Axl FINALLY has the right managemnt

[Damn_Smooth]

From reading your post you obviously have no idea what they do or have done for this band.

They are the number one reason there is a band and that they are communicating with the fans to this point. How is that a bad thing?

What makes you say that? I really don't know what they have done for this band, but nothing I've ever heard has said that they were critical elements of it.

[Georgy Zhukov]

Wasn't Azoff part of the reason why CD failed to be promoted.

[Chris 55]

Only one person who understands why that should never, ever happen, no matter how much money people would throw at him, and no matter how much great press and popularity he would get. Some things are just more important... like honor, dignity, art and yes, even family. So in this very difficult, but very crucial time for Guns N' Roses, Beta is the only person they can trust.

what a load of crap. if anything beta's partly responsible for not letting Slash and Axl put their differences to bed.

What ever you don't know shit.

Back up your claim then.

[dalsh327]

Wasn't Azoff part of the reason why CD failed to be promoted.

My guess - Ticketmaster made him an offer he couldn't refuse, and dropped everyone except the Eagles and pawned off GNR to one of his lackeys. I think Axl was assured he'd have direct contact to Azoff and when he realized he got the guy who manages Paul Revere and the Raiders, he told them to kiss his ass.

[Cosmo]

Wish DJ could somewhat participate in the management.

[shotgunblues1978]

Goldstein: got him onstage again after 8 years off.

Azoff: GOT THE ALBUM IN STORES after 11 years.

New Guy: Made sure the first US tour in 5 years didn't end because of a mood swing or a monitor problem halfway through the tour.

as opposed to:

Axl on his own: does whatever Axl feels like.

Beta: see 'Axl on his own'

Goldstein: oversaw the demise of the old lineup, the inactivity from 1994-1997, the next 5 years of stop-and-start recording, culminating in his allegedly getting fired for booking a tour without Axl's. Didn't do much of note in the music industry other than manage GNR/Axl

Merck: did jack shit, TBH, except for pull off one tour that was pretty successful despite having some awful logistics and puzzling locations/venues on the US leg; either he or Goldstein was responsible for bringing in Roy Thomas Baker who, per Tommy, wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars and set the album back several years

Azoff: to his credit, got CD released and figured out a way for the label to make money off the album, can't take that away from him. However the release was horribly botched (wrong album art used, alternate covers not released, half-assed at best promotion, lack of a subsequent US tour, etc.) all of which lend to Axl's claims that Azoff intentionally botched the release to try to ensure that CD was a commercial failure that would force a reunion.

McGhee: did nothing of note; hasn't done anything noteworthy in the music business since the 1980s other than wring every cent possibly out of KISS who are willing to do absolutely anything for dollars

Katsis: wasn't around long enough to do much of anything

So of the 5 managers in the past 10-12 years, only Azoff has accomplished anything; two proved to be inept (Goldstein and Merck); two weren't involved long enough to do anything (McGhee and Katsis). All signs point to Azoff, McGhee and Katsis all trying to set up a reunion tour despite Axl's obvious desire to move forward with his current lineup. I imagine he is pretty sick of people who are his employees try to go behind his back and coerce him into doing something with his career that he clearly does not want to do. It's no surprise; guys like Azoff and McGhee don't give a shit about art, all they care about is money. They are great at maximizing profits. However, we all know that Axl's primary motivation is not to make as much money as he possibly can. If he can't find "industry" people that he can trust to work with his true goals in mind (and straight from his mouth, he can't) then his only option is to take matters into his own hands and have people he knows he can trust handle his affairs. He's not the first; there are a number of veteran musicians who have more or less taken management into their own hands and succeeded.

[tingirl]

Could you imagine being a hired manager for this band it would be a nightmare even just starting you'd be entering the twilight zone.

[olga]

Now wishing that I said hi to Fernando when I saw him by the stage at Chicago...

