Saturday
Sep102016
Backstage At Guns n' Roses
Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 09:16AM
An inside look at how the Guns n' Roses "Not In This Lifetime" tour is rolling across the country. Just for fun! Happy Saturday.
Reader Comments (20)
"IZZY STRADLIN Says He Isn't Involved With GUNS N' ROSES Reunion Because 'They Didn't Want To Split The Loot Equally'
Former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Izzy Stradlin has dismissed singer Axl Rose's explanation for why he isn't involved with the band's reunion tour as "bullshit."
Bullshit
They didn't want to split the loot equally . Simple as that . Moving right along........
— Izzy Stradlin (@IzzyStradlin999) September 8, 2016
WAY TO CALL IT, Izzy !
Not that any of us clear-eyed soothsayers of rock's glorious past doubted it. Just want to give credit--to both of you--where it is due.
No one who love the business of rock and roll doubts that, when it comes to legacies and age and time and whatnot, that the stress is placed on _business_. But, if the fans love it and pay for it, so it goes.
Taking a principled stand is, as Izzy's story suggests, more focused on the _rock_ side of things. I would say the same when it comes to people like Ward v. Sab. But that is a digression.
AND Axl turned in a scorching performance hitting every note and sounding like the perfect bastard child of Bon Scott and Brian Johnson.
But that's not gonna make me overlook that he screwed Izzy out of the Guns n' Roses reunion. As my Dad (RIP) used to say, "You can only eat so many steaks in one lifetime." Axl STILL would have made millions this last go around (see Gary's figures above) with Izzy on stage.
If he'd payed Izzy what he deserved, their show would be way more scorching (like the days of yore) than what we're hearing today, which is great but lacks that certain X-factor that would make it even greater (as in "than the sum of it's parts")!
There's no question Axl's come a long way, but not far enough in my book!
But you're off on Izzy... He contributed WAY more than DUFF, as he wrote more than half of their material. THAT'S why his desire to split the profits is actually more than fair. His contributions to Gn'R are far more significant than DUFF's.
DUFF, who's a nice guy and all, and a competent bass player is definitely important to the mix but his talent is 1/1,000,000 of Izzy's when you consider what Stradlin brought and would bring to the table.
99.9% of the fans who are more than willing to shell out their hard earned $ for these shows, don't give a flying fuck at all if Izzy is involved or not.
If Izzy was "so missed" as some fans "for some bizarre reason pretend to be perturbed by" this tour would have failed miserably...but guess what...NOTHING even in the slightest way possible happened to that effect.
FOR THE RECORD:
I am a true diehard GNR fan.
My love for them never waivered, even during the late 1990's up to the present day.
I followed every little sliver of info I could find whatsoever about the band, during those times..
(Originally 'Chinese Democracy' had the working title of '2000 Intentions')
I waited for Best Buy to open their doors first thing in the morning on the day of the release of 'Chinese Democracy'.
Seconds later it was blaring in my car & it became an instant classic to me.
I've never been disappointed by Guns N Roses, & not having Izzy around has not ruined that streak at all.
Axl, Slash & Duff are the only band members that were always involved during the bands heyday.
So I'm 100% fine w/this being called a reunion tour w/out Izzy & Steven (although I would be more hyped for the full time return of Steven over Izzy any day).
Either way I'm totally fine w/things the way they are.
P.S.
Long live Guns N Roses!
2016 is the year Axl Rose...AXL/DC & Guns N Roses are the 2 hottest rock bands going at the moment.
I absolutely get what bk is saying, in that a small slice of a huge pie is better than no slice at all. It just pisses me off when these bands hose original members in the name of the almighty dollar( . See, Mike Anthony in VH, Bill Ward with Sabbath, etc.) How many houses and cars does a person need once you hit the level of prosperity that these guys already have????
Jakki, to say you would rather have Adler back in over Stradlin just sounds random, when you compare their contributions.
I 100% understand the undeniable chemistry the original version of Gun's N Roses had.
(I just finished rereading Adler's book once again & am currently rereading Slash's book)
I've been a hardcore fan ever since I first heard of GNR back in 1986.
'Chinese Democracy' is pretty much a masterpiece, not perfect but very close.
I would put it 2nd behind only Ratt's 'Infestation' as the greatest CD released by any of the legendary Glam Metal bands talked about here (counting only albums released after the year 2000, that is).
Another thing that has irked me recently, everybody keeps raving about how "amazing" Axl's voice sounds now, but ostensibly since I seem to be the only person here who has always loved GNR...
I can say w/100% confidence that Axl sounds exactly just like he has the last 20 or so years.
Only reason, people are saying he sounds great now is cause Slash & Duff are to the left & right of him.
I have a ton of bootleg concert DVD's from the 2000's as well as a couple of recent "reunion" concerts & Axl sounds exactly the same.
Sometimes he sounds like "Vintage" Axl to "Weak as fuck" Axl w/out warning.
His voice has been like that for almost 2 decades now.
...it's just impossible...???
There's only one way to know for sure what would happen if Axl bit the bullet and put Izzy back on stage with the band he cofounded. My guess is the chemistry would more than be there and it WOULD be noticeable.
Also, you are an insatiable consumer of information regarding Guns n' Roses, i.e. Rereading bandmembers' books, I strongly suggest you watch as much as you can or every one of Gn'R's recent shows on YouTube plus the AXL⚡️DC stuff (which is far better, IMFUO) as I nearly have and tell me if Axl has never sounded better. I personally actually think he sounds the best he ever has and, as I've mentioned before, I saw 'em POINT BLANK 5 times back in the day.
I'm just saying (to me at least) he sounds pretty much the same as he did in concert when he was running around w/all the hired guns over the years.
I do think however that he sounds like vintage late 80's/early 90's Axl, when he is fronting AXL/DC.
He sounds spectacular & really brings those songs to life.
I would love for them to release an official live CD/DVD combo.
(Or better yet, they collaborate & make a new record)
Ultimately...
I'm pretty damn happy w/the "reunion".
I'm lovin it & would also love for GNR to make a new record or at the very least release a live CD/DVD combo.
Faster Pussycat on the main stage or PBF on the side stage. I already know what I 'plan' to do, but just wanted your input....all of you metalboy, him and ace, et. el. alike!!!!!!!! go