One In A Million being erased from history

[Blackstar]

16 minutes ago, WhazUp said:

I think he said something similar along the lines for Look At Your Game, Girl too, right?  I could be wrong on that, however I am glad neither have been yanked off of their original albums!

Yeah, the quote was posted a few pages back. 

[Gnrcane]

One thing is for sure.  Axl knew that he was going to create controversy.  This is based on the "that's right" after the n-word and the way he says "that's right."  Almost like he was saying, "yeah, I said that.  What are you going to do about it?"

[Blackstar]

1 minute ago, Gnrcane said:

One thing is for sure.  Axl knew that he was going to create controversy.  This is based on the "that's right" after the n-word and the way he says "that's right."  Almost like he was saying, "yeah, I said that.  What are you going to do about it?"

Yeah. It's based also on his "apology" on the Lies cover. He most likely didn't expect the extent of the backlash and thought that the song wouldn't be perceived as something more than what it was in his mind.

[Blackstar]

4 hours ago, MyPrettyTiedUpMichelle said:

But in the second verse, upon arriving in LA, he's already lashing out at police and n***** with the attitude of someone who feels harassed (he doesn't need gold chains, just needs his ticket - a whiff of desperation here), so that by the time we get to the final line of that verse, he's asking them to 'cut him some slack'.  

Something to add to this:

Axl conflated two groups of people in the same verse, which are not only different, but rival to each other: a group with authority (the police) and a group from the lowest social strata (the "n*****" selling golden chains) that was also often a victim of the group with authority. At first glance that looks absurd and ignorant. But I don't think Axl was unaware of the difference when he wrote the song, considering his experiences with the police. It was just the recapture of that moment of irrational fear, when he felt equally harassed/threatened by the two groups.

Edited May 6, 2018 by Blackstar

[Gnrcane]

30 minutes ago, Blackstar said:

Something to add to this:

Axl conflated two groups of people in the same verse, which are not only different, but rival to each other: a group with authority (the police) and a group from the lowest social strata (the "n*****" selling golden chains) that was also often a victim of the group with authority. At first glance that looks absurd and a ignorant. But I don't think Axl was unaware of the difference when he wrote the song, considering his experiences with the police. It was just the recapture of that moment of irrational fear, when he felt equally harassed/threatened by the two groups.

The verse seems to be about when he was leaving Indiana.  Remember that he said he had to leave because the cops were going to arrest him for something.  It seems that the verse is about being at a bus stop and trying to get his ticket quickly and get the hell out of there. "Don't need no bracelets, clamped in front of my back" is about not getting arrested.  It's an interesting lyrical way of saying it but when the police arrest somebody they clamp the handcuffs (bracelets) on with your hands behind you.  "In front of my back" is another way to say behind me.

I don't think he was conflating them, more like both of them were in the way of him leaving.  The police literally and the guys harassing him and trying to sell him things were slowing him down from getting his bus ticket so he could leave.

The next offensive verse seems to be the arrival in LA.  In the big city he sees a million times the number of immigrants than he would have seen in Lafayette and probably close to the same multiple of non-closeted gay people.  These two groups make him uncomfortable.

[Blackstar]

13 hours ago, Gnrcane said:

The verse seems to be about when he was leaving Indiana.  Remember that he said he had to leave because the cops were going to arrest him for something.  It seems that the verse is about being at a bus stop and trying to get his ticket quickly and get the hell out of there. "Don't need no bracelets, clamped in front of my back" is about not getting arrested.  It's an interesting lyrical way of saying it but when the police arrest somebody they clamp the handcuffs (bracelets) on with your hands behind you.  "In front of my back" is another way to say behind me.

I don't think he was conflating them, more like both of them were in the way of him leaving.  The police literally and the guys harassing him and trying to sell him things were slowing him down from getting his bus ticket so he could leave.

The next offensive verse seems to be the arrival in LA.  In the big city he sees a million times the number of immigrants than he would have seen in Lafayette and probably close to the same multiple of non-closeted gay people.  These two groups make him uncomfortable.

