Why No Guitarist??

[RichardNixon]

Let's do the math:

Buckethead left over a year ago. Stinson said recently that the album is being mixed. So that means no new guitar player re-did Buckethead's parts. So that would lead me to conclude (1) Buckethead's parts are staying on the album or (2) His parts were removed, and Finck and Fortus are the only players.

If (1) is true, hopefully BH will be back for a '05-'07 World Tour.

[Jonx]

Axls statement regarding BH's departure a year ago sounded like a reconciliation wouldnt be out of the question. I hope this eventuates, mostly I pray BHs parts stay on CD - he's the vital creative spark to offset Axl I reckon.

I hope he comes back too. I think Axl would let him aswell, If Izzy can leave and come back and play a few live shows even after Axl rants off and talks shit about him at various concerts, then Bucket could still come back.

I guess time will tell.

Jonx

[fife flyer]

I saw GnR at the leeds festival and BH was amasing, but i dont believe that GnR need him.
Robin is the key to future GnR success for me (other than Axl of course).
Almost all the other members have other projects except Finck and Pittman.I believe that they both have much bigger roles in GnR than we ever thought.

I understand BH frustrations but i only want people in GnR that are in it for the long haul.

Members of GnR should remember that the band will allways be bigger than one indevidual.
Just my opinion

[WARose]

i don`t really understand why buckethead left. i think his management said he left because the no-activity in gnr, but it was right before the rir4 show. Axl said that he left because he only wanted to promote his solo stuff. i think axl is right and i heard (don`t ask me where, i think in the article of the times) that universal stopped paying the band members in february 2004, so i think buckethead saw no money and left.

As far as I can see it, Rose has retired and the rest of the 'band' are saying they are still in Guns merely to promote their careers.

I disagree, but i`m afraid.....

[Falcon]

?As much as I enjoyed his presence in the band, it was just never a good fit.

The whole outfit could be looked upon as a jumble. He actually did fit.

Got to disagree..

After seeing him live a few weeks back in comparison to what I've seen him during his days in GNR,
it was clear he was out of his element with GNR.  The body language was recognizably different, he just looked more comfortable in a less structured musical environment.

[the dirt]

?As much as I enjoyed his presence in the band, it was just never a good fit.

The whole outfit could be looked upon as a jumble. He actually did fit.

Got to disagree..

After seeing him live a few weeks back in comparison to what I've seen him during his days in GNR,
it was clear he was out of his element with GNR.? The body language was recognizably different, he just looked more comfortable in a less structured musical environment.

Point taken.

But just laying down your tracks in the studio is different from working it on stage.

[Rob]

This is how I see it...throughout GN'R's run at the top they always had just 2 guitarists.  2 is plenty, and I'd rather have just 2 than ever see Buckethead on stage with them ever again.

[blasphemer]

Maybe there is a new guitarist, and we just havent been told. What if its a surprise! Who knows maybe buckethead will come back, who knows.

[Thorazine Shuffle]

I think Axl will get a third guitarist.  Fortus and Finck are more "feel" guitarist.  GNR needs someone to "shred" if Axl keeps Buckets parts.  To bad John 5 didn't join.  That guys a beast.

[killingvector]

I believe Bucket left because he felt that his career was in limbo waiting for the album to get finished. He was working on c2b3 at the time and wanted to do an extended tour with them; in retrospect, i don't believe bucket could commit to an extended tour if there was a possibility that he could be recalled at any time. i also think he felt his work was done and i get the impression from axl's statement that bucket was needed to finish off some parts which bucket may have felt were finished.

[Saul]

allow me to disspell a myth for you , buckethead does eat chicken. 

The story , in bucketheads words goes something like this .. after watching the movie halloween 4 Buckethead decided that a guy in a mike myers mask would look cool playing guitar so he went to his local costume store but couldnt find the proper mask , he bought the one that looked the closest to it , the white kabuki mask. he's used it ever since. One night his dad brought hoime a buckethead of chicken for supper , after supper buckethead was playing guitar with his mask on and just happened to grab the empty chicken bucket and put it on his head like a hat. he looked in the mirror and said "thats a buckethead" and right there the name and characther was born.

As for him rejoining the band .. who knows? Tommy didnt help matters much but I think axl would like him back and maybe has taken steps to get him back .. I mean could it hurt axl to call buckethead and say "do whatever you want to do until we're ready ok? your parts are staying and we would really like you back when the ball starts rolling. Until then have fun and do your thang."

you know?

axl shouldnt let buckethead go too easily. Buckethead is such a talent and such a characther he could really help win over new fans for this new band.

