Do you wish Axl did it like Liam Gallagher?

[Guest NGOG]

Axl and Liam share a similarity in the sense that both are generally portrayed as the 'bad guys' seemingly playing very destructive roles in bands that were one glorious. The media tend to favor the nemesis in Slash and Noel Gallagher. Over the last few years Liam and Beady Eye have put out two solid records and performed setlists which as Liam says highlight 'he does not want to live off the past'. Beady Eye also started from scratch in the sense that they tour intimate venues as opposed to attempting to tour the big venues as Oasis (with Liam saying they will only move up to bigger venues if Beady Eye themselves get there). This of course would have been made impossible by Liam attempting to do all of this under the brand of Oasis. In start contrast Axl, who legally wrestled the GNR brand from his former bandmates, has released only one record in the past decade and a half and failed to move on from old material leaning sets (which he actually promised would be the case).

http://www.nme.com/news/beady-eye/70950

Walking on stage accompanied by a four-piece brass section, the band began with 'Flick Of The Finger' before ripping through a set consisting largely of songs form their new album, 'BE'. It entered the charts at Number Two last Sunday, beaten to the top spot by Black Sabbath's comeback '13'. Elsewhere, 'The Roller' and 'Four Letter Word' drew some of the biggest cheers of the night.

'Flick Of The Finger'
'Face The Crowd'
'Millionaire'
'Four Letter Word'
'Soul Love'
'Second Bite Of The Apple'
'Iz Rite'
'Shine A Light'
'Rock 'N' Roll Star'
'Don't Brother Me'
'I'm Just Saying'
'Morning Glory'
'Soon Come Tomorrow'
'The Roller'
'Start Anew'
'Bring The Light'
'Wigwam'

Edited June 23, 2013 by NGOG

[Screamin' Demon]

I wish that Axl would stop using the name Gn'R for his own band and make a setlist more like this:

Chinese Democracy
Welcome To The Jungle
Better
If The World
There Was A Time
Live And Let Die / Rocket Queen
This I Love
Shackler's Revenge
Street Of Dreams
Catcher In The Rye
You Could Be Mine
Sweet Child O' Mine
November Rain
Scraped
Sorry
I.R.S.
Madagascar
Nightrain
Prostitute
Paradise City

Edited June 23, 2013 by Screamin' Demon

[Dariablue]

I think he wouldn't be viewed as harshly and have so many detractors if he had actually started from scratch with a new band and new name. People probably would have respected him more. The fact that he is using the GNR name and the manner in which he got it is what's putting a bad taste in peoples' mouths.

[Cosmo]

Certainly. This new band should have released Chinese Democracy under a new name. It would've brought nothing but good to Axl.

[Randy Jesus]

Liam once was know for a short period in the mid 90s world wide. Now he is only in European countries. Axl is still recognizable on a global scale.

[thomasmcole]

Liam once was know for a short period in the mid 90s world wide. Now he is only in European countries. Axl is still recognizable on a global scale.

yeah because this is recognizable:

[TheSeeker]

I dare Axl to do a show as "Axl Rose" and draw anywhere the same crowd he does under the Guns N' Roses name.

He's washed up and living off the past.

[SoulMonster]

I think he wouldn't be viewed as harshly and have so many detractors if he had actually started from scratch with a new band and new name. People probably would have respected him more.

It's strange, I actually respect him for not giving up when everyone else abandoned him.

[Dariablue]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

[SoulMonster]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

[Chris 55]

Liam once was know for a short period in the mid 90s world wide. Now he is only in European countries. Axl is still recognizable on a global scale.

yeah because this is recognizable:

That's a pretty stupid "rebuttal".

[Apollo]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

I'm not sure you are using the word underdog correctly here.

The name Guns n Roses is a powerhouse brand, that gave him a tremendous advantage in all his musical business ventures. From getting money from the label to drawing crowds at concerts.

