2006.06.07 - Hammersmith Apollo, London, England

**Thu 08 Jun 06**
AXL IS MAGIC

Yes, it was on the cards for me to play with Axl and his boys last night - but I was unable to get to their sound-check, and, without that kind of preparation, I felt that going on 'blind' might have been a risk. Now I totally don't mind taking risks, but not if it's a risk of messing up someone else's show !! The up-side was that because I was not going on, I could sit out front, and totally relax and enjoy the show, without having to think about my own stuff. (Also it did occur to me later on that probably 3 guitarists is more than enough ! ha ha! Great band, though. ) I thought Axl was stunning .... riveting .... I have seldom seen Hammersmith Odeon in such a state of electric hyper- energy. Just before the band went on, I thought I could actually see sparks in the air !! There have been very few performers in the world, ever, who could elicit that kind of response. And just hearing that voice, drinking it in, letting it drench the soul, was pure therapy - enough to keep the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end the whole night. Axl, as ever, is magic. Cheers
bri

**Fri 09 Jun 06**
BRIAN ATTENDS GNR IN HAMMERSMITH WITH ROGER

Brian May, along with Roger Taylor, attended the first Guns N' Roses concert last night at the Hammersmith Apollo, but neither put in a guest appearance on stage. A couple of songs from the forthcoming "Chinese Democracy" album featured in the set list: Madagascar, Better and The Blues.

Guns N Roses: All Sleep In Hammersmith

Written by The Rock Radio staff

"It's good to see you. It's good to be back at the legendary Hammersmith" said Axl Rose after the new incarnation of Guns N' Roses stormed to the stage performing Welcome to the Jungle and It's So Easy. "No sleep til Hammersmith. Let's stay up all night" he added and he sure meant every word of it.

In true rock n' roll style the band turned up very late and by the time the set had finished at 12:58am, all London underground trains had stopped running. Inevitably, almost all of the 5,000 fans who packed the auditorium had to either sleep in Hammersmith, walk all the way home or wait for hours and commute using several night buses to get home. Special guest in the audience Queen guitarist Brian May had no such a problem as he arrived and left in his chauffer driven limo.

It was October 18th, 1987 when a relatively unknown hard rock band from America blew Londoners away during the Appetite For Destruction Tour in Hammersmith. In the 19 years that followed, they released 2 more classic albums, became the biggest band on the planet and then vanished from the face of this earth following the departure of most of the original members.

Few had great expectations on Wednesday, June 7, 2006, although the majority happily splashed 100 British pounds on eBay (about 180US or 180EUR) to get a ticket for what was a pre-Donnington warm-up gig. Slash was missing, Izzy was missing, Duff and Matt were missing; and so was good-old Steven Adler.

But when Guns N' Roses eventually showed up at 10:41pm local time, they were phenomenally good for three reasons. Firstly, because Axl's voice was as good - if not better - as it used to be 20 years ago. Secondly, they played a killer setlist that included most of the hits - exactly what fans wanted to listen to. And, thirdly, the musical interaction between the GNR members was very good. Shame about the uninspired guitar solos that served no purpose other than force fans to rush for more beer.

All in all the gig was very enjoyable. But make no mistake. GNR without Slash is like a World Cup football tournament without Brazil.

HIGHLIGHTS
- The version of Knockin' On Heaven's Door which was masterfully executed and stood out from all the other songs.
- Dizzy Reed's exquisite piano solo
- Sebastian Bach of Skid Row fame joining vocals with Axl for My Michelle
- The naked flames during Live And Let Die and the rocket pyrotechnics during Nightrain

SET-LIST

Welcome To The Jungle
It's So Easy
Mr Brownstone
Live And Let Die
Sweet Child O' Mine
Madagascar
Better
You Could Be Mine
Knockin' On Heaven's Door
The Blues
IRS
Outta Get Me
November Rain
My Michelle
Patience
Nightrain
Paradise City

**Fri 09 Jun 06**
G N' R HAMMERSMITH

Commenting on news report 'GUNS N ROSES: ALL SLEEP IN HAMMERSMITH':No ! Get it RIGHT, whoever you are !
Axl said It's good to be back at the legendary Hammersmith Odeon" - showing that he knew his local history - the venue will always be Hammersmith Odeon to those of us who have grown up in it most of our lives - not "Labatt's Apollo, or whatever is the advertising name of the moment ... Then he said "No Sleep til Hammersmith" - a well-known quote in the business, of course - and then .... "and hopefully no sleep for the rest of the night". And my car isn't a Limo - it's a Lexus !!
He's right about one thing, though ... "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" was truly outstanding - there were some notes in there that made Roger and I look at each other like .... "f..... did you HEAR that ?!!" ) This song also had Axl's voice nice and high in the mix, which made it very enjoyable .... Of course Axl could just about do it without a microphone ... but - Hell - that throat is what we all went to hear ! Rock !
Bri

Guns n’ Roses return to the UK

The band premiere four new songs

Guns N’ Roses made their long awaited live return to the UK tonight (June 7) for a warm up show before their Download Festival appearance this weekend.

Singer Axl Rose – the only remaining member of the original line-up – returned to the Hammersmith Apollo for the first time in nearly 20 years for a set peppered with classic hits and four new tracks.

Typically, Axl turned up over an hour late with his seven piece band.

But he treated the crowd to a 130 minute set made up of fan favourites ‘Welcome To The Jungle’, ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’, ‘Mr Brownstone’, ‘Patience’ and Use Your Illusion tracks ‘You Could Be Mine’ and ‘November Rain’.

His band also played new tracks – ‘Madagascar’,‘Better’, ‘The Blues’ and ‘IRN’ – from the long awaited ‘Chinese Democracy’ album.

The show, which was watched by Queen guitarist Brian May and model Elle Macpherson, saw Axl make a number of costume changes in between spectacular pyrotechniques.

During the Bob Dylan cover ‘Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door’, the singer also handed his mic over for a member of the audience to sing.

He was later joined by former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach for ‘My Michelle’ before the band eventually wrapped up the show with ‘Paradise City’.

Guns N’ Roses played:

‘Welcome To The Jungle’

‘It’s So Easy’

‘Mr Brownstone’

‘Live And Let Die’

‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’

‘Madagascar’

‘Better’

‘You Could Be Mine’

‘Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door’

‘The Blues’

‘IRN’

‘Outta Get Me’

‘November Rain’

‘My Michelle’

‘Patience’

‘Night Train’

‘Paradise City’

Guns N’ Roses are now set to play the Download festival this weekend (June 10-11). For full coverage direct from the site tune in to NME.COM.

The band have also added an extra date to their forthcoming UK tour at Wembley Arena.

Guns N’ Roses will now play:

Sheffield Hallam FM Arena (July 18)

Newcastle Metro Radio Arena (19)

Glasgow SECC (21)

Manchester MEN Arena (23)

Birmingham NEC (25)

Nottingham Arena (27)

London Wembley Arena (29/30)