Psssst...wanna see where Axl grew up?

[*Izzy*]

Thanks for the pics?

  Izzy?

[patience26]

Thanks for the pics!!!It`s a very small house, isn`t it?
Btw, about the "Mr brownstone" thing, i allways tougth it  came from the heroin thing because in my country getting hight with drugs is getting stoned. And so, just like heroin is brown ( i suppose) and the song says :"We`ve be dancing with Mr. Brownstone, he`s been knocking, he won`t leave me alone", i though that it was only about drugs ans had nothing to do with some building or what!!
Rock on 

[*Izzy*]

And so, just like heroin is brown ( i suppose) and the song says :"We`ve be dancing with Mr. Brownstone, he`s been knocking, he won`t leave me alone", i though that it was only about drugs ans had nothing to do with some building or what!!

Maybey someone who lived in that building used to knock on Izzy's door looking for drug money and wouldn't leave poor Izzy alone....

  Izzy?

[Mateoson]

Well being from Lafayette, I can tell you that the locals believe they are talking about this particular apartment building which is called "Brownstone". Also legend has it that they used to party hard over there. So maybe they were doing a little brown stone at Brownstone.

Next time I'm in Lafayette I'll snap a pic of Izzy's house he just sold.

[AxlStaleyWeiland]

Mr Brownstone is heroin. In LA, as well as most of southwest USA most of the heroin comes from Mexico and is a black tarlike type of heroin, instead of the white or brown powder heroin found in midwest or east coast USA or Europe., plus the lyrics obviously show its about heroin not apartments or crack or whatevever. "used to do a little but a little wouldnt do it so a litttle got more and more" " stuck it in the middle shot it in the middle, should have known better.... Id leave it all behind" BTW i thought Smells like teen spirit did come from the deoedeant in some way, like Kurt Cobain  used to fyuck a chick who wore teen spirit and after they fucked everyone would say kurt smells like teen spirit, Im not sure that the lyrics of the song really have any connection to that, I just thought thats where the title came from

[Mr. Dick Purple]

Who cares about were the name was picked, if the song is great the rest is pure bullshit! 

[RustyCage]

Mr. Brownstone is a heroin dealer that supplied the band. I remember once seeing him on a talk show where he said "he had supplied a now big rock band in L.A. but won't name who they are and that they wrote a song about him". He called himself Mr. Brownstone. Twas either Maury or Sally show. Not sure because it was a while back.

[Freya]

"he had supplied a now big rock band in L.A. but won't name who they are and that they wrote a song about him".

More likely to be "Dr. Feelgood".  Of course Mr. Brownstone is about heroin, but it doesn't mean that the old apartment block didn't give Izzy the idea to call it that for his song. 

Thanks to Johnny Nightrain for posting this.  So much of early GnR had to do with where they came from, it's nice to see their place of origin.  And perhaps especially poignant considering with what Axl says went on in that house. 

[Johnny Nightrain]

Yeah, a lot does have to do with where they came from. Like, jumping into the river too many times to make it home. The Wabash is a big river that runs right through the city and was probably the inspiration for that line. "Paradise City" is supposed to be about Lafayette, too. I think Axl said it was him going back and forth between here and L.A. And the lyrics "out back on the highway, on 65" is a reference to I-65 which is the major highway that runs just outside of town. Though, I swear it says I-65 in the song, not "on 65."

[Gnr_man202]

"he had supplied a now big rock band in L.A. but won't name who they are and that they wrote a song about him".

More likely to be "Dr. Feelgood". 

Could be, but there actually was a famous "Dr. Feelgood" in the 60's.

[jarmo]

"Paradise City" is supposed to be about Lafayette, too. I think Axl said it was him going back and forth between here and L.A.

I don't think so. Probably about Los Angeles.

Axl compared Indiana to Auschwitz.



/jarmo

[Johnny Nightrain]

Izzy said this about "Mr. Brownstone" in Hit Parader in 1988:

"It can mean a million different things to a million different people. It's like when you listen to a Zeppelin song, what do you think? I have all kinds of fucking wild ideas about what "Custard Pie" is about."

Axl said this about "Paradise City" in Hit Parader in 1988:

"The verses are more about being in the jungle; the chorus is like being back in the Midwest or somewhere. It reminds me of when I was a little kid and just looked up at the blue sky and went "Wow, what is all that, it's so big out there." Everything was more innocent. There are parts of the song that have more of a down home feel. And when I started putting the overlayers on the vocals (I put five tracks on there), it seemed that it came out like some Irish or Scottish heritage."

[jarmo]

Ok, I thought you meant Paradise City, the title, is a reference to Lafayette. Like with the Brownstone reference.

But if you mean the song is about living in a place like Lafayette and wanting to get out of there, then I can understand it.



/jarmo

[RustyCage]

"he had supplied a now big rock band in L.A. but won't name who they are and that they wrote a song about him".

More likely to be "Dr. Feelgood".? Of course Mr. Brownstone is about heroin, but it doesn't mean that the old apartment block didn't give Izzy the idea to call it that for his song.?

Thanks to Johnny Nightrain for posting this.? So much of early GnR had to do with where they came from, it's nice to see their place of origin.? And perhaps especially poignant considering with what Axl says went on in that house.?

Nope, I am 100% positive he called himself Mr. Brownstone. Otherwise, I wouldn't have mentioned it.

[N.I.B]

Brownstone is a reference to heroin. It isn't about an apartment complex.

Where they did heroin, perhaps?

[Freya]

Nope, I am 100% positive he called himself Mr. Brownstone. Otherwise, I wouldn't have mentioned it.

I don't know why I'm arguing this, but why would he call himself Mr. Brownstone and not name the band?  And the lyrics of the song suggest not an actual person but the spector of addiction itself. 

And N.I.B., I'm quite certain they didn't do heroin until they went to L.A. 

[jameslofton29]

Has anyone besides me ever seen heroin? It's brown rocks. Brown rocks=Brownstone. Get it?? The next time I see some sort of building with the word Jungle on it, I'm going to post it and say this is where Axl wrote Jungle. Cant wait to see how many people believe it.

[Butch Français]

Has anyone besides me ever seen heroin? It's brown rocks. Brown rocks=Brownstone. Get it?? The next time I see some sort of building with the word Jungle on it, I'm going to post it and say this is where Axl wrote Jungle. Cant wait to see how many people believe it.

if it's known that Axl used to host something in this building, then I could see the similarities of what you are saying and the Brownstone story..

[Johnny Nightrain]

I never claimed it to be anything specific. If you would read, I said that it was local legend and I thought it would be interesting. I even posted the Izzy quote where he said it could be anything.

[*Izzy*]

Has anyone besides me ever seen heroin? It's brown rocks. Brown rocks=Brownstone. Get it?? The next time I see some sort of building with the word Jungle on it, I'm going to post it and say this is where Axl wrote Jungle. Cant wait to see how many people believe it.

Yes I have seen heroin and yes the song is definetly about heroin but doesn't it strike you as odd that there is a building called Brownstone in the same town that the person who wrote the song Mr. Brownstone came from?

Anyway here's a song I think we can all agree is about Indiana: http://s29.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=090F9X5MNS6LH16NDQ0O10M4OP

  Izzy?