Axl would have been the underdog if he had abandon the GnR name and tried to make a career with a new band name. And if he did it on the merits of the music he created post GnR. Still play his 4-5 favorite or most personal GnR songs, but then carried his concerts by playing his solo or new band material. Lets see if the world will accept Axl Rose and his new band, without the benefit of GnR to back it all up. That would be an underdog situation.

But keeping the GnR name and playing 20 GnR songs at every show........that's not being the underdog, IMO. That is playing it safe and not taking a risk at all.

[TheSeeker]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

I'm not sure you are using the word underdog correctly here.

The name Guns n Roses is a powerhouse brand, that gave him a tremendous advantage in all his musical business ventures. From getting money from the label to drawing crowds at concerts.

Axl would have been the underdog if he had abandon the GnR name and tried to make a career with a new band name. And if he did it on the merits of the music he created post GnR. Still play his 4-5 favorite or most personal GnR songs, but then carried his concerts by playing his solo or new band material. Lets see if the world will accept Axl Rose and his new band, without the benefit of GnR to back it all up. That would be an underdog situation.

But keeping the GnR name and playing 20 GnR songs at every show........that's not being the underdog, IMO. That is playing it safe and not taking a risk at all.

Right - Axl took the easy way out.

The old members who left abandoned security because they couldn't deal with Axl. Instead of reflecting inward and realizing what had happened, Axl did the immature thing and continued on with new members...most of which ended up leaving themselves!

Axl's a narcissist with no sense of humility. He plays the victim when he's the enemy...of both himself and those who he tries to control.

Sad, sad little man he is.

[Devilgotchi]

No. GNR get a $h!tstorm for still calling themselves Guns N Roses and I admire them for it.

We've all probably got $h!t for doing something everyone else thought we shouldn't.

It's just a band at the end of the day.

[TheSeeker]

No. GNR get a $h!tstorm for still calling themselves Guns N Roses and I admire them for it.

There is no "calling themselves Guns N' Roses" - Axl owns the name and has chosen to continue using it with hired musicians.

It's just a band at the end of the day.

There is no band.

Edited June 23, 2013 by TheSeeker

[Nosaj Thing]

Liam once was know for a short period in the mid 90s world wide. Now he is only in European countries. Axl is still recognizable on a global scale.

yeah because this is recognizable:

:rofl-lol:

[Apollo]

Liam once was know for a short period in the mid 90s world wide. Now he is only in European countries. Axl is still recognizable on a global scale.

yeah because this is recognizable:

:rofl-lol:

Definitely not one of Axl's better pictures!

Is that Ray Liotta in the background?

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

I'm not sure you are using the word underdog correctly here.

The name Guns n Roses is a powerhouse brand, that gave him a tremendous advantage in all his musical business ventures. From getting money from the label to drawing crowds at concerts.

Axl would have been the underdog if he had abandon the GnR name and tried to make a career with a new band name. And if he did it on the merits of the music he created post GnR. Still play his 4-5 favorite or most personal GnR songs, but then carried his concerts by playing his solo or new band material. Lets see if the world will accept Axl Rose and his new band, without the benefit of GnR to back it all up. That would be an underdog situation.

But keeping the GnR name and playing 20 GnR songs at every show........that's not being the underdog, IMO. That is playing it safe and not taking a risk at all.

Right - Axl took the easy way out.

The old members who left abandoned security because they couldn't deal with Axl. Instead of reflecting inward and realizing what had happened, Axl did the immature thing and continued on with new members...most of which ended up leaving themselves!

Axl's a narcissist with no sense of humility. He plays the victim when he's the enemy...of both himself and those who he tries to control.

Sad, sad little man he is.

You make some great points Seeker. They are painful to read, but unfortunately, they are true.

But to be honest, I don't really even care about that. I like to hear Axl's voice. My favorite rock singer of all time. I don't really care about what kind of person he is in real life. What is weird to me, and what most of my arguments on this forum are about, is when fans act like Axl is a God, that he is always right, and that the world revolves around him. In the topic about how many women has Axl physically assaulted, posters were actually defending him!!! Those women were crazy and deserved it, Axl had a rough childhood so we can't blame him for his violence against women now, even though Axl paid 1.4 million dollars to shut two of the women up - he never went to jail so that proves he didn't do it.............it's just crazy how some posters on here defend Axl's every move.

