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Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
I remember the most negative thing was management. They didn't show us much love. But it was hectic and they probably didn't want to have more to manage... The tour schedule was intense so we had very little down time... Everything on the UYI tour was pretty much working like a machine.
Dougie had Axl to handle, and the rest of the band. Based on all we've heard, it's something of a miracle they pulled through with the UYI tour. The dangers were constant, from down to the wire contract negotiations to Izzy leaving, to late starts, riots and lawsuits.
- jimmythegent
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Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
Great interview questions James - was wondering as I was reading it who had come up with the kind of questions for once that fans would be interested in.
Such a shame that those Axl forum chats didn't attract this kind of caliber of question instead of the garbage that was put to him...
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
Great interview questions James - was wondering as I was reading it who had come up with the kind of questions for once that fans would be interested in.
Such a shame that those Axl forum chats didn't attract this kind of caliber of question instead of the garbage that was put to him...
Indeed. One big wasted opportunity.
It's still strange to think back on. The reclusive with a big R came to the forums to talk about anyone and anything. If he had been smarter he would have set up a deal with one of the forum admins to do his own tailored interview. It's what he always resented the media for, spinning his words against him. That wouldn't have happened in such a case. He could have made his side heard, talking about only the subjects he wanted, and the fans would get a real juicy interview.
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
Axl's forum chats were a perfect example of the downside of it.
All these questions about VR, Slash and Disney movies ect. He did show that he was willing to talk about the music, when he answered questions about song titles, some unreleased tracks like Leave Me Alone/Elvis Presley and the Monster of Soul and made comments about Catcher in The Rye. People just spammed him though with stupid questions and with the typical baiting that you'd expect.
In fairness though, I worry had he came here. Certain former members might have took it as an opportunity to ruin it for the rest of us (back then).
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
I cant believe I forgot to ask about Beta. Did you ever meet her back then Tracey? At the time she was supposedly just Stephanie Seymour's nannie. Many years later she became GNR/Axl's manager. Did you ever meet Stephanie?
Axl had to ask people to ask him about the music, that's how bad it was.
Yeah I cringed reading the transcripts.
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
Traci wrote:I remember the most negative thing was management. They didn't show us much love. But it was hectic and they probably didn't want to have more to manage... The tour schedule was intense so we had very little down time... Everything on the UYI tour was pretty much working like a machine.
Dougie had Axl to handle, and the rest of the band. Based on all we've heard, it's something of a miracle they pulled through with the UYI tour. The dangers were constant, from down to the wire contract negotiations to Izzy leaving, to late starts, riots and lawsuits.
Yeah and then the cherry on top is the power struggle developing which led to the infamous signing over of the name which I doubt we ever get the full story on. It must have been surreal being so close yet so far away for the other members such as Tracey, Roberta, Zig Zag, and even Gilby and Matt. They may not have realized what was going on underneath since all focus was on a tour of such magnitude.
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
Let's try something. I'll give a topic and lets try and get a few or more of your questions on the subject. I've either read or heard all types of opinions on these and that's not what I'm trying to get at here. What I'd like to try are the questions as straightforward and concise as you can try and make 'em. I'll read them and if possible answer them collectively. I'll do my best to give you what I can and we'll see how it goes. :xmasssanta: So here goes...
The ownership of the name Guns N' Roses.
The full story is something to the effect of Axl going Yoda with his hubris and Slash and Duff going Vader with their substance abuse. They all have their own accounts. They're looking back to a whirlwind of memories and are all barely at the same page.
Axl consulted his lawyers. How could he protect the assets of Guns? Well, they're in a three-way partnership as it is. He could pull the usual of US corporate legislation - run the company down behind a facade. All you lose are shareholders. You simply take the assets away and a three-way partnership turns into a sole propietor. To accomplish this, he would need the name - who'd control the name, would control the company.
Now at that time I didn’t know or think about brand names or corporate value etc. All I knew is that I came in with the name and from day one everyone had agreed to it being mine should we break up and now it was in writing.
Axl indeed cares very little for money against his art. The lawyers made his bidding in a cutthroat fashion, as that's the legal loophole. Whether Axl completely understood the emotional consequences of his actions, we can only wonder. But he may have indeed been naive in his desire to protect the band assets.
I still didn’t grasp any other issues until long after I’d left and formed a new partnership which was only an effort to salvage Guns, not steal it.
Tom Zutaut was probably the first to confirm there was an incident around the name.
On the eve of the tour, Axl told the rest of the band that the only way he would play was if they'd give ownership of the name to him. They were looking at canceling the tour and losing millions and millions of dollars, [so] they capitulated.
So let’s start here… the whole Axl wouldn’t go on stage yada yada… is complete and utter crap... Slash was imo being on the up and up in agreeing I had the rights and I wasn’t trying to be some snake in the grass pulling a fast one. The others could’ve cared less.
They were in a bad place to begin with. Axl ran the show and everybody was on his clock already. He wanted papers to be signed. Or he'd get mad. Everybody in the UYI crew must've known that the worst thing that can happen is Axl getting mad - that spells 'no-show'.
No one pressured me, everyone was afraid and no one including myself wanted to break up Guns or the relationship.
Everybody but Axl were intimidated. He held the power and unwittingly abused it.
If I hadn’t secured the rights I don’t know where I’d be and I’d probably call what would then be the current lineup "Those mother fuckers!!"
Damn straight. They could've otherwise fired your arse afterwards.
However, Axl fails to address the timing of the partnership rundown, after the Snakepit tour in late '95.
Now, the point here is that Duff was already in good health, recovering from his swollen pancreas and leading a healthy life like Axl. On the outset, Slash was active as a musician, spending the Guns downtime wisely by doing his own thing. It's doubtful he was as chronically and wholly wasted with Snakepit as he was during the UYI tour.
Maybe it in itself was a disciplinary action from Axl's perspective. Slash taking (3-4) maybe-Guns songs, recording them on his own, badmouthing Axl in the press and touring the world. The rascal.
That's when Slash and Duff became contracted employees. That's the other half of the coin, an arduous legal process by its own right. They worked on the '96 album somewhat. Duff and Matt were touring with Neurotic Outsiders on the side. Slash quit, during his trial period.
In my opinion the reality of the shift and the public embarrassment and ridicule by others (which included a lot of not so on the level business types he was associating with at the time) for not contesting the rights to the brand name, were more than Slash could openly face... Painting me as the one who held a crowd hostage forcing the others to sign over the name worked out pretty well in that regard.
Axl may have a point, here. Certainly, Slash only opened up in the media about the name after he resigned, in January '97. People pointed out to him how he should've exercised his right as 1/3 shareholder to contest Axl's demands, or at least to ask for money.
Only, Slash and Duff gave it to Axl for nothing. Duff later mentioned he took business classes after Guns so he'd be able to go through the books from the UYI era, to see if anything was amiss. Apparently, they did check out. Duff must've gone through hell with them numbers.
After Slash opened up to the media with his version, the story escalated slowly and they ended up heading up to the courthouse a few times.
I can imagine after reading the depositions, the court was just as baffled as the rest of us.
The biggest band in the world was given away.
Re: Memories of the Use Your Illusion Tour: An Interview with Tracey Amos
^ That's about as good a rundown of the story you're going to get.
In hindsight Keith Richards was right about don't leave the band. Only it was actually Axl who ended up leaving the band, provoking Slash's ego to the point where he just said fuck it. I guess we could say the paranoia and yes men atmosphere got the best of him. His intention was good, but the tact fateful.
