themadcaplaughs

17 minutes ago, guitarpatch said:

First, no one outside of this community cares about these leaks. I doubt this makes a blip on anyone’s radar outside of a 24hr news cycle for music Twitter. A TMZ story about leaks, while interesting that it pops up now, doesn’t really move the needle in 2019. This isn’t 10 yrs ago. People have moved on to streaming and the concept of downloading songs is ancient tech 

The label also has a right to sue. They certainly don’t care about any of the risk associated with the backlash. They want to sell a future record and the people in copyright protection want to collect damages to prove their jobs. I’m sure GNR doesn’t feel the love loss either and have willingly cooperated
 

The min Rick put his name out there that he was associated with this, he made himself a target. It was stupid and also unfortunate. I feel bad that anyone has to go through with this. It can change lives 

This. It's the same as the 2008 leaks of half of Chinese Democracy. The label pursued legal action, and required Guns N' Roses' management to participate. I will not place blame on the band until we receive explicit confirmation Axl approved this. They don't have time for this. They're too busy having three-hour meetings about future tours and potential crap on which to plaster the band's name. 

I would not entirely discount the "Tom's locker got auctioned off" theory. The band's representative gave as non-committal a response; probably to avoid making everyone look like an idiot over something so absurd actually occurring. Does Tom even work at Universal anymore? Did he even work there after Axl dismissed him in 2001? I doubt he had seen, or even thought of, that locker since then. Do you remember what was in your office desk/locker from the job you held in 2001? 

Also agree re: Rick. He reminds me a lot of the dude who leaked the songs in 2008 (cannot remember his name off the top of my head). It was an awesome thing to do for the fans, but putting his name out there like that (even if he did not actually leak the songs himself) was bound to raise some eyebrows internally and result in some kind of punishment. It also probably didn't help that he broadcast himself attending GN'R festival shows on the internet after the ban.

We need to start making requests here for other GN'R member autobiographies. 

-Trapped in the Vault: The Paul Tobias Story is my starter. 

I'd be interested just to read if he talks about 1994-1997. Slash and Duff wrote about that period briefly in their books, but each of them had one foot firmly out the door during that time, so we did not get a lot of details. Sorum actually spent a good bit of time jamming with Dizzy and Paul Tobias during that time. He probably has some cool stories to tell. 

10 minutes ago, ArthurMorgan said:

They could do a leg where they OPEN with Paradise City! Crazy idea, I know.

Nah, better get some more music out

You jest, but when they opened a show in 2014 with "You Could Be Mine," the board freaked out!

1 hour ago, jamillos said:

Anything of interest, anyone? 

It's Dizzy Reed. You do not stay in Guns N' Roses for 29 years by revealing anything of interest. 

EDIT: Also, damn. I always read (and know in my head) that Dizzy has been the longest tenured member after Axl, but the implications don't strike you until you see that number. Think of how much longer he's been in there compared to some of the most beloved members of the band (Slash, Steven, Izzy, Matt, etc.). 

8 hours ago, DTJ80 said:

Some consistent shouts here - Boston 02 and Tokyo/Osaka 09 look to be worth checking out (I have Rock Am Ring already). Houston 16 is another one - is there a SBD/IEM mix of this as the one I have is an audience recording which is decent quality?

Having heard "classic era" boots so many times, Boston 2002 and Osaka/Tokyo 2009 are some of my main listens these days; both periods were it seemed Axl had something to "prove". 

Won't even bother listening to this, but you know Dizzy has to be a wealth of information and ridiculous stories by the sheer length of time he's been in the band. If I were to choose two people to have an in-depth interview with regarding the band, I would probably say Dizzy Reed and Paul Tobias. 

2 hours ago, downzy said:

At the time of the reunion Axl was being sued for $163k for unpaid work to a former bandmate.

The pay day for the Coachella shows was estimated to be in the $3-$7 million range per performance ($6-$14 million total).

I'm not going to assume anything here but those are the facts.  To suggest that money wasn't a consideration, why was Izzy (and to a lesser extent, Adler or Sorum) not included?

