Should Axl Drop the GN'R Name

[2x4]

Should metallica change their name? Should AC/DC change their name? Should the offspring change their name? Should Korn change their name? Should Down change their name? Should Megadeth change their name? Should Slayer change their name? Should Kiss change their name?

Why is Axl the only person in the world to cop shit about a band name because there are new members on board?

Axl and Izzy started this band, should Guns N' Roses have changed their name in 1991?

People leave bands but it doesn't always mean the band is dead.

Terrible post. Those bands share no similarity with GNR. Axl and Izzy formed a small band. Axl, Izzy, Slash, Duff and Steven formed Guns n' Roses.

None of these bands are in it's original form. Guns N' Roses isn't in it's original form. Gene, Paul, Ace and Peter formed Kiss but it doesn't seem to bother anyone that 2 of the original members aren't there.

Steven was sacked in 1990. Should Guns N' Roses have changed their name then?

Why should Axl change the name? He started the band, he never left the band, he didn't sack Slash, Duff and Izzy.

If Axl had left Guns N' Roses in 1996 and Slash had stayed on, I wonder if he'd cop as much shit as Axl does just for trying to keep his band alive.

[magisme]

If Axl had left Guns N' Roses in 1996 and Slash had stayed on, I wonder if he'd cop as much shit as Axl does just for trying to keep his band alive.

Of course he would have. Everyone knows this shit isn't Guns N' Roses, everyone except for a few internet geeks who take everything Axl says and does as gospel. No one gives a shit who legally owns the name. Poor little Axl can't do anything about what people think when they hear Guns N' Roses, and what they think will always include Slash and never include DJ Ashba. I guess general consensus is out to get Axl.

[2x4]

If Axl had left Guns N' Roses in 1996 and Slash had stayed on, I wonder if he'd cop as much shit as Axl does just for trying to keep his band alive.

Of course he would have. Everyone knows this shit isn't Guns N' Roses, everyone except for a few internet geeks who take everything Axl says and does as gospel. No one gives a shit who legally owns the name. Poor little Axl can't do anything about what people think when they hear Guns N' Roses, and what they think will always include Slash and never include DJ Ashba. I guess general consensus is out to get Axl.

The hundreds of thousands of people who have paid to see Guns N' Roses since 2001 seem to be pretty happy with what's happening on stage aside from a few fanboys who begrudgingly attend a Guns N' Roses show and complain because a man who LEFT 17 years ago isn't up there with Axl. The general public love DJ interacting with them from the stage. I've seen GN'R 4 times with Dj and the punters go nuts for him. I'm not the biggest Dj fan but the man can work a crowd and has taken on a lot of the publicity for Guns N' Roses.

Legally and ethically, Axl should not have to change the name. It's his band that he started many years ago. If Axl hadn't bought the name from the rest of the band when he did, I guarantee you we would have 2 separate Guns N' Roses floating around. One with Myles Kennedy.

[magisme]

If you think most people attending the shows think they're really seeing Guns N' Roses, you're out to fucking lunch and it's not worth discussing anything with you.

[2x4]

If you think most people attending the shows think they're really seeing Guns N' Roses, you're out to fucking lunch and it's not worth discussing anything with you.

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Here in Australia, most of punters who have attended the shows understand and embrace Guns N' Roses for what it is. The reception has been great here.

[magisme]

If you think most people attending the shows think they're really seeing Guns N' Roses, you're out to fucking lunch and it's not worth discussing anything with you.

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Yes. 5, in fact.

[2x4]

If you think most people attending the shows think they're really seeing Guns N' Roses, you're out to fucking lunch and it's not worth discussing anything with you.

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Yes. 5, in fact.

Why?

[magisme]

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Yes. 5, in fact.

Why?

Cuz I love Axl. This shouldn't be confusing at all. Some of you guys have this 100% with us or against us mentality. That's not how shit works.

[2x4]

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Yes. 5, in fact.

Why?

