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Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Well, he had over three years to collect through other means. Then he split acrimoniously. Then he remembers, damn. Should've made a severance deal.
Im guessing he didn't want to upset the applecart by pushing hard for the money whilst he was still "in the band" so to speak.
Now he's been kicked to the curb he's got nothing to lose.
I believe there have been mutterings for a number of years about various employees/band members not getting paid at different stages.
- monkeychow
- Rep: 661
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Frankly, although I never wanted pitman around, I think Axl's in the wrong on this one.
If you're going to have people in the band as employees not partners then they have to be paid. You cant take the profits for yourself in the good times and then say "we're all in this together" and expect freework in the hardtimes.
It doesn't matter if it's a job we don't want him to do or if he's a dick, he did the time, he gets his money.
As for there being a nicer way to claim it than a lawsuit, everyone knows you piss off the wrong people in GNR and you get a wall of silence. I'm guessing this was the best way to have your phonecall actually returned.
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Well, yes. Pitman should be paid if they have a contract in place and if he has done his chores.
What's surprising to me is that it has come to this. I mean, poor ol' Axl was renting a flat in NYC without setting a foot into it in 2011-13. He was still blowing money away.
People like Buckethead and Roy Thomas Baker were kept on the payroll after they left. Brain and others have gotten that retainer. Pitman gets nothing, despite the undoubted cashflow from the recent tour. Axl's pissed at him, it seems.
They risk the bad publicity which coincides with the Izzy conundrum, and for what? Axl holding a grudge on Pitman for something that went down after all these years?
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
I'm totally being speculative here, but he is suing AXL and not Guns N' Roses, right?
For work done for engineering and not for touring in 2011.
Perhaps arranging/producing for a new album that never came out? Hence why he was relutant to ask for the money, as in waiting for it to come out. Once the reunion kicked in he noticed, given the history Axl has of erasing past contributions, that all the work would be erased and the chances of him receiving his money without making a big splash would be little to none?
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
I'm totally being speculative here, but he is suing AXL and not Guns N' Roses, right?
For work done for engineering and not for touring in 2011.
That's exactly right - had overlooked it. The text itself fails to address Pitman as a keyboard player / Guns member. Note that these guys have read the court documents and likely know diddly-squat about nuGuns.
Let's keep up with that. In October '11, Pitman completes engineering work on CD2. Axl says, 'Sorry, man. Guns is short on cash. My money's mine.' This corroborates with a story I remember online about Ron and Del James. Ron had confined to Del about his car accident. Del's reply, "We need the money."
Meanwhile, Axl lives it out loud in New York. He has a place in Brooklyn on rent, yet he stays in a swanky hotel. Vocal tracks done? 5-10 years ago. Pitman sends over the new mix of The General. Listen after a hangover and call him back. Bummed about having to tour North America to pay off Azoff and to keep bankrolling CD2.
Perhaps arranging/producing for a new album that never came out?
Stay of Execution, perhaps?
Agree about past associates finding their way quickly onto the 'enemies list'. Youth, who met Axl maybe 5 times, gets a credit on Madagascar. Roy Thomas Baker is around for a year and his company is credited for 'additional preproduction'. Talk about a slight.
Also, from MyGNR I learned the Cali legislation gives Pitman a 4-year-window to file a suit, so it all points out to him having exhausted all other options. All's clear, but man.
Axl screwed up this one.
- tejastech08
- Rep: 194
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Frankly, although I never wanted pitman around, I think Axl's in the wrong on this one.
If you're going to have people in the band as employees not partners then they have to be paid. You cant take the profits for yourself in the good times and then say "we're all in this together" and expect freework in the hardtimes.
It doesn't matter if it's a job we don't want him to do or if he's a dick, he did the time, he gets his money.
As for there being a nicer way to claim it than a lawsuit, everyone knows you piss off the wrong people in GNR and you get a wall of silence. I'm guessing this was the best way to have your phonecall actually returned.
MSL forum brought up a good point though. Pitman was the person who stole copyrighted work for Riad and GNR/Axl ended up in a lawsuit as a result. Pitman was never sued for that but now that he is suing Axl, it wouldn't surprise me if Axl brings up this issue in court.
- Smoking Guns
- Rep: 330
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Fuck I forgot about pitman stealing that shit. How fucking dumb.
- tejastech08
- Rep: 194
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Wiki said the Riad lawsuit was for $1 million, but it doesn't say whether the lawsuit has been resolved on that issue. $1 million is a hell of a lot more than Pitman is demanding, so I could easily see Axl bringing up the Riad problem in Pitman's lawsuit.
- monkeychow
- Rep: 661
Re: Chris Pitman suing Axl Rose for unpaid 2011 wages
Pitman was the person who stole copyrighted work for Riad and GNR/Axl ended up in a lawsuit as a result. Pitman was never sued for that but now that he is suing Axl, it wouldn't surprise me if Axl brings up this issue in court.
Interesting point....although you'd think if there were going to be repercussions for pitman over that they would have happened before the 2009-2014 tours.
Also....the management seemed to imply they were given samples by a producer and believed they had been cleared by the label...so it might not be pitmans error.
“The band believed when the record came out and still believes that there are no unauthorized samples on the track. The snippets of ‘ambient noise’ in question were provided by a member of the album’s production team who has assured us that these few seconds of sound were obtained legitimately. Artists these days can’t read the minds of those they collaborate with and therefore are unfortunately vulnerable to claims like this one. While the band resents the implication that they would ever use another artist’s work improperly and are assessing possible counterclaims, they are confident this situation will be satisfactorily resolved.”
