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APPETITE FOR DISCUSSION
Welcome to Appetite for Discussion -- a Guns N' Roses fan forum!

Please feel free to look around the forum as a guest, I hope you will find something of interest. If you want to join the discussions or contribute in other ways then you need to become a member. We especially welcome anyone who wants to share documents for our archive or would be interested in translating or transcribing articles and interviews.

Registering is free and easy.

Cheers!
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2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England

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2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Empty 2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England

Post by Soulmonster Wed 7 Nov 2012 - 10:11

Date:
June 11, 2006.

Venue:
Download Festival, Donington Park.

Location:
Donington, England.

Setlist:
01. Welcome to the Jungle
02. It's So Easy
03. Mr. Brownstone
04. Knockin' On Heaven's Door
05. Sweet Child O'Mine
06. You Could Be Mine
07. Better
08. Street of Dreams
09. Think About You [w/ Izzy]
10. November Rain
11. My Michelle [w/ Sebastian Bach]
12. Patience [w/ Izzy]
13. Nightrain [w/ Izzy]
14. Madagascar
15. Rocket Queen
16. I.R.S.
17. Chinese Democracy
18. Used to Love Her [w/ Izzy]
19. Paradise City [w/ Izzy]

Line-up:
Axl Rose (vocals), Richard Fortus (rhythm guitarist), Bumblefoot (lead guitarist), Robin Finck (lead guitarist), Tommy Stinson (bass), Dizzy Reed (keyboards), Chris Pitman (keyboards) and Brain (drums).

Quotes:
Talking about his solo spot: Was it tough? Fuck no, I was even laughing at one point during it. Don't remember if it was my idea, I think I went backstage and got the 'Foot' guitar said 'I'll go out there and keep it goin'. Either that or they said 'Bumble, take a solo' and I said 'No prob' and got the guitar. Whatever it was... I'm a 'shit or get off the pot' kinda person, either do it or don't. And if you do, you better swing with everything you got or don't bother. [A4D Interview, August 2009]

2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Rightarrow Next concert 2006.06.13.
2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Leftarrow Previous concert: 2006.06.09.
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2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Empty Re: 2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England

Post by Blackstar Sun 16 Dec 2018 - 11:42

Review on the BBC website, June 12, 2006:
Guns n' Roses @ Download: Destruction avoided

By John Atkin

John Atkin reflects on Sunday @ Download as Guns n' Roses headlined the festival with their appetite for self-destruction turning into a masterclass.

There's a moment when it all hangs in the balance.

For 30 minutes, Guns 'n Roses have singed the eyebrows and eardrums of the Download crowd. After being over an hour late on stage at Hammersmith earlier in the week, Gn'R are on-time and on-form, opening with flashbombs and the one-two-three suckerpunch of Welcome To The Jungle, It's So Easy and Mr Brownstone.

Live And Let Die and Knockin' On Heaven's Door follow, before guitarist Robin Finck picks out the signature riff to Sweet Child O'Mine.

But you can tell from the giant screens flanking the stage that all is not well on the braided, goateed visage of Axl Rose. He's been carping about the stage being too slippy and, during a front-of-crowd walkabout, appears to aim the 'c' word at an over-zealous steward. As the band's most famous song dies, he abruptly announces: "We're having some technical problems, so we're gonna take a break."

I was on this Leicestershire soil in 1988 when the over-exuberant response to Guns' debute Donington appearance led to the fatal crushing of two fans. With tonight's restless crowd, semi-delirious on three days of booze, guitars and 30-degree heat, this could all turn nasty. Just as it seems as though Axl's well-documented appetite for self-destruction is about to consume another comeback appearance, guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal saves the day, appearing alone, stage front, to crank out a guitar-only version of Don't Cry which quells the bottle-fight in the crowd enough for normal service to (almost) be resumed.

You Could Be Mine claws back more ground but then Axl's gone again, leaving Finck and Richard Fortus to widdle their way through a (frankly excruciating) guitar instrumental version of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful". That's followed by the night's first new song (The Blues?) in which the level of chatter in the crowd, followed by booing and chants of "sort your f****** head out" , have seasoned Axl-watchers on alert yet again. When bassist Tommy Stinson grabs the vocal mic and threatens to go home if he's hit by one more flying bottle, the rainclouds gathering above Download for the first time all weekend seem an apt, if ominous, portent of a coming storm.

