Here Today... Gone To Hell!

I emailed the one and only Brian May about the answer Axl gave about why he decided not to include his parts in CITR (i.e. Axl having the impression Brian wasn't too happy with the way the solo was copy pasted together and also people at the time talking more about Slash rather than Brian's imo sublime performance....and how later most people preferred Brian's version).

This is the response I got and Brian gave me permission to share with everyone who would be interested:

That's a very kind message.   Many thanks.


I have been reluctant to say anything about the sessions, ever since it happened, out of respect to Axl, and, well, its the decent way to behave.  But there is so much talk about it now, and so many questions ... I have been putting together a small piece about it for my 'Soapbox". (See below I added it, SoulMonster)


The important thing from my point of view is that it happened at all, and was an enjoyable experience.  I was honoured.   I really didn't do it with the expectation that I would get any long-term rewards !!!  Axl is pretty exceptional, and unpredictable ...


I am reminded of something my Mum told me once, many years ago.  She said it's OK to lend money to people, but you must lend it with the full knowledge that it will probably never come back.  This is the only way to live in peace with yourself !!


So its the same with time, or deeds, or anything that you can give.  If you do it expecting thankyou's, or rewards, you're going to be disappointed ! 


I'm really not disappointed in the least.   I'm very happy that people like yourself have been writing to me saying good things ... that's a real bonus.  I sleep well in my bed !!  And I will always have great love for Axl. 


Cheers


Dr. Bri



Here his 'Soapbox comment about the entire process regarding CD..and working on 3 tracks:



**Sun 14 Dec 08**
AXL ...

? brianmay.com
(See Copyright Note)

Well, a lot of people have been asking about me and Axl.

It's very simple really ... Axl is making his record, and he can do whatever he wants ! After all these years I'm still a huge fan.

It was such a long time ago, it tends to recede into the mists of time, for me ... I certainly don't remember anything about disapproving of any 'comping' Sean Beavan had done - I remember it, I had actually comped it up with him myself. Of course, soon afterwards, Sean was taken off the project, although I have to say I thought the tracks were overall sounding bloody good at that time! I'm not sure if we know where the version that was 'leaked' to the public came from. I have my own rough mixes, which I took away at the time for the purposes of working on the stuff further if necessary, but nobody but me has ever heard those. I kept them totally private, because that's the professional way to be. I actually played on three tracks.

The scenario was very different from what folk-lore seems to be embroidering it into. So maybe I ought to say something ...

What happened, the way I remember it, was this. I had been on tour with GN'R, and had a very good relationship with them ... they were much kinder to me than they needed to be, as a support artist to them as they toured the USA and Europe. We had some great times. People will recall that GN'R also guested at our Freddie tribute concert, at the good old Wembley Stadium, as it was then. They did an amazing job on Dylan's "Knocking on Heaven's Door", and they donated all the proceeds of their live recording to the newly-founded Mercury Phoenix Trust - that's a nice answer to anyone who accuses GN'R of being anti-gay.

Well, some time later, once I was back home, Axl phoned me up, out of the blue, and told me he felt he was losing his way over guitars on the tracks on the album, and asked me if I would come over for a couple of days to LA and have look. The idea was not that I become part of the band! It was more about me coming in as a friend, giving what I could to the project, as an objective outside opinion, and doing a bit of guitar playing as well. I said I'd be very happy to do that. His people booked me on plane, and I arrived a couple of days later. It was fun. Axl came down to the studio from his house, where he was also working in parallel on other stuff in his home studio, and, with Sean, played about 20 tracks to me ... pretty much almost the whole album as it stood at that time. That's a lot of listening time! But it was all fascinating. My comments were mainly appreciations, and reassurances, and I liked most of the guitar that was already on there, but I remember having strong 'producorial' feelings about making sure Axl's great vocals didn't get swamped in too much guitar ornamentation.

Then I played some guitar ... working with Sean. Over the next couple of days I went in and spent most of day there, trying things out on various tracks. Axl actually stayed away from that time on, getting Sean to take up rough mixes of what we'd been doing each night, and sending back appreciative comments. Then I went home!

Oh .. we also had a nice evening having dinner up at Axl's home, with a few friends and record company guys, during which Axl played everybody a whole bunch of tracks that were NOT already on the album ... which he had been working on separately. It was evidently already a mammoth project.

In my mind, I gave it a small piece of my life, without any thought of getting anything back, except the feeling that I'd contributed a little to the journey of the album project. I didn't ask to be paid, or even credited, and I certainly didn't put any constraints on whether the guys had to use my work or not.

I'm totally relaxed about the outcome, as I always was, and I hope that Axl will now feel liberated, by the final emergence of his magnum opus, to move on, and get back out there where we all want him to be, rockin' around the world ...

It's interesting that, at the time of all this, I was completely sure that for us, as Queen, the days of playing packed stadium gigs were over. I never thought that in 2008, we would be playing, in Buenos Aires, for instance, in the same football stadium (Velez Sarsfield) as we played with Freddie all those years ago, to a reaction every bit as frenetic as in the Old Days. The reviews of Queen and Paul Rodgers in Brazil were ecstatic, to the point where one article said our show out-did the first Rock in Rio. So I'm very grateful that the wheel keeps turning, and even happier still to be in the Great River of Rock.