Really?

I thought it was going to be a few shows and the'd see how they went. 

Slash was pretty clear prior to rejoining the band that any reunion would require Axl getting on stage on time.  To chalk this up to group chemistry and not contractual obligations is, well, an interesting argument.

So you're assuming here that the thing holding up the release of new music is assigning writing credits and getting sign-off from former members?  That might very well be the case, but I find it unlikely.  It's been reported that band members aren't actually members but employees.  Much like how Ozzy owns the rights to any music produced by others while under his employ, it's been speculated that Axl has the same arrangement with current and former members.

 

Pittman suing Axl always astounded me. That, in and of itself, should show the lack of professionalism in managing this band. The lead singer and band leader of a multi-platinum, world famous band had to resort to borrowing money from one of his band mates who was not even an equity partner in the business, but a hired hand. Then, he did not even begin to pay it in the four or so years it took before Pittman filed the suit. 

There have been other rumblings about how hard it was to get paid in GN'R during the "Nu" years. That woman who wrote the book about getting plowed by Dizzy and then aborting his child said Dizzy constantly complained about not getting paid, and Del James had to talk Dizzy off the ledge from quitting every other night. At some of the 2014 Vegas shows, MSL talked to some of the band members and said one of them (he didn't specify, but suggested it was Richard) said getting paid in that band was like pulling teeth.

21 hours ago, PirateRadio said:

I reserved my copy at Best Buy. I walked into the store on release day and felt DISAPPOINTMENT cuz there were 500 cds on the prop stand. Nobody was even looking at them.

I remember feeling a bit of that as well. Honest to God, the critical/commercial reaction to Chinese Democracy was of no importance to me. We had the album, and that was all that mattered. As a matter of fact, I remember being pleasantly surprised that, despite the running joke it had become, the album scored some really good reviews and debuted at #3. On the trip to Best Buy (only two miles from where I lived at the time), I told myself there probably wouldn't be a lot of people there; it was 11:00 on a Sunday morning, but it did definitely sting when I was literally the ONLY person in the store (I had to wait at the register for two or three minutes because none of the employees had gotten to their stations yet). Immediately thereafter, I went to my car and, like the true GN'R nerd I am, read the liner notes before listening to the CD just to see what musicians actually ended up on the album (although Axl had said, multiple times, that Buckethead's parts would make the album, I was still surprised at just how much the album art featured him; would have been like having Izzy be the focal point of the art for Use Your Illusions and the fact that the infamous Paul Tobias actually ended up on more of the album than Richard Fortus). 

I know the memory for a lot of people was that promotion for the album was non-existent, but people need to remember we were talking about a rock album released in 2008, a particularly paltry time for big rock albums, and the height of people illegally downloading music. Given the circumstances, it actually got some pretty good advertisement spots (football and SNL), the MySpace stream got some attention, and the Tabernacle in Atlanta (a small club GN'R played in 2012) hosted a listening party (I couldn't make it because of work). 

/Rant/reminiscing 

My only complaint was that you did not go into his bongo technique on "Welcome to the Jungle." In all seriousness, however, great interview. I was not the biggest fan of his solo album, but I'll give that cover a listen!

4 hours ago, Gibson_Guy87 said:

Off-topic but where do you suggest I start with them? I've heard The Wall, obviously, but there's a lot of material to work through aside from that.

As a Floyd fanatic of almost 20 years, I would suggest (and I mean this in complete sincerity; not being a smart ass) starting with their "best of" collection called Echoes. Unlike a lot of bands, you can tell a lot of thought went into the compilation. All the songs are mixed so that they segue into each other, and it showcases both the catchy and experimental sides of Pink Floyd without delving too deep into some of the more esoteric (but still amazing) material that may seem off-putting for people just getting into the band. 

If you were to choose an album that represents each "era" of the band, I would say Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Syd-Barrett/psychedelic era), Dark Side of the Moon (the classic era), and The Division Bell (post Roger Waters era). 

31 minutes ago, Walapino said:

Me neither, who in the blue hell cares about a rehearsal from 2002 with zero new songs on them.