[dalsh327]

I would just like to point out that anytime Axl has not had an actual manager or some time of leadership we have seen very little product or activity. Now that Beta is the manager we should kiss hearing new music any time soon goodbye. I have no faith whatsoever that being Axl's housekeeper and replacement mother for the last 20 years in any way qualifies her to book a tour, negotiate penalties for late starts, go over contracts, negotiate a royalty rate OR an album release, keep communications in tact within the band, and organize everything it takes to put a band on the road and keep them there (trucks, equipment, venue owners, staff, etc) .

From reading your post you obviously have no idea what they do or have done for this band.

They are the number one reason there is a band and that they are communicating with the fans to this point. How is that a bad thing?

Pressure from outside forces like record labels and managers is the only way to make Axl do anything at all. Chinese Democracy would never have been released if there had been no one breathing down Axl's neck. Beta becoming the manager is one of the worst things that has ever happened to this band if you want to hear new music.

I believe the opposite. Those outside forces got in the way of things.

I think the band's enthusiastic about doing new music, and that's going to drive the sessions.

Prince is no different when he books tours... he's pretty much depending on his assistant to line things up. He has no big name manager doing it.

[jellyzero]

The thing is, and it is probably off topic a little, is that we could have put a lot of this speculation to rest if Eddie Trunk had any idea at all how to conduct an interview. When Axl said "release it...what does that mean?" he could have said something to the effect of "Well, Axl you had been working on an album since 1997. Prior to that you had successfully put out five albums in a six year period so , yes, people expect a musician with a recording contract to release music."

This would help to answer a lot of our questions because a big reason we care about who is managing the band is because we want more music. Simple as that.

Eddie Trunk would ask a question or, most of the time, pay a compliment - Axl would respond and then they would move on to the next cue card. It was like a Q&A section from some teeny bopper magazine. Has the man EVER heard of a follow up question?

As I said, slightly off topic.

[shotgunblues1978]

The thing is, and it is probably off topic a little, is that we could have put a lot of this speculation to rest if Eddie Trunk had any idea at all how to conduct an interview. When Axl said "release it...what does that mean?" he could have said something to the effect of "Well, Axl you had been working on an album since 1997. Prior to that you had successfully put out five albums in a six year period so , yes, people expect a musician with a recording contract to release music."

This would help to answer a lot of our questions because a big reason we care about who is managing the band is because we want more music. Simple as that.

Eddie Trunk would ask a question or, most of the time, pay a compliment - Axl would respond and then they would move on to the next cue card. It was like a Q&A section from some teeny bopper magazine. Has the man EVER heard of a follow up question?

As I said, slightly off topic.

Eddie Trunk was just happy to have the interview. The LA Times writer asked good and pointed questions without being a dick, and got some pretty interesting answers

With regards to new music, we already saw that having varying degrees of professional managers did nothing to expedite the process. So I don't think that's the deciding factor. The version of CD we got was probably about 85% complete in 2002 (proven by demos), the only real differences being Ron's overdubs and solos, some additional backing vocals, and a few other changes in instrumentation/arrangements that were not that big of a deal (e.g. TWAT got a beefed up, thick power chord guitar section in the chorus that was cool but could've been recorded in a day). Ron recorded his parts in several months; the album simply wasn't that far from being done in 2002. But like Tommy said record label politics and Johnny Come Lately A&R guys, big name producers, etc. delayed it indefinitely when all it needed were a few tweaks.

I get the sense from the latest shows and interviews that Axl is more confident in the current "new lineup" than he's ever been. And for good reason. I've seen the new lineup in the 2002, 2006 and 2011 iterations and 2011 blew the previous versions away, in every area: chemistry, setlist, sound, performance, etc. And this is coming from someone who thought the 2002 and 2006 shows I saw were amazing (still do). This current lineup is an absolute machine. I have no doubt they could make an incredible album. I think Axl senses this too; Ron & DJ sense it based on their interviews. If they can hits the studio for 6-8 months after the tour ends, they could release a great double album by teaming new songs with some (slightly) reworked songs from the CD sessions and have an absolute classic on their hands

[Bards]

From reading your post you obviously have no idea what they do or have done for this band.