Cheers
Bri


Brian is seriously one of the nicest 'rock legends' out there. If you want, you can tell him how much you appreciated his work on  CITR, here:

http://www.brianmay.com/brian/brianssb/brianssb.html

Yup, never stick around for the thankyous.

legend personally and professionally

Very awesome! :peace:

I have so much respect for the guy.

I remember listening to him on the Pavarotti and Friends album WAYYYYY before I got into rock n' roll.

I wish him continued success!

I've also seen some comments on various boards a long the lines of "This is all Axl has, he really doesn't have 3 albums, more tracks, etc."

Hopefully May's comments will put that to rest.

Dude is a legend and a class act. Hopefully one day we'll be able to hear some of those tracks he played on!

That was a very cool statement.   I wonder what he thinks of Chinese Democracy?

                Yeah man what a cool guy. Brian May is awesome and maybe one day Axl will release the Brian May version of the song.

Brian is great!   Very cool and classy reply.

he must be the classiest man in the business! respect  :beer:

may is a legend.respect : ok:

i'm happy and sorry brian isn't in CITR at the same time. happy because there's a guitar less in the album and it's right let one of the guy now (bumblefoot) gives his sound to the cause. sorry because i really appriciate may, and it would be a great duo in citr if may had played.
so, i always hope in future a single of citr w/may could be released.

so.. maybe Axl misunderstood Brians approval to use his guitars anyway Axl wanted then? Or maybe somebody else did, and gave Axl the wrong idea? ???

That's very cool of Brian. Axl's explanation was nice too.

I have so much respect for the guy he is so class act.


AXL get the phone..phone up Brian again. ;D

thanks for sharing :)

Haha awesome, that was my question!

Oh trust me people, this guy could teach good lessons about class and "comradeship" to some people, I love him!  :)

Great, classy guy. There's obviously so much respect and appreciation between Axl and May. Too bad some people tried to turn it into some sort of feud or as if someone had been wronged. As Axl says, the band had moved on, nothing personal, as May says, Axl can do what he wants on his record--no hard feelings.

Dr. Brian May. He's the only guy in rock n roll who can roll out that PhD and look even cooler.

I have played both the brian may and the finished versions to about 20 people ranging from my brother whos a musician to drinking buddies to girls im seeing.......not 1....i repeat....not ONE has preferred the guitars on the finished version over Brians guitars.


A massive shame.

Still a pretty good song....but deleting near perfection , along with too many layers on a simple song has somewhat ruined it.....just a personal opinion.......sometimes less is more though.

Very generous and classy of Brian.

I hope those sessions are on film somewhere.  They have to release a making of CD DVD one day.

you wouldn't see axl but sean in the session with Brian tho. :P

is anybody better than brian may? i dont think so, great guy!  :peace:

BRIAN MAY FTW

**Wed 17 Dec 08**

SMOKIN' GUNS ...

? brianmay.com
(See Copyright Note)

Hey, all you Guns n' Roses devotees out there ... I'm very touched by your kind messages ... I never expected any of this ... I feel very cared for ... much appreciated.

Merry Christmas, folks. Rock on!

Cheers

Bri

thats a really good way to look at things, i admire his humbleness

Did Axl thank Brian on CD credits?

Did you check the booklet?

While Bri may ( Brian May, may) not have made it into the final product, without his work, Axl could very well have become lost - and CD with him.  Bri filled a void in a very critical time for GnR...we should all be thankful....oh, yeah, and hes a f--king class act.  : ok:

Thats why I was wondering if Axl thanked him, since nobody knows off the top of their head, i'll take a few minutes right now to root thru the MANY Axls thank yous. To not include him amoung ALL those people is a little strange.

..half an hour later.....Brian May was not thanked.  Some other interesting names I had forgotten since i read it last a month ago....how time flys!.....He thanks Kat....wonder if its Kat Von Dee? Cool to see Axl get a tattoo done be her, even though her show is lame, she cool and great artist.

 :hihi:  You're funny!

Anyway, yeah, I agree - what everyone said.  Class act, indeed.   

Maybe Axl didn't use the solo because it's inferior to BBF's. Because it is.

May's solo was nice, and so is Ron's.   either one is fine with me, and I can understand Axl wanting to use one of the guys in the band as opposed to an outsider.

Inferior is a harsh word...I would agree if you said BBF's is much more 'appropriate'.  Again, a wind-up monkey with cymbols could have done the trick, if it got Axl from A to B...A being losing his guitar player - B being getting him back.  Brian was able to help Axl through that period, and keep the album rolling - that can't be cut/edited out.

Who knows if he helped Axl through that period and kept the album rolling......I would think not considering May wasn't thanked.

I would think Brian May would know a bit about that: "...Axl phoned me up, out of the blue, and told me he felt he was losing his way over guitars on the tracks on the album, and asked me if I would come over for a couple of days to LA and have look."   Of course I am just looking at the timeline, and assuming that he didn't hurt the project.  Perhaps someone will ask Axl next time he visits.