Cuz I love Axl. This shouldn't be confusing at all. Some of you guys have this 100% with us or against us mentality. That's not how shit works.

My apologies. You gotta admit the people who are for the name change are generally against anything Axl has done since 1996.

[Patience 4 Axl]

If you think most people attending the shows think they're really seeing Guns N' Roses, you're out to fucking lunch and it's not worth discussing anything with you.

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Here in Australia, most of punters who have attended the shows understand and embrace Guns N' Roses for what it is. The reception has been great here.

Understand and embrace? I know Australia is a different country, but you guys aren't on a different planet. Fans aren't there to see Pittman and Frank. Or Bumblefoot and DJ. They go to see Axl and listen to the classic tunes. They're embracing the legend and the music, all of which this band has little to do with. They have all been replaced, and can be replaced again.

[magisme]

Have you been to a GN'R show in the last ten years?

Yes. 5, in fact.

Why?

Cuz I love Axl. This shouldn't be confusing at all. Some of you guys have this 100% with us or against us mentality. That's not how shit works.

My apologies. You gotta admit the people who are for the name change are generally against anything Axl has done since 1996.

No worries.

I'm not sure what you say is true, though. I think most people fall into two camps. The first is casual fans who dismissed the new band out of hand, or maybe didn't even know it existed, no matter what it was called. The second is hardcore fans who thought Axl taking the name was kind of a shit move but who were still over the top excited to see what Axl could do. I was in that second camp. I think there are then two more camps that are much, much smaller whose numbers are exaggerated in the forums. The first being the "nutters" who swallow everything Axl serves without question. The second, the "haters" who are so mad about the classic lineup that they wish Axl nothing but failure and embarrassment. True nutters and haters are near mythical creatures. False sightings are numerous.

[Naupis]

The hundreds of thousands of people who have paid to see Guns N' Roses since 2001 seem to be pretty happy with what's happening on stage

I guess that explains why since 2002 the venues keep getting smaller as opposed to bigger.

Aren't you supposed to grow a fan base rather than bleed them off?

[Apollo]

It's obvious that Axl fought so hard to keep the GnR name so he could use it to sell tickets and tour the old classic songs.

At the end of the day, it's just the name.

The more important thing is if Axl is ever going to release more music, and let the current band members imprint their talent/skills onto the GnR name.........or is it just going to continue to be one big nostalic act.

*******

Great point Naupis.

Ticket prices keep going up, crowds keep getting smaller, DVD/Concert releases keep getting postponed and no new music is recorded......yet some on here keep praising the efforts of Axl and Beta and her children!!!

Edited August 9, 2013 by Groghan

[2x4]

The hundreds of thousands of people who have paid to see Guns N' Roses since 2001 seem to be pretty happy with what's happening on stage

I guess that explains why since 2002 the venues keep getting smaller as opposed to bigger.

Aren't you supposed to grow a fan base rather than bleed them off?

GN'R played Sydney Super Dome again this year. They also added a show to a place they've never played before (Newcastle) which in only an hour and a half drive from Sydney. Considering they have been here 3 times in 6 years that's a pretty decent pull.

[2x4]

This is turning into an argument that no one will back down from so I'll just say that in my opinion Axl should never have to change the name of the band he created. As I said, legally and ethically he has ever right to use it any way he wants and, again in my opinion, aside from taking so long to release CD he hasn't done too much wrong by the name. He's toured consistently since 2006, released an album in that time too. I think that is enough from any band. Granted I do feel its time for a new album and if the next one takes another 5 to 10 years to release, I will more than likely understand how you lot feel and probably change my point of view.

It's frustrating being a Guns N' Roses fan no matter which way you look at it. But in the end we all have our lives to keep is occupied until something else happens.

[WhazUp]

It is kind of a moot point since it has been so long...