They are the number one reason there is a band and that they are communicating with the fans to this point. How is that a bad thing?

Explain.

[*YOOSH*]

The thing is, and it is probably off topic a little, is that we could have put a lot of this speculation to rest if Eddie Trunk had any idea at all how to conduct an interview. When Axl said "release it...what does that mean?" he could have said something to the effect of "Well, Axl you had been working on an album since 1997. Prior to that you had successfully put out five albums in a six year period so , yes, people expect a musician with a recording contract to release music."

This would help to answer a lot of our questions because a big reason we care about who is managing the band is because we want more music. Simple as that.

Eddie Trunk would ask a question or, most of the time, pay a compliment - Axl would respond and then they would move on to the next cue card. It was like a Q&A section from some teeny bopper magazine. Has the man EVER heard of a follow up question?

As I said, slightly off topic.

Eddie Trunk was just happy to have the interview. The LA Times writer asked good and pointed questions without being a dick, and got some pretty interesting answers

With regards to new music, we already saw that having varying degrees of professional managers did nothing to expedite the process. So I don't think that's the deciding factor. The version of CD we got was probably about 85% complete in 2002 (proven by demos), the only real differences being Ron's overdubs and solos, some additional backing vocals, and a few other changes in instrumentation/arrangements that were not that big of a deal (e.g. TWAT got a beefed up, thick power chord guitar section in the chorus that was cool but could've been recorded in a day). Ron recorded his parts in several months; the album simply wasn't that far from being done in 2002. But like Tommy said record label politics and Johnny Come Lately A&R guys, big name producers, etc. delayed it indefinitely when all it needed were a few tweaks.

I get the sense from the latest shows and interviews that Axl is more confident in the current "new lineup" than he's ever been. And for good reason. I've seen the new lineup in the 2002, 2006 and 2011 iterations and 2011 blew the previous versions away, in every area: chemistry, setlist, sound, performance, etc. And this is coming from someone who thought the 2002 and 2006 shows I saw were amazing (still do). This current lineup is an absolute machine. I have no doubt they could make an incredible album. I think Axl senses this too; Ron & DJ sense it based on their interviews. If they can hits the studio for 6-8 months after the tour ends, they could release a great double album by teaming new songs with some (slightly) reworked songs from the CD sessions and have an absolute classic on their hands

How many managers is that now? Honestly, you people can't even see that this is basically the end of GNR. An outside manager was the only chance of any new music coming out. Beta's whole philosophy is not making Axl do anything he doesn't want to. We all know Axl really doesn't want to do much. If you think you've seen the worse of last minute concert/tour cancellations, inactivity etc this will trump it all. Now with Axl's mummy telling him not to do anything he doesn't feel like doing, this band is basically over.

This band is a f****g joke.

Edited December 22, 2011 by *YOOSH*

[shotgunblues1978]

The thing is, and it is probably off topic a little, is that we could have put a lot of this speculation to rest if Eddie Trunk had any idea at all how to conduct an interview. When Axl said "release it...what does that mean?" he could have said something to the effect of "Well, Axl you had been working on an album since 1997. Prior to that you had successfully put out five albums in a six year period so , yes, people expect a musician with a recording contract to release music."

This would help to answer a lot of our questions because a big reason we care about who is managing the band is because we want more music. Simple as that.

Eddie Trunk would ask a question or, most of the time, pay a compliment - Axl would respond and then they would move on to the next cue card. It was like a Q&A section from some teeny bopper magazine. Has the man EVER heard of a follow up question?

As I said, slightly off topic.

Eddie Trunk was just happy to have the interview. The LA Times writer asked good and pointed questions without being a dick, and got some pretty interesting answers

With regards to new music, we already saw that having varying degrees of professional managers did nothing to expedite the process. So I don't think that's the deciding factor. The version of CD we got was probably about 85% complete in 2002 (proven by demos), the only real differences being Ron's overdubs and solos, some additional backing vocals, and a few other changes in instrumentation/arrangements that were not that big of a deal (e.g. TWAT got a beefed up, thick power chord guitar section in the chorus that was cool but could've been recorded in a day). Ron recorded his parts in several months; the album simply wasn't that far from being done in 2002. But like Tommy said record label politics and Johnny Come Lately A&R guys, big name producers, etc. delayed it indefinitely when all it needed were a few tweaks.