No, he had explained that the verse was about when he arrived in downtown L.A (I don't think there were black people selling chains in Indiana anyway) and he was trying to figure out which bus to take to go wherever in town he wanted to go. 

The "bracelets" part is about not wanting to be arrested, yeah, but about the L.A. police.

Edited May 7, 2018 by Blackstar

[Blackstar]

One in a million' is about...... I went back and forth from Indiana eight times my first year in Hollywood. I wrote it about being dropped off at the bus station and everything that was going on. I'd never been in a city this big and was fortunate enough to have this black dude help me find my way. He guided me to the RTD station and showed me what bus to take, because I couldn't get a straight answer out of anybody. He wasn't after my money or anything. It was more like, "Here's a new kid in town, and he looks like he might get into trouble down here. Lemme help him get on his way." People kept coming up trying to sell me joints and stuff. In downtown L.A the joints are usually bogus, or they'll sell you drugs that can kill you. It's a really ugly scene. The song's not about him, but you could kinda say he was one in a million. When I sat down after walking in circles for three hours, the cops told me to get off the streets. The cops down there have seen so much slime that they figure if you have long hair, you're probably slime also. The black guys trying to sell you jewelry and drugs is where the line 'Police and hooray for tolerance!s, get out of my way' comes from. I've seen these huge black dudes pull Bowie knives on people for their boom boxes and shit. [Axl, RIP, 1989]

http://www.a-4-d.com/t99-one-in-a-million

Also here:

 

Edited May 6, 2018 by Blackstar

[AXL_N_DIZZY]

Powerful song- but not necessarily a favorite. Too easily misunderstood/misused, and we’ve known for nearly 20 years that the artist himself has apparently wanted it withdrawn/phased out (’99 Interview). It will always be “out there” for those that want it/seek it.

Edited May 7, 2018 by AXL_N_DIZZY

[SoulMonster]

11 hours ago, killuridols said:

I think not but I could be mistaken. What he said is that royalties (?) of the song would be given to the families of Manson's victims, but I don't know if that ever materialized.

The good thing about that silly song is that it is a hidden track so if you don't know much about GNR you'll probably never know about it.

Axl: However, I am donating all my personal profits from having that song on our album to a charity, an environmental group to help protect wildlife and our oceans. In our video for Estranged, which will be the last video for the Use Your Illusion albums, we used dolphins, and this is my way of giving something back to the dolphin, which are endangered and threatened with extinction. [Press Statement, 1994].

Axl: Asked about pulling the song from the album: At this time, no. But, we've also been notified by a fan that if we do pull the song, he'll sue us and Geffen Records for one dollar per album sold, as of the date that we pull the song. You know, he'll file s in federal court. But we don't have plans of pulling it as of now [Axl and Slash interview, Rockline 1994].

Slash: There was a time when we were planning on pulling it because of the fact that it was… I don't know… the messages were all crossed. As far as to what we were really doing. I mean, basically, all we did was do a track that had something to do lyrically with the band. Or… you know (...) It's really weird because when the song was done and it was recorded and released, there was no attention drawn to it, and all the attention that's been given it so far has come from the media that's been opposing it [Axl and Slash interview, Rockline 1994].

[Tadsy]

Look, you either like the song or you don't. 

Its 30 years old and represented axls feelings at the time. I have no problem with that. 

I don't think he's racist, and I don't think he's homophobic in 2018. In fact Axl and the band seem to sit on the left these days. 

People change, times change and I highly doubt 25 year old Axl would think the same as 55 year old Axl. 

I like the song. It was ballsy to release it and caused all manner of shit but it was 30 years ago and the band has evolved so not playing it is a good choice. 

Erasing it from history is wrong though, as someone else said it's part of the chain of GNR evolution and striking it from the record won't happen even if they try. 

[Tom-Ass]

1 hour ago, Tadsy said:

I don't think he's racist, and I don't think he's homophobic in 2018. In fact Axl and the band seem to sit on the left these days. 

So if you sit on the right you are racist and homophobic? 

I don't think that is really how you feel but it could easily be taken that way.

[killuridols]

1 hour ago, Tom-Ass said:

So if you sit on the right you are racist and homophobic? 

