Pacha

I think one of the songs may be This I love. It is the typical Axl song where Slash can make a great contribution. And as old as it is, it is possible that Slash has worked on it. Besides that Axl didn't want to include it in the Chinese.

Other songs that I think are old enough for Slash to have contributed are TWAT and Oklahoma.

It is also known that Axl worked in Back and Forth, perhaps he still had the idea of working it.

Of the rough mixes I stay with:

State of grace - Atlas - Perhaps - Hard School: Because they are almost complete and are very good songs. Better than many in the Chinese (album)

Catcher - Riad: These two songs were particularly destroyed in the CD versions. Rough mixes sound much better

KOHD: Good acoustic version

Eye on you: It is not up to the other songs, although I like the vocal part.

I am realizing that after all this exhausting process of rough mixes leaking, I am left with quite a bit. What depress!

The rest of the songs we already knew, it is interesting to listen to previous versions, but I prefer the CD versions. I'm already used to the album versions and I'm not going to change them.

 I don't like Silkworms. I prefer a version that I have, I think fanmade.

 Going down, I also keep the previous leak.

About the instrumentals, it was interesting to listen to them, especially knowing how some mythical songs are, such as Oklahoma, Thyme, Soulmonster, but I find it very boring to listen to instrumentals. I don't think I will listen to those instrumentals many more times.

PRL sounds like a Matrix soundtrack. 

Mustache and Tonto are ok.

Shacker, Sorry and If the world, I prefer album versions.

Real doll, I don't like it at all

Hard to imagine working with THYME

I'm noticing that Estranged is the most valued GNR song

You could be mine (UYI)

November Rain (UYI)

Don't cry (original) (UYI)

Chinese democracy (album version)

It's so easy (live era or any live version)

There are good ideas in the instrumentals, but without Axl I have no idea if they could be good songs.

I think in general Axl prioritized working on ballads and left a lot of heavier songs unfinished.

About Nothing, I like what Axl sings, but music doesn't. He chose the worst instrumental to put some lyrics.

And Thyme, so many years waiting to hear it and it's only a couple of minutes of orchestra! It reminds me of Madagascar

15 minutes ago, WhazUp said:

I have mixed feelings about it.  On one hand, yes a lot of these early mixes IMO sound better than the final versions

 

But looking at it from Bob's perspective... this is GNR, the band that wrote SCOM and Jungle.  The band that had hits that overtook radio and make the entire world look at them, and going from albums filled with rock and blues and songwriting that is a perfect blend of integrity AND hit potential to the songs here.... there are very few songs that I can say match up to what GNR already did, if any at all.  I personally like CD but there are no hits on the album, and as much as I like it as a hardcore GNR fan I can't neccesarily blame a guy going into it with "this doesn't match the level of the albums GNR have already put out"

 

Again I say this as someone who loves Chinese and all the songs around in its era, it isn't hard to imagine Bob's perspective - going from Appetite and the Illusions, to a more self-indulgent mix of styles GNR is not typically known for, with none of the members there that made GNR what they were, and with very very few actual songs that have the potential to do well in terms of hits

Axl should have released the album with another name, not under GNR.

With these songs, he would have had an excellent solo album, much better than other former GNR members

19 minutes ago, TheSeeker said:

I think Perhaps and The Blues could have cracked Top 40 in 2001-2002, but that's only because they have pop vibes

Hardschool would have sounded tame compared to the nu-metal stuff that was dominating the charts back then 

Yes, I also think that a couple of CD songs could have worked commercially. I still hear time to time Better on the radio. But I still think they are far from the great hits that GNR has.

 Maybe the record company wanted a new Sweet child or Jungle

Axl had very good material, but he hadn't any hit. I think that was always the problem for the record company.

Maybe if Axl hadn't used the name GNR it'd have been different. Slash's solo albums are well below what Axl produced in those years, and he hadn't problem editing them.