I get the sense from the latest shows and interviews that Axl is more confident in the current "new lineup" than he's ever been. And for good reason. I've seen the new lineup in the 2002, 2006 and 2011 iterations and 2011 blew the previous versions away, in every area: chemistry, setlist, sound, performance, etc. And this is coming from someone who thought the 2002 and 2006 shows I saw were amazing (still do). This current lineup is an absolute machine. I have no doubt they could make an incredible album. I think Axl senses this too; Ron & DJ sense it based on their interviews. If they can hits the studio for 6-8 months after the tour ends, they could release a great double album by teaming new songs with some (slightly) reworked songs from the CD sessions and have an absolute classic on their hands

How many managers is that now? Honestly, you people can't even see that this is basically the end of GNR. An outside manager was the only chance of any new music coming out. Beta's whole philosophy is not making Axl do anything he doesn't want to. We all know Axl really doesn't want to do much. If you think you've seen the worse of last minute concert/tour cancellations, inactivity etc this will trump it all. Now with Axl's mummy telling him not to do anything he doesn't feel like doing, this band is basically over.

This band is a f****g joke.

Which banned douchebag are you? TIA

Beta was "in charge" of the band when they "miraculously" managed to schedule all those shows in late 2009/2010 in Asia, Canada and South America that ended up at or near capacity when Azoff was busy killing their Summer 2009 Van Halen tour and trying to push Axl into a reunion tour. I'm sure (banned) douchebags like yourself would've loved that but you didn't get your way.

[*YOOSH*]

The thing is, and it is probably off topic a little, is that we could have put a lot of this speculation to rest if Eddie Trunk had any idea at all how to conduct an interview. When Axl said "release it...what does that mean?" he could have said something to the effect of "Well, Axl you had been working on an album since 1997. Prior to that you had successfully put out five albums in a six year period so , yes, people expect a musician with a recording contract to release music."

This would help to answer a lot of our questions because a big reason we care about who is managing the band is because we want more music. Simple as that.

Eddie Trunk would ask a question or, most of the time, pay a compliment - Axl would respond and then they would move on to the next cue card. It was like a Q&A section from some teeny bopper magazine. Has the man EVER heard of a follow up question?

As I said, slightly off topic.

Eddie Trunk was just happy to have the interview. The LA Times writer asked good and pointed questions without being a dick, and got some pretty interesting answers

With regards to new music, we already saw that having varying degrees of professional managers did nothing to expedite the process. So I don't think that's the deciding factor. The version of CD we got was probably about 85% complete in 2002 (proven by demos), the only real differences being Ron's overdubs and solos, some additional backing vocals, and a few other changes in instrumentation/arrangements that were not that big of a deal (e.g. TWAT got a beefed up, thick power chord guitar section in the chorus that was cool but could've been recorded in a day). Ron recorded his parts in several months; the album simply wasn't that far from being done in 2002. But like Tommy said record label politics and Johnny Come Lately A&R guys, big name producers, etc. delayed it indefinitely when all it needed were a few tweaks.

I get the sense from the latest shows and interviews that Axl is more confident in the current "new lineup" than he's ever been. And for good reason. I've seen the new lineup in the 2002, 2006 and 2011 iterations and 2011 blew the previous versions away, in every area: chemistry, setlist, sound, performance, etc. And this is coming from someone who thought the 2002 and 2006 shows I saw were amazing (still do). This current lineup is an absolute machine. I have no doubt they could make an incredible album. I think Axl senses this too; Ron & DJ sense it based on their interviews. If they can hits the studio for 6-8 months after the tour ends, they could release a great double album by teaming new songs with some (slightly) reworked songs from the CD sessions and have an absolute classic on their hands

How many managers is that now? Honestly, you people can't even see that this is basically the end of GNR. An outside manager was the only chance of any new music coming out. Beta's whole philosophy is not making Axl do anything he doesn't want to. We all know Axl really doesn't want to do much. If you think you've seen the worse of last minute concert/tour cancellations, inactivity etc this will trump it all. Now with Axl's mummy telling him not to do anything he doesn't feel like doing, this band is basically over.