I don't think that is really how you feel but it could easily be taken that way.

lol... that's because usually the 'right' is associated with conservatism, which is not very keen of social change and supports traditional values such as family, heterosexuality, marriage, anti-abortion, etc.

Axl is not on the right, but he's not on the left either.

[action]

Axl should write a political essay on human rights, so we can all put the discussion to rest. He needs to "prove" that he is part of the left and subscribes to the left political agenda. It would always be great if he can cite a point or two from the official left's statutes. Man, how cool would that be? Even better, he should quit GNR, turn into a politician and go on to save the world. There's bad economics out there. Taxes need to go down. and what about health care? and our roads are abysmal. Who's going to repair them? They ain't going to repair themselves. those are all worrying situations, and Axl is the perfect guy to solve them.

/sarcasm ends

god, this place sometimes

[killuridols]

18 minutes ago, action said:

Axl should write a political essay on human rights, so we can all put the discussion to rest. He needs to "prove" that he is part of the left and subscribes to the left political agenda. It would always be great if he can cite a point or two from the official left's statutes. Man, how cool would that be? Even better, he should quit GNR, turn into a politician and go on to save the world. There's bad economics out there. Taxes need to go down. and what about health care? and our roads are abysmal. Who's going to repair them? They ain't going to repair themselves. those are all worrying situations, and Axl is the perfect guy to solve them.

/sarcasm ends

god, this place sometimes

what is so wrong that people said?

[action]

18 minutes ago, killuridols said:

what is so wrong that people said?

there is too much analysing going on. people are giving meaning to a lyric on the gounds on what verse it appears in ffs. at the end of the day it doesn't really matter what axl meant with a lyric 30 years ago. We all have said ignorant stuff at some point in our lives, all of us. we all learn and we all regret things we said. To spend 10 pages on something that was written 30 ago is pure insanity. It's as if Axl needs to put out an official statement distancing himself from it, but I guess even that won't be enough for some people. I'm not interested in politics, and I doubt members of GNR do. I see stuff like "it's OK, they probably support the left party". I mean wtf?? really?? that's hysterical! what does it mean, "its ok"? like we're not going to be a fan anymore if they aren't I guess some people are looking for left or right politics in the GNR brand, in stead of kick ass hard rock music. facepalm to those people.

Edited May 7, 2018 by action

[themadcaplaughs]

Not going to trudge through ten pages of this. First off, we have no actual proof it will be "erased" so much as it just isn't appearing on this box set. Second, I suppose I may be a little more upset if this was something that happened shortly after the song was released, but GN'R Lies came out in 1988. How many millions of copies of the album on CD, cassette, and vinyl record have been pressed that contain the song? It wouldn't be hard to find a copy with "One in a Million" should the album ever be re-released with the song removed. A friend of mine borrowed my GN'R Lies CD a few years ago to rip to his computer, and accidentally broke it. I found a replacement copy at Goodwill for less than $3. 

Edited May 7, 2018 by themadcaplaughs

[killuridols]

4 minutes ago, action said:

there is too much analysing going on. people are giving meaning to a lyric on the gounds on what verse it appears in ffs. at the end of the day it doesn't really matter what axl meant with a lyric 30 years ago. We all have said ignorant stuff at some point in our lives, all of us. we all learn and we all regret things we said. To spend 10 pages on something that was written 30 ago is pure insanity. It's as if Axl needs to put out an official statement distancing himself from it, but I guess even that won't be enough for some people. I'm not interested in politics, and I doubt members of GNR do. I see stuff like "it's OK, they probably support the left party". I mean wtf?? really?? that's hysterical! what does it mean, "its ok"? like we're not going to be a fan anymore if they aren't I guess some people are looking for left politics in the GNR brand, in stead of kick ass hard rock music. facepalm to those people.

Why can't people discuss the lyrics of a song? Then close forum because with that logic we should not discuss anything at all. Send PM to Downzy if that's what you want...