I do not think people necessarily care about the band's performance/musical choices. No matter how well Axl did at the rehearsal, we know how he sounded at the final event. Instead, I think most people see it as a look at: (a) what Axl acts like when he decides to rehearse, (b) how he interacts with band mates, and (c) seeing how the weird collection of guys that was the 2002 band acted and interacted with each other when they weren't playing a show. If I remember correctly, Axl has the whole band do some sort of "huddle" at the end. 

My guess would be we hear the following guitarists on this version:

Paul Tobias

Robin Finck (the solo starting at 2:18 with the weird bends is 100% his style)

Richard Fortus (a lot of Fernandes Sustainer / Sustainiac parts in there, which has always been a Fortus contribution)

Shredding is definitely Buckethead. I can see why people say it isn't. It seems a little restrained for him, but I would imagine it was a "placedholder" until a final solo was recorded.

There was also the Appetite for Democracy release in 2014.

On 12/20/2018 at 9:11 AM, TheSeeker said:

She plays Pitman's parts fine and sings background vocals much better than Pitman

Why does Dizzy still have a job

In the off chance they ever decide to play "Street of Dreams" someday.

On 6/20/2018 at 5:08 PM, themadcaplaughs said:

I like all three. While I can understand valid criticisms of their roles and fit in the band, but it seems like hating them represents a huge waste of time and energy/

This 100%. I can understand legitimate problems with Frank or Richard, but they certainly do not detract for me. Bitching about Axl's security blanket of having a second keyboardist is just a waste of time.

1 hour ago, rocknroll41 said:

So Axl enlisted Billy Corgan to help him find Chris? Im a little confused about this part. If I recall correctly Zig Zag said recently that Axl didn't like Corgan.

Vrenna did some programming work for Smashing Pumpkins. Right off the bat, I know he worked on the remix CD for "The End is the Beginning is the End" (great song at the end of Batman & Robin- one of the worst movies of all time). He also performed a few awards shows with the band around that time. My guess would be Axl knew the band was staying in a certain hotel prior to an awards show, and just reached out. 

15 hours ago, Amir said:

I mean, they don't have to market it as Chinese Leftovers. They could just release the album, promote it as featuring Slash and Duff, and the general public would be none the wiser as to the origin of the songs.

You're right, they could try to downplay this aspect as much as possible, but it would be impossible to hide the fact that these songs were from a different era of the band. Beyond the fact that they would sound very different from songs Axl/Duff/Slash would create together, I'm sure every publication would mention that these were songs recorded in the 2000s with Duff and Slash pasted over them. 

16 hours ago, RussTCB said:

Thank you for the compliment I *do* know that it's more complicated than "just putting stuff out there", though. What I'm saying is that there ARE avenues to pursue outside of what they've done. Axl, or whomever is around him, just seems to have zero interest in looking into it. 

There's just so many better ways to make Guns N' Roses a viable brand that could release successful new music, but they're not interested in that. They want to take the super easy route which isn't a surprise for a lot of reasons.

I certainly did not mean to oversimplify your rant, and I definitely agree that Guns N' Roses miss a LOT of opportunities to maximize their brand. That being said, even doing the things you suggested (posting pro-shot videos or audio online) would likely involve some sort of label involvement. Axl burned a LOT of bridges in the music industry from 1997-2008, and I've been told Universal really wants no more involvement with GN'R in terms of recorded output. They just see it as too big of a headache. That being said, hopefully the previous two event-free years works towards rehabilitating Axl's image with the industry. 

When do you think we might hear your theory? I'm very intrigued. Despite all my points, I certainly agree with you that Axl could be more proactive in trying to at least get the train rolling on the release of new music. 

14 hours ago, Gambit83 said:

It’s called guiding the conversation. If you don’t periodically interject, the interviewee can go on too long. And the need to balance between 2 guests.

I apologize if my post came across as bitchy, as you seem a bit defensive. I love your show, and was only offering constructive criticism. I've seen this complaint mentioned in threads for other shows. I completely understand the need to guide the conversation, but there are times where the guest (in this case Rick) was literally in the middle of telling a story and you cut him off to make a random point. Like I said; just a minor nitpick. I still listen to every episode! 

