DEC 7th 2011 - Youngstown, OH @ Covelli Centre Update Thread

[Bruno P.]

Yup...his playing has nothing to do with this. Satriani told Axl that Bumblefoot is fan friendly and a nice guy so people at mygnr would like him....thats why he's here.

And have you ever thought that BirdCatcher *might* like Ron's playing more and that's why he gave Ron his props? Just sayin'...

[Monty]

Any decent vids of Whole Lotta Rosie with Zakk Wylde?

[mustaine]

Reviews:

http://www.broowaha.com/articles/12165/guns-n-roses-rock-youngstown-ohio

http://www.vindy.com/news/2011/dec/08/guns-n-roses-puts-sweet-show-covelli/

http://www.tribtoday.com/page/blogs.detail/display/1770/Review--Guns-N--Roses-at-the-Covelli-Centre.html

http://www.cleveland.com/popmusic/index.ssf/2011/12/rock_and_roll_hall_of_fame-bou.html

[youngunner]

Yup...his playing has nothing to do with this. Satriani told Axl that Bumblefoot is fan friendly and a nice guy so people at mygnr would like him....thats why he's here.

And have you ever thought that BirdCatcher *might* like Ron's playing more and that's why he gave Ron his props? Just sayin'...

I didnt say that is why Axl hired him. The fans gravitate towards Bumble because hes accessible.

The point of my post is not to knock Bumble but to point out how biased many people around here are in regards to this topic and many others.

Its cool if someone likes Bfoot style more than Robins, SLash or anyone else. But someone made the comment that they think Bfoot has butchered Civil War. Which triggered the response from BirdCatcher..stating well at least Bfoot copies SLash better than Robin...news flash RObin never tried to copy SLash. He played the material the way he wanted and didnt care if you tophats approved or not.

[Bruno P.]

Yup...his playing has nothing to do with this. Satriani told Axl that Bumblefoot is fan friendly and a nice guy so people at mygnr would like him....thats why he's here.

And have you ever thought that BirdCatcher *might* like Ron's playing more and that's why he gave Ron his props? Just sayin'...

I didnt say that is why Axl hired him. The fans gravitate towards Bumble because hes accessible.

The point of my post is not to knock Bumble but to point out how biased many people around here are in regards to this topic and many others.

Its cool if someone likes Bfoot style more than Robins, SLash or anyone else. But someone made the comment that they think Bfoot has butchered Civil War. Which triggered the response from BirdCatcher..stating well at least Bfoot copies SLash better than Robin...news flash RObin never tried to copy SLash. He played the material the way he wanted and didnt care if you tophats approved or not.

He never said Bumblefoot copies Slash. He said that he's better at playing Slash solos - in his own way, not Slash's way. That's why he said "the Bumblefoot way". Robin was too his and miss live and his not so commom way of playing the old solos made some fans and some haters. I, for one, liked his playing a lot most of the time and his studio work is awesome. But sometimes he fucked too much notes on stage and I wish I didn't even listen to some of his solos... a big example being his NR solo in RIR Lisbon 2006. It was one of the worst solos I've ever heard, but the NR solos he played at RIR 3 were awesome, better than the originals in my opinion.

He simply likes Bumblefoot's style more and doesn't like Finck's apparently. There's no need to get bitter about it and even attack other guitarists just because someone bashed Finck. It's the same as some Slash fans attacking Buckethead because he was too technical (they said mechanical...) and people liked him because he weared a mask and a KFC Bucket on stage - that's not true at all.

I'll never understand why people bash guys like Bucket and Ron like they do over here. If people don't like their style, fine, but don't go out there saying that they're shit or something like that because they *obviously* are not, like it or not - I'm not pointing at you youngunner.

On a side note people are at the GNR concerts to hear the old solos, not Robin's or Ron's approach to the solos. That's why Ron is more respectiful to the old material now, even though he doesn't play 'em exactly note for note...

[GiveNuseR]

Sigh. this doesnt deserve its own topic, so just mentioning ehre... I didn't realize Axl keeps saying "you" in estranged on the parts thata re supposed to be "us" and I always felt like the word changing from "you" to "us" during the song matters because ti starts out alone and then represents more than one. I'll just assume he did it again here. Havent listened.

Edited December 10, 2011 by GiveNuseR

[James Bond]

Sigh. this doesnt deserve its own topic, so just mentioning ehre... I didn't realize Axl keeps saying "you" in estranged on the parts thata re supposed to be "us" and I always felt like the word changing from "you" to "us" during the song matters because ti starts out alone and then represents more than one. I'll just assume he did it again here. Havent listened.

Maybe he'll get it right, next time.

