How does the band view the UYI records?

[Vincent Vega]

Most of the time when you see any member of GN'R (be it Axl, Slash, Duff, etc) talk about "old GN'R", they mostly focus on AFD and the AFD era, and when Slash plays GN'R songs, he mostly plays AFD songs. Axl only plays the hits off the UYIs, whereas he plays most of AFD, even the non single songs.

My question then is, from what you know, how do the guys feel about the UYIs in retrospect, like nowadays? Are they embarrassed about them or something? Slash especially seems like he doesn't view them as an achievement or as an important part of GN'R's history nowadays......

[alfierose]

They probably hold bad memories as the recording and touring of the UYIs is where it all went wrong. I think the AFD period was happier, certainly the time they were rising through the club scene and fielding record deals.

Your first baby is always special :-)

[Ragnar]

From what I know Axl is n`t fond of UYIs either good albums that should have been, could have been and must have been one amazing double album

[ZoSoRose]

I think they both respect them though.and axls been playing more off them now like estranged and 14 years

[recklessroad]

I think the important songs from that record would only work with Axl singing them so Slash wouldn't even attempt to do them live without Axl. Nov Rain and Estrange, the way they sound have a lot to do with how Slash played on them and I know Slash is proud of them but, I think you still need Axl to sing them plus the base of those 2 songs were Axl's. You are right that AFD was who they were and how they wrote together in 1985/1986 and was pretty simple to record but there was some great stuff on UYI too. I also think Axl is proud of them too but, wished he could have done a few things differently.

[dalsh327]

Was it Axl's idea to put that much music out at once?

[Vincent Vega]

Was it Axl's idea to put that much music out at once?

Axl : There’s, like, 37 songs right now, but I know by the end of the record there’ll be 42 to 45, and I want 30 of ‘em down.

Kerrang : A double album then?

Axl : Well, a double (vinyl) album but a single 76 mn CD, something like that. Then I want five B-sides - people never listen to B-sides anymore - and that’ll be the back of another EP. We’ll say it’s B-sides, you know, plus there should be four extra songs for an EP, if we pull this off. So that’s the next record and then there’s the live record from the tour. If we do this right, we won’t have to make another album for five years ! (laughs) But it’s not so much like five years to sit on our ass. It’s like, five years to figure out what we’re gonna say next, you know? After the crowd and the people figure out how they’re gonna react to this album.

--April 1990.

Edited March 2, 2013 by Vincent Vega

[DieselDaisy]

Slash still keeps talking about this, unmixed version of Illusion which sounded superior to the released version. Marc, have you heard it?

For Axl:

''People may have their favorite songs, and it may be on "Use Your Illusion," but most people do tend to lean towards "Appetite" as being the defining Guns N' Roses record, and I can hear how, in the sound, it was moving away from that there. There's just so much I was able to do in keeping that aspect together.''

- Loder 1999

[recklessroad]

I never heard any of the unmixed songs

[DieselDaisy]

Slash says he has the tape at home. He says he used to play it for people and they would say, ''wow, so that is how UYI is supposed to sound like.''.

It is weird how it has never appeared on the bootleg circuit.

[Ragnar]

Slash says he has the tape at home. He says he used to play it for people and they would say, ''wow, so that is how UYI is supposed to sound like.''.

It is weird how it has never appeared on the bootleg circuit.

I don`t believe it another bullshit lie coming out of Slash`s pie hole if there really had been unmixed versions of UYIs, we would have heard them by now

Edited March 3, 2013 by Dark Knight

[DieselDaisy]

Not necessarly. There is 80s stuff still being leaked. And those Illusion rehearsal tapes with Adler on drums (Locomotive and others) - we hadn't heard those a year or two ago.

[dalsh327]

Slash says he has the tape at home. He says he used to play it for people and they would say, ''wow, so that is how UYI is supposed to sound like.''.

It is weird how it has never appeared on the bootleg circuit.

I don`t believe it another bullshit lie coming out of Slash`s pie hole if there really had been unmixed versions of UYIs, we would have heard them by now

If he kept the tape at home, how is someone going to copy it? Maybe Slash was just better at not letting his tapes get passed around.

[31illusions]

Not necessarly. There is 80s stuff still being leaked. And those Illusion rehearsal tapes with Adler on drums (Locomotive and others) - we hadn't heard those a year or two ago.

I had them on a CD for about 8 years now. I found them on youtube just recently though.