Aside from a couple ignorant people, the debate in this thread has been pretty insightful and most views are being respected. It is only you going "hysterical" about a group of people having a good time here, expressing themselves. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

Axl has already talked about the song, given his explanations and all.... but the 'art' is still out there and while it is out there, generations and generations will continue to listen to it and discuss it because that's what freedom of speech is. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

If you are not interested in politics, that's your thing. I am and millions of others are too. Though I have to say it is bullshit when people say they are not interested in politics: you are, when you complain about the price of gas, milk, coffee or a can of beer. Politics affect our entire life, and so does yours, unless you live in a solitary island where you rule yourself, and even in that case, you'd be the one in charge of said island politics, so LMAO, there's no way to escape from it.

I didn't see anyone saying it is ok if the band leans to the left Who said that?  No one did, just one guy said he thinks Axl and the band sit on the left these days, but that's his opinion and nothing else.

No one is looking for anything in GN'R.... anyone who has a bit of knowledge about politics know that GN'R currently are all about $$$$ and don't give a damn about anyone else but their pockets. Nothing wrong with it but it is what it is.

[action]

15 minutes ago, killuridols said:

Why can't people discuss the lyrics of a song? Then close forum because with that logic we should not discuss anything at all. Send PM to Downzy if that's what you want...

Aside from a couple ignorant people, the debate in this thread has been pretty insightful and most views are being respected. It is only you going "hysterical" about a group of people having a good time here, expressing themselves. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

Axl has already talked about the song, given his explanations and all.... but the 'art' is still out there and while it is out there, generations and generations will continue to listen to it and discuss it because that's what freedom of speech is. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

If you are not interested in politics, that's your thing. I am and millions of others are too. Though I have to say it is bullshit when people say they are not interested in politics: you are, when you complain about the price of gas, milk, coffee or a can of beer. Politics affect our entire life, and so does yours, unless you live in a solitary island where you rule yourself, and even in that case, you'd be the one in charge of said island politics, so LMAO, there's no way to escape from it.

I didn't see anyone saying it is ok if the band leans to the left Who said that?  No one did, just one guy said he thinks Axl and the band sit on the left these days, but that's his opinion and nothing else.

No one is looking for anything in GN'R.... anyone who has a bit of knowledge about politics know that GN'R currently are all about $$$$ and don't give a damn about anyone else but their pockets. Nothing wrong with it but it is what it is.

fair enough. my final word on this is, that while I agree that politics is everywhere, I don't think it belongs in rock music. Rock music isn't about left or right, it's about bringing people together. I haven't heard a single person discuss politics at a rock concert. the moment politics are brought into it, is the moment division is created, in an already very divided GNR fanbase.

 

[ace]

Even Mick Jagger said he wouldn't write a song like "Brown Sugar" today.  We live in a different world.

[killuridols]

1 minute ago, action said:

fair enough. my final word on this is, that while I agree that politics is everywhere, I don't think it belongs in rock music. Rock music isn't about left or right, it's about bringing people together. I haven't heard a single person discuss politics at a rock concert. the moment politics are brought into it, is the moment division is created, in an already very divided GNR fanbase.

Why wouldn't politics belong in music if the people playing are human beings, affected by politics as much as the rest of us?

There are lots of bands and artists out there who are very political and express their political views through lyrics and songs. Guns N' Roses isn't one of those bands, maybe Civil War was like the only song that could be considered a political statement, but that was it.

The division in GN'R fanbase has nothing to do with politics and I don't think politics will ever affect our fanbase because I really doubt that GN'R, at 60 years old, will release anything politcally charged (or release anything at all ).

[tsinindy]

26 minutes ago, killuridols said:

Why can't people discuss the lyrics of a song? Then close forum because with that logic we should not discuss anything at all. Send PM to Downzy if that's what you want...

Aside from a couple ignorant people, the debate in this thread has been pretty insightful and most views are being respected. It is only you going "hysterical" about a group of people having a good time here, expressing themselves. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

Axl has already talked about the song, given his explanations and all.... but the 'art' is still out there and while it is out there, generations and generations will continue to listen to it and discuss it because that's what freedom of speech is. Does that bother you? Don't read it!

