yes mickey mouse did happen but it wasn't bad and he had alot of power and he also had the rasp but did not over do it like in the UYI days and the 2010 tour.

Some will say vocally 2010 was better but I think he had way too much rasp, I love how he mixed the clean vocals with the rasp in 2006 it was a perfect fit.

Axl in 2010 was not near as fit as he was in 2006, he was all over the place in 06 not just on the ego ramps.

My only complaint with the 06 lineup was Robin he was very hit and miss live but that was common for him.

Take Download early on that concert looked like it was headed for disaster but they won the crowd over by mid show or so and it looked everyone there was having a blast.

RAR IMHO was one of the best shows of 06. Jungle was just so intense. Also the LA shows are very good.

Here is a video from that show which I think is one of the best live versions of Nightrain.

1. Estranged

2. November Rain

3. Prostitute

4. Patience

5. SCOM

6. This I Love

7. Don't Cry

8. TWAT

The top 4 where easy picks for me but the bottom 4 anyone of those songs could be 5 on the list, they are all pretty equal for me anyway.

After watching this the first 3 or 4 songs went pretty good. Then his voice would not handle the rasp. Not that it was extremely great on the other songs.

He tried numerous times to use the rasp but his vocal cords just would not do it, It really looked to me like it hurt him to use rasp or try to use rasp, you could see it in his face later in the show.

I think he still has rasp but his vocal cords just will not take it and really hurt him because he really sounds uncomfortable after trying to use rasp.

I think with all the years of abusing his vocal cords have finally caught up with him.

I figure before Rio 2011 he was either recording or getting ready for the up and coming tour and blowed his voice out.

After Rio they said he was sick for the show but I don't think he was and they just figured his voice would come back in a week or so but it never recovered.

Instead of canceling shows and getting it fix, if possible, he gutted out the tour and that caused the damage to be so bad that it could not be fixed.

Using him being lazy as to why the rasp isn't there is a stretch because in the past he always started out tours after a lay off with his voice being weak and by the first 2-3 weeks he had the power again, but now it doesn't matter how much they tour it doesn't get better over time it gets worse.

This is just a theory no real info to back it up but it really does fit the timeline of Axl's vocals very well.