He does it get it right sometimes and not others. I've probably heard most of the Estranged performances this tour thanks to the one thread that was around that collected all the videos, and some nights he gets the "So what'll happen to US, baby" right and other times he says it as "you" instead.

[Gagarin]

Sigh. this doesnt deserve its own topic, so just mentioning ehre... I didn't realize Axl keeps saying "you" in estranged on the parts thata re supposed to be "us" and I always felt like the word changing from "you" to "us" during the song matters because ti starts out alone and then represents more than one. I'll just assume he did it again here. Havent listened.

Maybe he'll get it right, next time.

He does it get it right sometimes and not others. I've probably heard most of the Estranged performances this tour thanks to the one thread that was around that collected all the videos, and some nights he gets the "So what'll happen to US, baby" right and other times he says it as "you" instead.

And THAT is why there's a teleprompter. It's not simple V/C/V, GNR lyrics.

[James Bond]

Sigh. this doesnt deserve its own topic, so just mentioning ehre... I didn't realize Axl keeps saying "you" in estranged on the parts thata re supposed to be "us" and I always felt like the word changing from "you" to "us" during the song matters because ti starts out alone and then represents more than one. I'll just assume he did it again here. Havent listened.

Maybe he'll get it right, next time.

He does it get it right sometimes and not others. I've probably heard most of the Estranged performances this tour thanks to the one thread that was around that collected all the videos, and some nights he gets the "So what'll happen to US, baby" right and other times he says it as "you" instead.

And THAT is why there's a teleprompter. It's not simple V/C/V, GNR lyrics.

Indeed, which is another reason why it's one of their best songs.

[The Archer]

Reviews:

http://www.broowaha.com/articles/12165/guns-n-roses-rock-youngstown-ohio

http://www.vindy.com/news/2011/dec/08/guns-n-roses-puts-sweet-show-covelli/

http://www.tribtoday.com/page/blogs.detail/display/1770/Review--Guns-N--Roses-at-the-Covelli-Centre.html

http://www.cleveland.com/popmusic/index.ssf/2011/12/rock_and_roll_hall_of_fame-bou.html

Thanks! It's good to see some honest reviews on this tour instead of the biased bullshit that a lot of reviewers put out there

[GiveNuseR]

Sigh. this doesnt deserve its own topic, so just mentioning ehre... I didn't realize Axl keeps saying "you" in estranged on the parts thata re supposed to be "us" and I always felt like the word changing from "you" to "us" during the song matters because ti starts out alone and then represents more than one. I'll just assume he did it again here. Havent listened.

Maybe he'll get it right, next time.

He does it get it right sometimes and not others. I've probably heard most of the Estranged performances this tour thanks to the one thread that was around that collected all the videos, and some nights he gets the "So what'll happen to US, baby" right and other times he says it as "you" instead.

I annoyingly missed "when you're talking to yourself and nobody's home" when recording in Nashville. o annoying because he sounded pretty good on the song and I hate when parts are missing. Also now i am kind of regrettting not taking another battery and another sd card to get more of the concert because I've actually liked listening to the audio from my videos!

Anyway, at least Axl rarely messes up lyrics on anything else. On Civil War at my show he messed up multiple times, but that's extremely understandable for the first performance of it.

[The Archer]

Misleading headline because this is a very positive review -

http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/17924

Concert Review: Axl Rose and His Hired Guns Put on Epic Performance at Youngstown's Covelli Center

By Eugene McCormick. Published on 12/09/2011 - 4:30pm

To put this concert review into some perspective, I will give you a little background about myself. I think I have been blessed with seeing some of the best tours that rock n roll has ever seen.

In the summer of 1988, when I was just starting middle school, I saw Elton John for the first of 3 times. At 13, in 1990, I saw Paul McCartney's excellent show when he played Municipal Stadium and two more times when he played arenas stateside in the 2000s. I saw Guns N Roses for the first time on the second last school day of middle school and was the envy of all the burnouts who were shocked that a straight laced kid such as myself was allowed to see what was then dubbed as "The Most Dangerous Band on the Planet". I've seen legends such as Neil Young and Bob Dylan multiple times and have taken in shows by Oasis' Gallagher brothers at a rate that may have surpassed twenty times. I've seen shows by The Who, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, and U2. I was privileged to see the inaugural Rock N Roll Hall of Fame show on the shores of Lake Erie that brought about numerous legendary acts that the genre spawned. I say this to notify you straight-off that I know a thing or two about a great rock concert, and what I witnessed at the Covelli Center on Wednesday night that turned into Thursday morning topped them all. Axl Rose and his hired guns delivered a performance of epic proportions.

