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#11 Re: Guns N' Roses » The General confirmed next » 87 weeks ago
The vinyl release date is October 26/27. That's still 17 days from now. I would guess the streaming and other digital purchase versions will be available in late October. Releasing the digital version before the physical version doesn't make sense IMHO.
#12 Re: Guns N' Roses » 2023 Tour Dates » 89 weeks ago
you should have went. they were blowing out the tickets at 24.50 I saw earlier. It was 40% full at most from what I saw at ticketmaster earlier.
I’m too spoiled by prime Axl live videos from 1986 to 1993. Not able to put up with the helium voice of the last 20 years. But I do think they put on a good show for the audience. A lot of bands play short gigs while charging a ton of money. Guns will give you 2.5 to 3 hours.
#13 Re: Guns N' Roses » The General confirmed next » 89 weeks ago
elevendayempire wrote:Hey Axl, look what happens when you get a band in the studio and just bash out a song as live, instead of overthinking it.
I love the story of this album. It'll probably wind up being better than the album itself.
RS magazine has a great article on it.
They could've easily compiled an assortment of songs from the past 10-20 years and made an album out of that. Instead, they decided to get together, work mostly from scratch (a few exceptions), and most importantly...set a deadline.
They really did go old school with it.
I don’t think the Illusion albums had anything to do with Appetite’s success. It’s the other way around. The Illusion albums and Lies both rode the coattails and benefited from Appetite’s popularity.
Of course AFD was their main propellant. It still is.
However...they got a bunch of new fans in the 90s... including people here...and these fans buy the rest of the earlier albums.
Both U2 and Metallica had a lot of fans in the 80s... especially U2. The Joshua Tree was huge. Still doesn't change the fact Achtung and the Zoo TV tour brought them a bunch of new fans....who then buy the previous albums.
Go look at reviews for Rattle & Hum. Look at its chart positions and how long that album stayed in the headlines. It doesn't equal 14 million albums sold...a lot of that came later.
I just checked...Rattle & Hum is now considered the 9th best selling album of 1988.
And Justice For All is now considered the 7th best selling album of 1988.
Lies at #14.
Nice retconning thanks to their massive influx of new fans in the 90s.
Since Lies is now #14, I'll post the list of the top 15 albums of 1988...in 1988.
George Michael - Faith
Dirty Dancing Soundtrack
Def Leppard - Hysteria
INXS - Kick
Michael Jackson - Bad
Guns N Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Debbie Gibson - Out of the Blue
Richard Marx - Richard Marx
Tiffany - Tiffany
Aerosmith - Permanent Vacation
Terence Trent D'arby - Introducing The Hardline...
Whitney Houston - Whitney
Miami Sound Machine - Let It Loose
John Mellencamp - The Lonesome Jubilee
Rick Astley - Whenever You Need SomebodyBoth Lies and Rattle & Hum don't even make the Top 100 so I don't know their exact placement... obviously 101-200 as they had to be on there somewhere since they did have some popular singles/videos.
Even crazier is what is now considered the best selling album of 1988....
Journey - Greatest Hits
They should thank The Sopranos for that.
Another good example of this is Kylie Minogue...nowhere in the top 100 in 88 but thanks to her huge comeback years later, now has the #27 best album of 88.
MC Hammer...who wasn't jack shit in 88...no one knew he existed...now has the #42 album of 88.
To be fair on the 1988 numbers with GN’R Lies, the main single released in April 1989. I would imagine a big chunk of sales happened in 1989 instead of 1988 because of this factor. When the album released in late November of 1988, Appetite was still a huge deal.
Appetite basically had 13 months where it didn’t sell a ton (July 1987 to August 1988). For all intents and purposes, Appetite itself is pretty much a 1988 album. In 1987 it was still an underground band & album. In August 1988 it blew up with Sweet Child. And then Paradise City & Jungle were a big deal. Patience eventually went to #4 on the singles chart in 1989 and this would have driven some big sales for Lies.
Looking back, it’s amazing to me that they bothered releasing Lies in 1988. They probably could have waited until July 1989 or later, given the hype around Sweet Child, Paradise City, Jungle, and the rest of Appetite in 1988 and early 1989.
#14 Re: Guns N' Roses » 2023 Tour Dates » 89 weeks ago
They’re playing my city this evening. I hope the local folks have a good time.
#15 Re: Guns N' Roses » The General confirmed next » 89 weeks ago
Sky Dog wrote:James, you are out of your mind if you put Steel Wheels up against 2 records that are widely considered in discussions about greatest albums of all time! Come on….both albums also sold significantly more than Steel Wheels.
I'd love to see the album sales of these albums 1988-90. In both U2 and GNR's case, massive records in 91 ( Achtung Baby & UYI) caused huge increases in back catalogue sales...same as what happened with Metallica post-Black album.