This band is a f****g joke.

Which banned douchebag are you? TIA

Beta was "in charge" of the band when they "miraculously" managed to schedule all those shows in late 2009/2010 in Asia, Canada and South America that ended up at or near capacity when Azoff was busy killing their Summer 2009 Van Halen tour and trying to push Axl into a reunion tour. I'm sure (banned) douchebags like yourself would've loved that but you didn't get your way.

So she booked a couple of shows, big deal. Half the reason of having a manager in a band is that you need someone independent to make decisions. This way it's all going to be whatever Axl wants. Last time it was like that he went into hiding for over a decade and took CD 15 years to get released. Thank god the record company finally said enough and grabbed it from his hands. Knowing Axl would have been another decade waiting for his 'artwork'.

Axl has been through how many managers now? Yet he can't work with anyone. A bit like guitarists hey. It's all their fault.

The world can't be wrong.

[CoolRanchDressing]

Axl believes she's right to manage Guns N' Roses. Are you seriously so arrogant as to think you know better? And why? Because you read some stuff on a forum?

I'm sure Axl appreciates your input. But at the end of the day, he's the guy who made Guns N' Roses. And you're the guy who read about it online.

[*YOOSH*]

Axl believes she's right to manage Guns N' Roses. Are you seriously so arrogant as to think you know better? And why? Because you read some stuff on a forum?

I'm sure Axl appreciates your input. But at the end of the day, he's the guy who made Guns N' Roses. And you're the guy who read about it online.

Think of it like this. You have a junkie and then hand the oversight of his recovery to his girlfriend who gives in to his bad habits. Nothing positive will come of that situation, or the one Axl has put himself in now. He will be put back in his comfort zone and will waste year after year like he did before when no-one was in place to tell him otherwise.

And I'm sure Axl doesn't appreciate my input. He fires world renowned managers every 6 months, so why would he listen to me

Axl is his own worst enemy.

[loko]

Tell that Sharon Osbourne

[bumblecool]

I'm really confused about these bad comments about fernando and beta. Fernando does a goodjob in facebook/twitter and board members who talked to him always said good things about him...

Beta i really don't know much about her besides what Axl said during some shows...

[Use Your Delusion 1]

Azoff was the only decent manager gnr have had since Niven , he actually released new music.

[SoulMonster]

I'm really confused about these bad comments about fernando and beta. Fernando does a goodjob in facebook/twitter and board members who talked to him always said good things about him...

Beta i really don't know much about her besides what Axl said during some shows...

Don't be confused, the explanation is that some members here are childish morons who think it is cool to speak bad of someone they have never met. They probably feel very tough doing it.

[gnr2012]

i don't like them, not true professionals

[*YOOSH*]

Imagine being a record exec with years in the business and then Axl's adopted housekeeping grandmother walks in and starts talking hardball to you. I'd point to a mop and say get to work Chico.

Truth.

[bumblecool]

i don't like them, not true professionals

Nice first post douche

We recently have a nice bunch of newbies (-50 posts) with comments like that... BBA is in Christmas holidays for sure!

[LesPaul_Player_91]

From what I've read here they've been valid arguments on both sides - sure she obviously knows Axl well and won't badger him for a reunion however she also lacks experience and it is a bit Spinal Tap.

But we've (hopefully) got a new site coming and we've just had one awesome live stream with another one in a few days. I'm keeping an open mind, all we can do is wait and see. It'll be interesting to see how 2012 pans out with the new management.

Edited December 22, 2011 by LesPaul_Player_91