Edited June 23, 2013 by Groghan

[GUNNER PT]

It's strange, I actually respect him for not giving up when everyone else abandoned him.

This.

[jimb0]

I wish that Axl would stop using the name Gn'R for his own band and make a setlist more like this:

Chinese Democracy

Welcome To The Jungle

Better

If The World

There Was A Time

Live And Let Die / Rocket Queen

This I Love

Shackler's Revenge

Street Of Dreams

Catcher In The Rye

You Could Be Mine

Sweet Child O' Mine

November Rain

Scraped

Sorry

I.R.S.

Madagascar

Nightrain

Prostitute

Paradise City

The Opportunity to do it this way is far gone.

[Screamin' Demon]

Right - Axl took the easy way out.

The old members who left abandoned security because they couldn't deal with Axl. Instead of reflecting inward and realizing what had happened, Axl did the immature thing and continued on with new members...most of which ended up leaving themselves!

Axl's a narcissist with no sense of humility. He plays the victim when he's the enemy...of both himself and those who he tries to control.

Sad, sad little man he is.

You took the words right out of my mouth! I've dealt with people who have a bad case of Narcissistic Personality Disorder and this is the scenario each time. When the people they hold down for so long finally break free and go about their own life, leaving the narcissist to face consequences for their action, the narcissist will never look inward and concede that they had done any wrong. They will just look at themselves as the victim of ungratefulness and lack of understanding by others. What's worse, they will get spiteful and be out to "punish" their former subjects for "abandoning them on a sinking ship". It's absolutely pathetic.

Edited June 24, 2013 by Screamin' Demon

[SoulMonster]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

I'm not sure you are using the word underdog correctly here.

With all the shit he has received from stubbornly deciding to continue with GN'R, even to this very day, I look upon him as an underdog.

Right - Axl took the easy way out.

Looking back at all the shit he has received from deciding to not abandon the band, it is hard to believe that starting a solo career would have been harder. Sure, he wouldn't sell as many records and there would be less people at the shows, but it would probably have been much less uncomfortable for him and a whole lot easier than having to put up with constant criticism even to this very day for deciding to not disband the band.

I find it hard to believe that anyone can look at the journey Axl has taken and say he took the easy way out. Starting a solo band would have been much easier, less pressure, less criticism...

Edited June 24, 2013 by SoulMonster

[trqster]

Certainly. This new band should have released Chinese Democracy under a new name. It would've brought nothing but good to Axl.

That would have been the right thing to do, but not on the financial side...

[mina1788]

Who's Liam Gallagher? Had Axl done what you propose, I would be asking who Axl Rose is now (for the record, I know who Liam is).

What Axl did with the GnR name in the 90's is now being done by multinational companies. He was well beyond his time in that regard. The fact that the others signed it over is not his fault, and maybe they should have left the band before they did.

Considering he became the only member of the band left, I don't see why he should have gone solo/made a new band. It's not like he left. It also makes perfect economic and financial sense, which like it or not, plays a big part in music and music production. Do you think he would have been given the millions for CD had he gone solo? Probably not. Whether you like him or not, it's undeniable that the man has a flare not only for the music side of showbiz, but the business side too. There would be bitching had he gone solo. The only mistake he made, in my humble opinion, was playing the recluse card.

Edited June 24, 2013 by mina1788

[thomasmcole]

That's not strange. That's exactly how I would expect you to feel.

Yeah, I tend to root for the underdog. It's not much I can say I respect Axl for -- not knowing the guy -- but the way he refused to give up when everything was stacked against him really impress me. Hopefully he will add more records and tours to the legacy of GN'R.

It's true, compare it to Liam in his heyday and today:

don't think there's a single photo of Axl taken in the last 3 years where he would be recognized, except if he was wearing a bandanna