BUT I do still hold the view that Axl should have gone off in 1996 with a different name. Guns N' Roses was by public perception and reality much, much more than merely "Axl's band"

It doesn't matter what you call it though, the greater musical collective of GNR in the old days cannot be replicated by any new guys you put in the band. And that lost vibe and newly different collective should not have been branded and presented as the same thing or a continuation of the same thing when it is quite different.

But all in all whatever you call the band, I just want to hear some good music and that is good enough for me.

Edited August 9, 2013 by WhazUp

[Naupis]

It used to bother me that Axl was soiling the GNR name like he has, but of late it has become apparent that the name was really his punishment for unparalleled hubris when he decided to keep it in the first place.

His career is in the toilet, he is a joke to the general public and he now looks like a bizarre cross between Paul Teuttel from American Chopper and Vince Neil.

Karma has kicked Axl's ass backwards and forwards, and he is one of the few people you can say generally deserves the mess that has become his career.

For all his protestations to the contrary, Axl has been revealed as the biggest money lover of them all.

The GNR name meant nothing more to him than a free meal ticket for life to tour around on Slash/Duff/Izzy/Adler's music because he deep down was too afraid and lazy to ever start a new chapter of his career.

Had someone told me a decade ago Axl would surpass even Steven Adler as far as living in the past and just touring around anywhere he could book to churn out the hits I would have refused to believe it.

Every setback and humiliation he has encountered this past decade has been nature's way of telling true GNR fans it has our backs, and that if he wants to continue perpetuating this sham he will continue to run into nothing but problems and roadblocks as he has.

[Kapitch_77]

It used to bother me that Axl was soiling the GNR name like he has, but of late it has become apparent that the name was really his punishment for unparalleled hubris when he decided to keep it in the first place.

His career is in the toilet, he is a joke to the general public and he now looks like a bizarre cross between Paul Teuttel from American Chopper and Vince Neil.

Karma has kicked Axl's ass backwards and forwards, and he is one of the few people you can say generally deserves the mess that has become his career.

For all his protestations to the contrary, Axl has been revealed as the biggest money lover of them all.

The GNR name meant nothing more to him than a free meal ticket for life to tour around on Slash/Duff/Izzy/Adler's music because he deep down was too afraid and lazy to ever start a new chapter of his career.

Had someone told me a decade ago Axl would surpass even Steven Adler as far as living in the past and just touring around anywhere he could book to churn out the hits I would have refused to believe it.

Every setback and humiliation he has encountered this past decade has been nature's way of telling true GNR fans it has our backs, and that if he wants to continue perpetuating this sham he will continue to run into nothing but problems and roadblocks as he has.

Sadly, I agree with everything you wrote. What is sad (or pathetic) on top of that is that he's holding grudges with Slash, and even Marc Canter, just because they're not at his feet like he would like them to be... calls Slash a cancer, blame people from the past because he can't write lyrics, sue companies for stupid reasons (guitar hero), surrounds himself with parasites and yesmen and basically blames the world for all that goes wrong in his life. He's a mess all around.

[RussTCB]

Guns N' Roses is Axl's band so I can't imagine why he should change the name of it.

[rockerman]

In retrospect he could have left the door open for cooler times and egos to prevail including his own personal drama.

"Now the damage is done and were both out on the run funny how every thing was roses when we held on to the guns"-Breakdown

Did he make his point? did every one and every thing get the lesson taught?

[RockerRoller]

It used to bother me that Axl was soiling the GNR name like he has, but of late it has become apparent that the name was really his punishment for unparalleled hubris when he decided to keep it in the first place.

His career is in the toilet, he is a joke to the general public and he now looks like a bizarre cross between Paul Teuttel from American Chopper and Vince Neil.

Karma has kicked Axl's ass backwards and forwards, and he is one of the few people you can say generally deserves the mess that has become his career.

For all his protestations to the contrary, Axl has been revealed as the biggest money lover of them all.

The GNR name meant nothing more to him than a free meal ticket for life to tour around on Slash/Duff/Izzy/Adler's music because he deep down was too afraid and lazy to ever start a new chapter of his career.