Maybe Axl needs this danger, this threat of impending violence, to really get the adrenaline racing. And as the band rips defiantly in to Out Ta Get Me, the whole dynamic shifts. Dizzy Reed's solo piano version of Ziggy Stardust is  warmly received, another new song (Better?) sounds loads, erm, better.

The tide has turned, and it's time for Axl's coup de theatre: "I'd like to welcome a very good friend of mine…Mr Izzy Stradlin…" and out trots his former sidekick to roars of approval. There are now as many members of prime-time Guns n' Roses in this band as there are in Velvet Revolver, and the performance of Think About You that follows throws down a gauntlet for all pretenders.

"Can I get a piano out here?" asks Axl and seated, drink in hand, there's only one way he's going now. November Rain is nothing short of a masterpiece, the band firing, finally, on every single cylinder as the main man, in his own words, "beats the hell out of that old love song."

Another "old friend" is welcomed onstage in the shape of ex-Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, possibly one of the few frontmen who can give Axl a run for his money in the helium-scream department. The pair trade lines through My Michelle, before Stradlin's recalled for a run through Patience and a punked-out, four-guitar version of Nightrain which, to coin a phrase, rolls like a freight train right through the middle of this dusty field.

The encores, bravely, begin with another newie, Madagascar, before Brian Mantia kick-drums the seven-piece into a masterful version of Rocket Queen.

"I don't wanna go home," says Axl, before admitting: "that's different to how I felt an hour ago."

Two more new songs – IRS and Chinese Democracy – are aired, both of them whetting appetites for the new album, before Izzy Stradlin comes out once more for the final two-step, a ramshackle, Stonesy version of Useta Love Her and a thunderous reading of Paradise City which lights up the sky with pyrotechnics and ticker-tape cannons.

Guns n' Roses were once proclaimed The World's Most Dangerous Band. On tonight's evidence that danger is still there, which – while at one stage threatening to derail the whole show -  has instead focused Axl and the band into delivering one of the all-time great Donington performances.

Yes, Metallica were unstoppable on Saturday night, but they didn’t face the pressure of a world waiting to see them put a foot wrong. What Axl delivered in the face of that expectation was a two-and-a-half-hour masterclass in the light and shade of rock'n'roll.

The new album, Chinese Democracy, is reportedly ready for release. If it lives up to tonight, then Guns n' Roses will once again be the biggest band in the world.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/derby/content/articles/2006/06/12/download_2006_review_john_atkin_feature.shtml
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2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Empty Re: 2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England

Post by Blackstar Wed 10 Feb 2021 - 3:56

Review in NME, June 12, 2006:
Guns N’ Roses in shock Download reunion
Axl and Izzy put their differences behind them at Donington

Guns N’Roses’ singer Axl Rose was reunited with estranged guitarist Izzy Stradlin as Download drew to a close tonight (June 11).

And heavy metal’s legends of Sunset Strip closed the Donington festival in a typically chaotic style.

Midway through the set, Rose introduced original member Stradlin for three songs, ‘Patience’, ‘Night Train’ and ‘I Used To Love Her’.

It was only Stradlin‘s second show back with the band in over a decade, following a shock appearance in New York last month.

But that was not the only surprise instore; for ‘My Michelle’, the band were joined by former Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach.

Guns N’Roses took the stage half an hour early, but Rose easily made up the time in a series of sensational walk-offs.

After slipping over during ‘Sweet Child O’Mine’, Rose annnounced that the band were experiencing “technical difficulties” and left the stage for five minutes while a guitarist played an instrumental version of ‘Don’t Cry’.

The singer had already abandoned the show once before, leaving the crowd with an instrumental version of Christina Aguilera‘s hit ‘Beautiful’. And he threatened to leave the stage after ‘Better’ if the crowd persisted in throwing bottles.

However, they did get to air ‘new’ songs ‘Better’, ‘The Blues’, ‘IRS’ and ‘Madagascar’.

Perhaps referencing this weekend’s Nokia Isle Of Wight festival, Rose dubbed the site “the Isle Of Wrong” before ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’.