I have a feeling they were probably pretty close. Rattle & Hum got mixed reviews to say the least..and Lies quickly dropped off the charts to the point the label started pushing AFD again. Steel Wheels one of the Stones most popular albums (back then).
Rattle & Hum - 14 Million (5 million US)
Lies - 12 Million (5 million US)
Steel Wheels - 3 Million (2 million US)As we've talked about before, the Stones aren't an album band...they're a singles band. Their #1 selling album... Hot Rocks...has only sold 6 million copies...yet they're the biggest band in the world and have been for decades.
Cream of the crop....
Lies
Move to the City
Patience
Used to Love Her
You're Crazy
One In A MillionRattle & Hum
Helter Skelter
Desire
Angel of Harlem
When Love Comes To TownSteel Wheels
Mixed Emotions
Terrifying
Rock and A Hard Place
Can't Be Seen
Almost Hear You Sigh
Continental Drift
Slipping AwayI'd put that batch of Stones songs up against those above any day of the week.. although Continental Drift is definitely drifting towards filler.
You're Crazy the best song overall...Patience the best ballad although Almost Hear You Sigh gives it a run for its money...and Helter Skelter the best cover out of the albums above.
Glad this discussion happened because it caused me to listen to Rattle & Hum for the first time in 2-3 years.
Amazing. They didn't just steal it back from Charles Manson, they stole it from The Beatles.
Probably should've made it to #1... at least for a week...but too many monster singles in April 89.
Edit
Just like with 1980s Stones overall, Rattle & Hum deserves a reassessment.
Appetite was massive from 1988 to 1989, so massive that GN’R Lies even sold a ton of copies despite not even being a full album.
I don’t think the Illusion albums had anything to do with Appetite’s success. It’s the other way around. The Illusion albums and Lies both rode the coattails and benefited from Appetite’s popularity.
#16 Re: Guns N' Roses » What Steven brought to GNR » 92 weeks ago
They only bought his plane ticket. If they're paying fucking Melissa Reese to be an anime Teddy Zig Zag, then surely they can pay an original member for coming down and doing a job for them. If they're bitter about shit then don't call him up in the first place. Since when did they all become Hetty Green?
I guess they knew he was desperate enough to do the gig without money. Hell I seem to remember him making statements along those lines in the early days of the reunion when it looked like he was not gonna have any involvement. He's always been the most desperate member of the bunch. By comparison, Izzy straight up told the guys to go fvck themselves because of the money situation.
#17 Re: Guns N' Roses » 2023 Tour Dates » 92 weeks ago
Rumours on reddit that St. Louis show is cancelled due to illness
This band sure has a lot of bad luck with St. Louis.
#18 Re: Guns N' Roses » What Steven brought to GNR » 92 weeks ago
It's amazing that Steven is still alive. I remember reading his book, thinking even Keith Richards would take a bow to his excess. One of the funniest stories I've read from a rock band is when he tried to land a record deal, claiming he was completely clean and sober, and just as the suits are meeting him, one of his dealers drives up to give him heroin.
That being said, the way Axl, Slash and Duff treated him was completely shameless. It's fine that they're only giving him a couple of shows, but at least pay the man! They're out there raking in millions every night and still they can't find the heart to throw their old band mate a bone. That kind of cynicism is staggering to me.
To be fair, he was given a ton of songwriting credit on Appetite For Destruction. He has been paid a huge amount of money from that. Axl infamously threw a fit about this. "He didn't write anything, why is he getting 20% of the royalties??"
#19 Re: Guns N' Roses » What Steven brought to GNR » 92 weeks ago
tejastech08 wrote:Steve’s drumming was definitely an important part of the GN’R magic. I think about Rocket Queen in particular. All 5 dudes were equally important on that song. Phenomenal stuff across the board.
Izzy said “nothing worked” after Steve was kicked out. You can definitely hear a loss of magic in their sound on the Illusion albums. Bunch of good songs, but the sound was not the real deal Guns N’ Roses.
I never heard that Izzy comment before. It makes me wonder if that is a large part of why he quit. Also makes me wonder if he and Steven stay in touch.
Considering all the grief and drama that followed, he got out at the peak of GNR’s success. It’s like a stock market investor selling their shares at their all-time highest value!
The main reason he quit was because of Axl’s bullshit on tour, showing up late for gigs and causing riots. Izzy had also cleaned up from drugs, so he no longer wanted to be around the substance abuse of Slash or Duff. He was afraid it would cause a relapse for him. He made a very good choice to get out of the chaotic situation.
#20 Re: Guns N' Roses » What Steven brought to GNR » 92 weeks ago
Steve’s drumming was definitely an important part of the GN’R magic. I think about Rocket Queen in particular. All 5 dudes were equally important on that song. Phenomenal stuff across the board.
Izzy said “nothing worked” after Steve was kicked out. You can definitely hear a loss of magic in their sound on the Illusion albums. Bunch of good songs, but the sound was not the real deal Guns N’ Roses.