Favorite from each album:

Rocket Queen

Reckless Life

Coma

You Could Be Mine 

Since I Don't Have You

Better

9 hours ago, -W.A.R- said:

Not sure Slash could have blocked the release of the VHS/DVD. NuGuns was under a new partnership that Slash had no stake in. Axl continued with the Guns N' Roses name, but it was like he branched off and created his own band. Though they did play old Guns material and i don't know if thats where he would need Slash/Duffs approval. If so that would be a dumb & short sighted move by them not to sign off.

My guess is Axl was paranoid about how he looked and sounded and decided to shelve it.

With releases of music on physical media or streaming, a statute governs the rate for uses of another person's song. For instance, if Axl had released a double-CD of the 1/1/2001 show, he would not need Slash, Duff, Izzy, or Steven's permission to release any old GN'R songs, nor would he need permission for any cover songs (Bob Dylan for "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" or Paul McCartney for "Live and Let Die."). For video, however, no such statute exists. Individual songwriters have to give permission, and can make up any arbitrary number they want. I do not know whether Slash withholding permission or pricing himself too high was what actually occurred to prevent the HOB DVD, but he definitely could have. Rumors I've heard here over the years, however, suggest the band never fully paid the crew, so I would imagine that was more likely the cause of this DVD disappearing. 

With the Appetite for Democracy DVD/Blu-Ray, I remember reading Neil Young wanted too much for "Don't Let It Bring You Down," which was why it got cut from the DVD. Apparently, Slash wanted to renegotiate his rates, which led to some concern he would effectively "block" the release. Instead, his requests were actually fairly reasonable, and apparently began the "thaw" between Axl and Slash. 

40 minutes ago, Nicklord said:

I still think 2010 GnR show was the best GnR related show I saw. Setlist was tight (for GnR), Ashba was still playing 100% like the record without "improvisations" and Axl sounded 10 times better than on this tour. I still remember Axl going berserk at the end of November Rain with crazy power rasp and then he started kicking and stepping on the piano and playing (? ) with his feet

DJ really was a curious case. The guy actually seemed to get worse at guitar as he progressed in the band. During 2009/2010, he seemed tolerable. He seemed a bit like a caricature, but still dressed like a normal human being and did a "good" to "very good" job with all of his guitar work. He struggled with some of Robin's solos, but Robin struggled with some of Slash's solos. I still think, at the very least, DJ captured the "essence" of Slash's solos more consistently than Robin did (with the notable exception of DJ's "Patience" solo). Robin's takes on Slash's work either impressed the hell out of me, or made me want to turn away; no real middle ground. By the end of 2010, I saw DJ as being well on his way to being a suitable replacement for Robin. 

When he came back in 2011, however, it seemed like the worst aspects of him got turned up to 11. He dressed like a walking billboard and seemed more interested in showboating and running around than playing, which in turn, got him to make some fairly sloppy mistakes consistently. Even at the height of his on-stage douchiness, I never truly "hated" the guy. To his credit, he was obviously a Guns N' Roses fan and enjoyed being in the group, always seemed to be really nice to fans, and certainly worked harder than any other members of the band from 2001-2014 to actually promote GN'R and stay in communication with fans. Hell, if his role in the band had been more akin to Richard's (rhythm guitarist with scattered leads and solos) and Richard had been bumped up to lead guitarist with Bumblefoot, I probably would not have had any issues with him. His problem, ultimately, was that he was a "very good" guitarist with little identity playing in a band that required guitarists to be either (or preferably be both) "excellent" at the instrument or at least creative individuals. DJ was really neither. 

Also, in all fairness to DJ, we never really did get to see what he may have contributed to Guns N' Roses. From 2001 until he left the band, I thought Robin was a cool dude, but not particularly suited for Guns N' Roses. His playing on Chinese Democracy, however, were some of the most inspired spots on the album, and it made me appreciate why Axl probably hired Robin in the first place.