Depends on which GnR we're talking about.  As I said, I think Yourself or Someone Like You stands up against any rock album put out since it came out in 1996.  That includes CD.  I'm not saying it's better than all of them, just saying it holds it's own. 

I think had Mad Season (their version of TSI except it wasn't covers) not been released and Rob not gone solo with that overly pop crap, people would be a lot more open minded towards Matchbox Twenty as a rock band.  To me, their third album (More Than You Think You Are) might be their best album, but it gets a lot less play than the first one commercially.  Yes, he went gay with the pop shit, but don't let that define Matchbox Twenty.  Smooth is a hell of a good song too and I think a glimpse of what he could do with a very good guitar player.

That was educational.  I never knew the names of the other 2 guys in U2.  Thanks Bono!

I won't argue that he's not a joke.  He is.  But he's no more of a joke than the rest of this entire situation is.  Even the release of the album is a joke.  There's nothing about this whole saga that isn't a joke.  So if it's a joke to have him up there, it's a joke to have BBF (and I like him as a person and as a musician) and Frank up there as well.

I didn't listen to the leaks much and the album sounds dated.  The leaks are not why people think the songs sound dated.  The songs were written for a different era and released 10 - 12 years after that.  Very little music is timeless and CD doesn't fit into that category.

That's what makes this so difficult.