Thoughts on Mr Brownstone.

[steveysham]

I've been reading Reckless Road by Marc Canter, recently and when he documents the band's refusal to compromise their music for the producers wanting them to be more radio friendly, I started wondering about Mr. Brownstone. In particular the lyric 'Cause worrying's a waste of my....time'.

Live-- we all know Axl sings 'fucking time', and even in the studio version the pause implies that they mean to say 'fucking time' however it's omitted. I was wondering if this was due to censorship or did the band just feel that actually swearing was superfluous as the pause implied it anyway. Ever since hearing Brownstone live I've always wondered about the odd pause in the studio version. I never could get why they just didn't say 'fucking time' in the recorded track. What do you guys think? Have you ever wondered about it? Or does anyone have any information about why it was done this way?

Edited September 26, 2010 by steveysham

[GN'R Forever]

I never heard him say "fucking time" in that song until like...1991 besides maybe once in '88 or '89, and I've listened to a LOT of shows. It's probably just something he eventually ad-libbed in there.

[eggers]

I'd say Axl added it later for fun.

[Freddie Mercury's Ghost]

On the album it sounds like Axl sang it, but then they edited it out later.

Same as "My Michelle" where Axl sings "someday you'll find someone that you can call your own but til then you better...", and then in 2006 Baz sang "...put down the shotgun" to finish the line while doing it live. That was probably the original lyric that the band omitted for whatever reason.

Edited September 26, 2010 by Freddie Mercury's Ghost

[Uncle Buck]

I've been reading Reckless Road by Marc Canter, recently and when he documents the band's refusal to compromise their music for the producers wanting them to be more radio friendly, I started wondering about Mr. Brownstone. In particular the lyric 'Cause worrying's a waste of my....time'.

Live-- we all know Axl sings 'fucking time', and even in the studio version the pause implies that they mean to say 'fucking time' however it's omitted. I was wondering if this was due to censorship or did the band just feel that actually swearing was superfluous as the pause implied it anyway. Ever since hearing Brownstone live I've always wondered about the odd pause in the studio version. I never could get why they just didn't say 'fucking time' in the recorded track. What do you guys think? Have you ever wondered about it? Or does anyone have any information about why it was done this way?

Are you suggesting that "fucking time" was omitted because the band caved in to producer's requests for the song to be more radio friendly?

They didn't seem to have a problem with "that old man is a real mother fucker" and "I used to do a little but a little wouldn't do it". I'd think that those 2 lines alone would guarantee an un-radio friendly song, especially in 87/88.

So no, I don't think it was omitted due to request. Axl probably just felt that saying "fucking time" live versus "time" would get the crowd more pumped.

[Lose Your Illusions]

I actually like it without the "fuckin."

[hudsonsaul]

believe it was 100% planned and done like this originally (minus the 'fucking').....the slight pause sounds awesome and i think it was planned like this. As someone said above, he would have added this later and it stuck and got spammed from then on. Lets face Axl performances were legendary but they were very very very similar....always....often in same part of teh stage for parts of song, doing same body language etc etc. Nothign wrong with that of course. BUt I'd say the pause was deliberate, the fucking was added...sounded good...it got spammed.

[wasted]

I remember a producer saying AFD was "too radio" and they needed to make it grittier? i think it was an Axl interview. I don't think anyone thought Brownstone was a single?

[J Dog]

I think it was originally fuckin time, fits the pause perfect. But I don't think it was censored, they say motherfucker later in the song, and songs like It's So Easy and You're Crazy weren't edited. I think the pause is perfect, mabye they were trying things and just like how it sounded.

[sweetness]

I've been reading Reckless Road by Marc Canter, recently and when he documents the band's refusal to compromise their music for the producers wanting them to be more radio friendly, I started wondering about Mr. Brownstone. In particular the lyric 'Cause worrying's a waste of my....time'.

Live-- we all know Axl sings 'fucking time', and even in the studio version the pause implies that they mean to say 'fucking time' however it's omitted. I was wondering if this was due to censorship or did the band just feel that actually swearing was superfluous as the pause implied it anyway. Ever since hearing Brownstone live I've always wondered about the odd pause in the studio version. I never could get why they just didn't say 'fucking time' in the recorded track. What do you guys think? Have you ever wondered about it? Or does anyone have any information about why it was done this way?