Had someone told me a decade ago Axl would surpass even Steven Adler as far as living in the past and just touring around anywhere he could book to churn out the hits I would have refused to believe it.

Every setback and humiliation he has encountered this past decade has been nature's way of telling true GNR fans it has our backs, and that if he wants to continue perpetuating this sham he will continue to run into nothing but problems and roadblocks as he has.

this is so sadly true, great post

[AndreCC]

He WILL NEVER drop the name. The name is his paycheck!

[Spark]

No he should not. The Guns N Roses name itself is well documented as being Axl's when it first formed. Had Slash and Steven not ended up on the Seattle gig because Traci Guns (the only person with a legit beef, regarding the Guns N Roses name since his last name is the first word in the band name, but has no legal grounds since he quit, walked away, and gave Axl his blessing to keep the name) bailed on the band, had Axl, Izzy and Duff found another guitar player and drummer, there'd only be two original members. Axl n' Izzy. And Izzy doesn't want it, was never his to begin with to make a claim to it. Axl started GNR, continued and fought for GNR, to his near ruin. Something Slash obviously was never willing to do. Duff and Izzy either. Izzy, intelligently, chose life, and sobriety over GNR, and if you want to point fingers here, I'd point them directly at Slash and Duff as the two main drug and alcohol antagonists that didn't even try to assist there so called friend by at least attempting to keep the smack and booze directly out of Izzys face. And then Duff, again, another smart move, was also at the time he decided to hang it up making the choice to sobriety for his health and because he now had children. He absolutely needed to leave the lifestyle behind if he wanted a future with his family. And Slash straight up quit because Axl and Duff didn't want to agree with him becoming the predominant songwriter along with Axl. Axl and Duff both agreed they didn't care for Slash's southern rock direction he was all or nothing pushing. And felt they needed to bring in another strong songwriter into the fold, Slash felt that songwriter was himself. When they didn't cave in to his threats he quit. Plain and simple. And yes, Axl is not without his own level of guilt the way he tried to take over. But really, that began during the AFD recordings and continued thru UYI or we would have never gotten songs like SCOM, November Rain, Estranged ect, onto the albums being that Duff and Slash are on record as stating they were against these type of songs, especially SCOM from ever being on a GNR record. So yeah, I think he's deserved and earned the right to keep the name if nothing more than by bringing the name to the band, taking a leadership role when everyone else in the band was to fucked up to take care of themselves, much less lead a successful rock band, or even have any insightful or helpful input. Being the only one who never quit his band, and fighting for it for decades without backing down, while suffering tremendous personal loss in doing so.

I don't understand how there are still people that don't get that Guns N Roses was the sum of it's parts: 5 guys (we all know who those 5 guys are).

Exactly.

It used to bother me that Axl was soiling the GNR name like he has, but of late it has become apparent that the name was really his punishment for unparalleled hubris when he decided to keep it in the first place.

His career is in the toilet, he is a joke to the general public and he now looks like a bizarre cross between Paul Teuttel from American Chopper and Vince Neil.

Karma has kicked Axl's ass backwards and forwards, and he is one of the few people you can say generally deserves the mess that has become his career.

For all his protestations to the contrary, Axl has been revealed as the biggest money lover of them all.

The GNR name meant nothing more to him than a free meal ticket for life to tour around on Slash/Duff/Izzy/Adler's music because he deep down was too afraid and lazy to ever start a new chapter of his career.

Had someone told me a decade ago Axl would surpass even Steven Adler as far as living in the past and just touring around anywhere he could book to churn out the hits I would have refused to believe it.

Every setback and humiliation he has encountered this past decade has been nature's way of telling true GNR fans it has our backs, and that if he wants to continue perpetuating this sham he will continue to run into nothing but problems and roadblocks as he has.

^^

[AndreCC]

I hate Mick Wall but i gotta give it to him... He's absolutely right when he says that it wasn't worth to break up a band to add another 0 in his paycheck

[wasted]

Axl is GNR.