People love to bask in nostalgia and miss Axl's top wearing hat partner but, truth be told, I've seen all three legs of the Chinese Democracy Tour (which started in 2002 even though the album didn't get officially released till 2008) and each show surpassed that of the Use Your Illusion Tour that hit the Richfield Coliseum in 1991. While Axl didn't have his childhood buddy playing rhythm guitar, a drunk on bass, a herion junkie on drums (who was axed by the time I saw them), and the famous guitar virtuoso, things seemed more refined in the 2000s-era GNR show in a good way. The Chinese Democracy bands from 2002-2008, made up of seemingly anyone who Axl wanted to play with at the time who was a highly skilled musician, never was sloppy and was well rehearsed (maybe to a fault) and didn't play at a decibal level that made your ears ring for days on end. What was dissapointing was the element of surprise that the shows brought and their heavy leaning on GNR's debut album Appetite for Destruction when they had many more songs at their disposal that would have added a better mix to an hour and forty five minute gig. What seemed to unnerve many concert goers during these gigs was the fact that Rose would saunter on stage at just about any time he pleased and deliver a stellar gig, like in the golden era of GNR, but their lives had changed with family and work obligations and they didn't enjoy getting home after the bars had already closed down for the night.

The original GNR shows seemed to have a club feel in an arena setting and, while at times electrifying, seemed to be out of place in the surroundings. When the Illusion shows moved to stadiums, which I unfortunately missed, it probably opened things up a bit but by that time Izzy Stradlin had left the band which was a devastating blow as he was a key songwriting partner, backing vocalist, and decades long friend to enigmatic Rose. Key members of the band remained and they played many legendary shows, but after 1994 the fire was gone and Axl went his separate ways with the rest of the old crew.

With all that being said, let's take our to attention to proceedings at Youngstown's Covelli Center. Axl is still a late arriver to his party but seems to make his regular appearance at about 11 pm nowadays. Every party needs something to celebrate and what is better than being inducted to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame earlier in the day on his first try. Rose was clearly in a good mood and the crowd was truly electric in the modern arena that was at near capacity. The band, some of which has played with Axl for a decade now, is tight as ever and doesn't play as close to the vest as they had in the past. Couple that with a setlist that has added in stellar songs from the Illusion era, including Civil War which had been absent for 18 years, along with the songs you expect from Appetite and a great selection of covers that show the wide ranging influence on Rose and any moderate GNR fan would be more than pleased witness the proceedings. Also included in the set are sublime choices from the highly underrated Chinese Democracy which would could have been called Use Your Illusion III as it is in the same vein as those two classics that spawned hits such as November Rain, Don't Cry, You Could Be Mine, and the McCartney cover Live and Let Die which all made their way on the setlist that lasted 3 hours with some guitar solos thrown in so the crowd could catch its breath after being barraged with hit after hit in the Axl Rose canon. This time around it seems that the band is playing at a little louder level than in the past which was welcoming as added something extra to the show but is not nearly as loud as the 1991 version which was over the top.

For a man nearing 50, the Indiana native hasn't lost a step. Rose still zooms across the stage at a roaring pace throughout shows like he did in his 20's and still has the vocal prowess of an Opera singer. It is noteworthy to point out that the tour manager seemed to know how to plan these gigs as the Youngstown gig, which is a short trip from Cleveland, was the same day the GNR induction announcement and I highly doubt that was a coincidence. The band followed it up with a trip to Indianapolis yesterday which is an hour drive from his hometown of Layfette. Axl acknowledged being being anointed Rock royalty by concluding the night by saying "Thank you to the Rock Hall and our fans" and later tweeted a nearly identical message to his legion of fans on the world wide web.

Seeing McCartney at age 48 and Rose at age 49 really helped me put things in perspective as I compared the two performances in my head. The former Beatle put on a show that I will never forget, and is still in my top 3 all-time, but even with all those classic songs that spawned stadium sing-alongs the energy at the 3 hour Guns N Roses show was more explosive. That is why Axl Rose is a first ballot member of the Rock Hall.

It will be interesting to see if he shows up to Cleveland's Public Hall to accept his award with the bandmates that he has been estranged from for so long but as the night concluded with Frank Sinatra's My Way nobody knows what is up his sleeve. Maybe if they invite the cast from America's favorite serial killer Dexter, who's theme song he came out to with roaring applause, perhaps Rose can be coaxed to reunite with the original Guns and make it the happy ending that many music fans are dying to see. If he keeps putting on shows like this I really don't care who it is with as it was a truly sensational performance that shows that Axl is still performing at the highest levels of rock n roll royalty.

Edited December 10, 2011 by The Archer

[Eu4ic]

Word up. Nice review