Are you suggesting that "fucking time" was omitted because the band caved in to producer's requests for the song to be more radio friendly?

They didn't seem to have a problem with "that old man is a real mother fucker" and "I used to do a little but a little wouldn't do it". I'd think that those 2 lines alone would guarantee an un-radio friendly song, especially in 87/88.

So no, I don't think it was omitted due to request. Axl probably just felt that saying "fucking time" live versus "time" would get the crowd more pumped.

yeah, this

[dalsh327]

On the demo and early live recordings, he pauses. Other than that, you'd have to ask him or see the journals/lyrics he first wrote it out on. Or email Mike Clink.

There might be an alternate take where he sings it. Which leads to this question... how many hours of AFD sessions are out there, and is there a breakdown of what was recorded and when? Would be a good book in itself, a detailed "making of", apart from the stuff we've already read. They could release just studio banter and it would be interesting to listen to just that, and I'm sure a few of us pervs want to hear Axl "directing"

The Doors debut album had 2 moments of censorship, which a few years back was rectified... now we hear "She gets high" when they play "Break on Through", and "The End" brought back the "fks".

If "It's So Easy" was the first single, and I don't remember if it was or wasn't...did they edit it?

[eggers]

On the demo and early live recordings, he pauses. Other than that, you'd have to ask him or see the journals/lyrics he first wrote it out on. Or email Mike Clink.

There might be an alternate take where he sings it. Which leads to this question... how many hours of AFD sessions are out there, and is there a breakdown of what was recorded and when? Would be a good book in itself, a detailed "making of", apart from the stuff we've already read. They could release just studio banter and it would be interesting to listen to just that, and I'm sure a few of us pervs want to hear Axl "directing"

The Doors debut album had 2 moments of censorship, which a few years back was rectified... now we hear "She gets high" when they play "Break on Through", and "The End" brought back the "fks".

If "It's So Easy" was the first single, and I don't remember if it was or wasn't...did they edit it?

Axl didn't write it, Izzy did.

[Casual]

Yea, Axl tends to add extra cursing to the lyrics, live, which I think is pretty cool.

"You..you had to move to the goddamn fuckin city"

"Oh Goddammit, I wanna watch you bleed."

are a few examples.

Edited September 26, 2010 by Casual

[hollywood_democracy]

Yea, Axl tends to add extra cursing to the lyrics, live, which I think is pretty cool.

"You..you had to move to the goddamn fuckin city"

"Oh Goddammit, I wanna watch you bleed."

are a few examples.

Or in Jungle, "I wanna hear you fuckers scream."

[dalsh327]

Yea, Axl tends to add extra cursing to the lyrics, live, which I think is pretty cool.

"You..you had to move to the goddamn fuckin city"

"Oh Goddammit, I wanna watch you bleed."

are a few examples.

In 2010, we have a president that uses words like "motherfucker", previous president was caught using "asshole", and of course Cheney's "go fuck yourself", and Biden saying "big fuckin' deal", yet FM radio went ass backward and started bleeping songs like "Who Are You" and "Money".

I think I'm more shocked when I hear guys like James Taylor or Billy Joel use it in their songs.

[Estranged Reality]

Axl has always added stuff into songs over time. Just look at the outro for The Blues and how those wails became lyrics over the years. I think he just switches things up and sometimes sticks with them when they work.

In one performance of WTTJ back in the day he sang "sh-n-n-n-fuckin-n-n-knees" but I doubt that was an original lyric.

Edited September 27, 2010 by Estranged Reality

[UltraMav]

I think the OPs curiosity about Brownstone stems from the fact that the timing of the lyrics seems to perfectly sync up with Axl saying "fuckin time". I've always felt like it sounds edited out, but like others have pointed out, that doesn't really make sense when the song has plenty of other f-bombs littered throughout. I usually find myself filling in the "fuckin" in my head when listening to Appetite nowadays.

[eggers]

The gap before 'time' fits the music, that's why it's there.