If you are not interested in politics, that's your thing. I am and millions of others are too. Though I have to say it is bullshit when people say they are not interested in politics: you are, when you complain about the price of gas, milk, coffee or a can of beer. Politics affect our entire life, and so does yours, unless you live in a solitary island where you rule yourself, and even in that case, you'd be the one in charge of said island politics, so LMAO, there's no way to escape from it.

I didn't see anyone saying it is ok if the band leans to the left Who said that?  No one did, just one guy said he thinks Axl and the band sit on the left these days, but that's his opinion and nothing else.

No one is looking for anything in GN'R.... anyone who has a bit of knowledge about politics know that GN'R currently are all about $$$$ and don't give a damn about anyone else but their pockets. Nothing wrong with it but it is what it is.

Politically Axl, Slash and Duff are left of center when it comes to where they stand in relation to US politics there is really little to argue against this point.  I can give several examples but don’t think that is necessary.

[killuridols]

1 minute ago, tsinindy said:

Politically Axl, Slash and Duff are left of center when it comes to where they stand in relation to US politics there is really little to argue against this point.  I can give several examples but don’t think that is necessary.

I know.... from my point of view, living in a complete different zone of the globe, their "left to center" inclination is like a sigh, softie, uninvolved, just a breeze of left

[Blackstar]

1 hour ago, action said:

there is too much analysing going on. people are giving meaning to a lyric on the gounds on what verse it appears in ffs. at the end of the day it doesn't really matter what axl meant with a lyric 30 years ago. We all have said ignorant stuff at some point in our lives, all of us. we all learn and we all regret things we said. To spend 10 pages on something that was written 30 ago is pure insanity. It's as if Axl needs to put out an official statement distancing himself from it, but I guess even that won't be enough for some people. I'm not interested in politics, and I doubt members of GNR do. I see stuff like "it's OK, they probably support the left party". I mean wtf?? really?? that's hysterical! what does it mean, "its ok"? like we're not going to be a fan anymore if they aren't I guess some people are looking for left or right politics in the GNR brand, in stead of kick ass hard rock music. facepalm to those people.

....

fair enough. my final word on this is, that while I agree that politics is everywhere, I don't think it belongs in rock music. Rock music isn't about left or right, it's about bringing people together. I haven't heard a single person discuss politics at a rock concert. the moment politics are brought into it, is the moment division is created, in an already very divided GNR fanbase.

 

I never heard WTTJ as just a kick ass hard rock party song. I don't mean it's "political" in the narrow sense of the word or that the band intended it to be such, but there's social commentary in it (look at the video of it also), and it was one of the things that made it stand out from all that "feelgood" hairmetal stuff that dominated the "rock" side of MTV in those days. I've been always surprised how other people don't see that. And there are bits of that in other GnR songs, moreso in the Illusions.

And of course a song like OIAM, which addressed issues the way it did will generate political discussion, because these issues are not unrelated to politics.

Also, since you like The Doors, do you consider them apolitical because the majority of their lyrics weren't strictly political? That was a band in the context of a highly politicised era and divided society, and they were clearly (seen as being) on one side of things. 

Edited May 7, 2018 by Blackstar

[soon]

9:27-10:00

Axl on his political leanings.  "I would lean Democrat, I would lean Obama."  

 

 

[Kwick1]

1 hour ago, action said:

fair enough. my final word on this is, that while I agree that politics is everywhere, I don't think it belongs in rock music. Rock music isn't about left or right, it's about bringing people together. I haven't heard a single person discuss politics at a rock concert. the moment politics are brought into it, is the moment division is created, in an already very divided GNR fanbase.

 

I don't believe that rock music is about bringing people together. Rock & Roll has always challenged authority and is often political. Sure there were/are some rock groups that rose in popularity around the same time as GnR but those groups are largely considered to be "hair bands" and played very safe and party rock. Their appearance might have said f*%# authority but their music certainly didn't challenge anyone. GnR has never been grouped into that category as their music was challenging to the current social and political environment. 

@killuridols, this thread has largely been polite discussion around OIAM without too many attacks on Axl or GNR but your statement about GnR only being concerned about $$$$. That may be your opinion but the NITLT is clearly for the fans, IMHO.