[VolcomStone]

i say leave buckethead and keep only fortus and finck.   i love buckethead, but he is not gn'r.  gn'r was never about shred guitar, so his parts just aren't needed in my opinion.  besides, you look at all the other members live, and they have actual feel and emotion that you can see being manifested through their playing.  buckethead seemed to take away from the atmosphere when just standing there or dancing like a robot.  i'm a big fan of finck and fortus' playing, but i still think it would be great if axl were able to keep zakk wylde.  to me he represented more gn'r than anyone else in the line-up right now.  though i do like the new band alot, and i really hope to hear some good stuff from them soon.  btw, here's a question... does anyone know where to find anything from robin finck besides the nin/gn'r live recordings?  he's one of my favorite guitarists and i'd love to hear more from him.

[Crowebar]

Everything that's happened since Buckethead's departure paints a very bleak picture of the band. No statements,no recording,no rehearsals. Nothing. When people used to ask me about the new album, I used to give different reasons why I thought it was coming soon. Now when someone asks me , I laugh. We're no closer to CD than we were in 2000. Sad but true.

Completely sad man.

I've been waiting for Axl to release something since TSI.

[HK-47]

From what the other members have said since he left, Buckethead was disruptive and not well-liked within the band. I don't think he'll be rejoining any time soon.

However, Buckethead was clearly important to Axl's concept of the band at the time. If they do bring in another guitarist I don't think it'll be a direct replacement for Buckethead as it's unlikely that anyone is going to want to try to replicate his parts. It would have to be a replacement in spirit, not a Bucket-like guitarist but someone equally unique.

[gandra]

i think that in axl head we have a 3 solutions:

1)no new album
2)new album with buckethead on tour
3)reunion

[WARose]

3) is NO SOLUTION !!! and i don`t think that you`d find this in axl`s head

i think axl wants bucket back at least for a tour. brain said he didn`t see axl for a year now. that makes me believe that one year ago the musical part of chinese democracy was finished and now axl is waiting for something....  maybe buckets return

but i came to the conclusion that all this fuckin speculating sucks  i want to hear something official!!!   

[HK-47]

i think that in axl head we have a 3 solutions:

1)no new album
2)new album with buckethead on tour
3)reunion

I don't think that any of those options are likely to materialize.
1) The label has spent too much money on the album already, they aren't going to let it die a quiet death.
2) The other guys, Tommy particularly, seem to have not enjoyed working with Buckethead, and I don't think that Buckethead is really interested in GNR. GNR's money maybe, but not the band.
3) I don't think there will ever be a reunion if Axl has any say in the matter I'm sure Slash & co would jump at a reunion tour in a second - they make far too much noise about how they're "doing fine without Axl" for me to believe that they're doing fine without Axl.

[Falcon]

3) I don't think there will ever be a reunion if Axl has any say in the matter I'm sure Slash & co would jump at a reunion tour in a second - they make far too much noise about how they're "doing fine without Axl" for me to believe that they're doing fine without Axl.

#1 album, 3 hit singles, Grammy award, successful tours et al.

Ya, they're really having a rough time without the redhead..

[HK-47]

3) I don't think there will ever be a reunion if Axl has any say in the matter I'm sure Slash & co would jump at a reunion tour in a second - they make far too much noise about how they're "doing fine without Axl" for me to believe that they're doing fine without Axl.

#1 album, 3 hit singles, Grammy award, successful tours et al.

Ya, they're really having a rough time without the redhead..

But that's just it! You'd think that by now they'd have stopped trading on their association with Axl/GNR as their new band has been successful in it's own right. Yet they still seem to end up talking about Axl, GNR, reunions, chinese democracy, in every interview. If they want VR to be judged on it's own merits then you'd expect them to put everything GNR related on the d/l and force the focus onto their current band.

[Skunk]

i think Axl will want a third guitarist because the songs have been planned that way for some time. i don't think it will be Bucket, but i think it's a 3 guitar band. am i right that he mentioned something about the AFD material being better with 3 even?

also, can someone tell me what was said by Tommy in regards to bucket? i must have missed that.


(as for VR, they have success but they're not going to match the GNR success, and they know that. ofcourse they talk about those old days. find any band that had tremendous success in the past and they'll talk about it and also try to use it for more.)