[Lim666]

no, he was referring to those ones from 2009 we've NEVER heard before:

"Use Your Illusion" Rough Mixes with new Slash Guitars (September 21st 1990):

Estranged/Without You (Instrumental) 9:27
Locomotive (Instrumental) 8:30
Breakdown (Instrumental) 7:12
The Garden (Instrumental) 5:10
Black Leather (Instrumental) 3:46
I Don't Care About You (Instrumental) 2:09
Attitude (Instrumental) 1:37
New Rose (Instrumental) 2:40
14 Years ['w/ new Duff bass'] 5:18


"Use Your Illusion" Mixes And Q-Sound (December 1990 - January 1991):

November Rain (SSL #40) 8:53 (Mix from 12/18/90)
November Rain (SSL #42) 8:53 (Q-Sound)
Live And Let Die (SSL #37) 2:59 (Mix from 12/17/90)
Live And Let Die (SSL #31) 2:59 (Q-Sound)
Estranged (SSL #35) 9:10 (Mix from 12/19/90)
Estranged (SSL #39) 9:10 (Q-Sound)
Double Talkin' Jive (SSL #23) 5:19 (Mix from 1/5/91)
Double Talkin' Jive (SSL #29) 5:19 (Q-Sound)
You Ain't The First (SSL #15) 2:32 (Mix from 1/6/91)
You Ain't The First (SSL #17) 2:32 (Q-Sound)
Yesterdays (SSL #19) 3:13 (Mix from 1/7/91)
Yesterdays (SSL #22) 3:13 (Q-Sound)
Pretty Tied Up (SSL #46) 5:10 (Mix from 1/10/91)
Pretty Tied Up (SSL #42) 5:10 (Q-Sound)
You Could Be Mine (SSL #20) 5:48 (Mix from 1/17/91)
You Could Be Mine (SSL #30) 5:48 (Q-Sound)
Bad Apples (SSL #16) 4:25 (Mix from 1/14/91)
Bad Apples (SSL #22) 4:25 (Q-Sound)
Don't Cry [main lyric] (SSL #29) 4:45 (Mix from 1/16/91)
Don't Cry [main lyric] (SSL #48) 4:45 (Q-Sound)
Don't Cry [alt. lyric] (SSL #40) 4:45 (Mix from 1/16/91)
Don't Cry [alt. lyric] (SSL #45) 4:45 (Q-Sound)

remember Axl put lots of embassaring effects on the songs in about last minute (hell, listen to "Garden of Eden" studio version!), so there surely are master DATs without those effect noises, and Slash was referring to those ones.

[recklessroad]

Slash says he has the tape at home. He says he used to play it for people and they would say, ''wow, so that is how UYI is supposed to sound like.''.

It is weird how it has never appeared on the bootleg circuit.

I don`t believe it another bullshit lie coming out of Slash`s pie hole if there really had been unmixed versions of UYIs, we would have heard them by now

Think about it, after a song is recorded, its not mixed until the rest of the songs are done. the band members make tapes of them to hear what they just recorded. This is the case with just about every band out there.

[alfa75]

Great question that I have always wondered about myself. Both Slash and Axl seem to shy away from most of the UYI stuff, as if it's not important. I remember at the time the albums came out Axl said they were exactly how he wanted them to be, but until very recently he was only including 3 or 4 songs off a 30 song piece of work versus 10 of 12 on AFD. Keep in mind that the songs he did play off UYI were almost all written during the AFD times (UCBM, DC, NR) and then 2 covers (LALD and KOHD). It's almost as if he ignored the period of songwriting between Lies and UYI. Slash is the same, having only played Civil War solo as far as I know.

I can understand Slash not wanting to go near NR or Estranged, but surely something like Locomotive could be dusted off esp as it's a Slash-centric song.

Duff seems to pay tribute somewhat with So Fine and 14 years as he can do the non Axl vocals songs.

Not even ONE UYI song was played at the RRHOF!

Kinda sad IMO, as there is lots of good material on UYI.

[Vincent Vega]

It really does seem like they're embarrassed about the albums or prefer to forget them or feel ashamed of them.

[Chris 55]

Not even ONE UYI song was played at the RRHOF!

Why would they play anything off those albums when the songs that made them HUGE were on Appetite?

Edited March 9, 2013 by Chris 55

[alfa75]

In the US maybe AFD was the only album that made them huge, but songs like NR, DC, YCBM were instrumental in the international rise to stardom. Plus since since when does the fact that the big breakthrough album is the only albums considered significant. Zep were plenty big with their first 3 albums, but Zep IV is hardly ignored. Stairway to Heaven anyone?