Axl Rose's Chinese Democracy = Brian Wilson's SMiLE

[axl_on_drums]

A huge problem for Brian (and I imagine Axl) was sections. Axl and Brian write in sections. Better is a great example, it's very unusually structured. Very complex, in my head I Imagine Axl spent a very long time getting it just right. Don't get me started on the ending to twat.

Heroes and Villains on Smile had about 50 different versions. Brian had no idea what to do with that song, he had all these different ideas and sections to be fitted into a 4 minute song. The single that was eventually released was a shell of what it could have been. It's still awesome though.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgSgOTxcEMk

Edited May 14, 2013 by axl_on_drums

[wasted]

Sections is something I was going to say about Zepp and GNR as opposed to the Rolling Stones that seem to write tunes like Izzy, there's very little outside the main drive and melody. But Zepp or GNR do intros, it all seems put together in pieces, sometimes it's too obvious. Better seems to have main section but then there's the intro. The Breakdown, but the main section has two or three parts.

[dalsh327]

I think for Brian, Van Dyke, and Darian, to go back and flesh out an unfinished album was an interesting task, and Pro Tools did play a part in it coming together, but they were also putting it together so they could play it live. Brian Wilson Presents was taking some of the existing tapes, but they tried to do most of it live in the studio, and there's a DVD of the concert, so check it out.

Beach Boys had this mix of fragments and fully realized songs connecting the whole thing together, GNR had individual songs and weren't trying to connect the songs together.

"Smile" has more in common with The Who's "Lifehouse".

[circusboy666]

There are many similarities in the making of the albums and of the men themselves as artists. Both drove band members crazy with their narcicistic standards in some instances driving members away. Both are in my opinion some of the greatest amercian song writers. Both lived sheltered existences while creating their "masterpiece". Both had tremendous amounts of pressure from the record label. The main difference is brian wilson was able to make peace with himself and his mental issues before releasing the amaing piece of music which is smile, and axl released CD while he was still a complete head case(and probably still is) thereby damaging his image as an artist releasing something that many considered good at best. Maybe if he waited a full 30 years like brian CD would have been the album we all hoped it would be.