Guns N’ Roses played:

‘Welcome To The Jungle’

‘It’s So Easy’

‘Mr Brownstone’

‘Live and Let Die’

‘Knockin’On Heaven’s Door’

‘Sweet Child O’ Mine’

‘You Could Be Mine’

‘Beautiful’ (instrumental)

‘Better’

‘Out To Get Me’

‘The Blues’

‘November Rain’

‘My Michelle’ (with Sebastian Bach)

‘Patience’ (with Izzy Stradlin)

‘Night Train’ (with Izzy Stradlin)

‘Madagascar’

‘Rocket Queen’

‘IRS’

‘I Used To Love Her’ (with Izzy Stradlin)

‘Paradise City’

Elsewhere at Download, second stage headliners The Prodigy narrowly avoided a crowd incident as hordes of fans climbed the lighting rig onn what was only their second-ever show back in their original line-up, after headlining Isle Of Wight on Friday.

Finnish Eurovision winners Lordi also played today, alongside Welsh hardcore heroes Funeral For A Friend and Bullet For My Valentine.

Closing the biggest ever Download, organiser Stuart Galbraith confirmed that the festival had sold out for the first time in its history, and that it would return next year, June 8-10.

As well as sister festivals in Dublin and San Francisco, he also revealed plans for a Download festival in Boston.
https://www.nme.com/news/music/guns-n-roses-314-1354577
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2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England Empty Re: 2006.06.11 - Download Festival, Donington Park, Donington, England

Post by Blackstar Wed 10 Feb 2021 - 3:58

Review in Room Thirteen, June 12, 2006:
Axl's Actually Here!

Once one of the most influential bands in the world and now they're back to play Download 2006. But is that a good thing?

Ever since Axl Rose went awol and fired the rest of Guns n' Roses they've just not been the same band. This isn't the Guns n' Roses of old that was known for defining a musical generation, it is the Axl Rose tribute band that are known for taking almost a decade to release an album whilst cancelling most of their gigs. The last UK festival appearance by the band was at Leeds Festival in 2002 which was followed by a riot and a change of venue for the festival in 2003. After the festival date, of course, Guns n' Roses pulled out of the rest of their UK tour.

With just forty five minutes to go it isn't the most electric atmosphere that Donington's Main Stage has ever seen. It's not even the most electric atmosphere that the toilets at Donington have ever seen. In fact, most people have wandered off to see Prodidgy with the incorrect assumption that if Guns n' Roses do turn up they'll be at least two hours late.

With five minutes to go pre-recorded music starts to play and surprised half-asleep people start to rush towards the stage, suddenly, the opening of 'Welcome to the Jungle' rings out through the PA and Axl Rose appears in an almost George Michael come Freddy Mercury style outfit with 'It's So Easy', 'Mr. Brownstone' and 'Live and Let Die' following.

It may not be the real Slash, nor the real Guns n' Roses, but does that really matter? Yes. A resounding yes. The passion that went in to the songs originally may be able to be replicated from a solely musical standpoint, but when all you really have left from the band's beginnings is Axl the whole essence of the original Guns n' Roses no longer exists. The current band may well be technically perfect, but technical perfection isn't something that justifies a headlining slot no matter how hard you try to make your new guitarist look and act like Slash.

As 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' and 'Sweet Child o' Mine' finish the ever charismatic Mr. Rose announces "We're having technical difficulties and will be taking a break" and walks off stage for five minutes without uttering another word. After a bit of time to sort out his hair one of the plethora of guitarists rocks out for five minutes more before Axl and the rest of his merry men walk out to begin 'You Could Be Mine' and an instrumental version of Christina Aguilera's 'Beautiful'.

After just one more song the crowd are now informed that if they throw any more bottles containing urine (and most likely any other substance) at the stage that everyone is going to throw their toys out of their pram and go home. That's right, the man that was once known for fronting one of the greatest rock n' roll bands of all time is now more concerned about restraining orders on former band mates and ensuring that his perm is kept in top condition at all times.

As the sun finally sets over Donington for the last time at this year's Download Festival 'November Rain' plays and, for the first time tonight, causes the crowd on the hill to, mostly, stand up and even clap as opposed to boo. The selection of classics continues until 'Night Train' calls for the final break for an encore.

Axl Rose finally walks off stage to his waiting helicopter without saying a word thirty minutes late after the end of 'Paradise City'. The arena is now full of fires and as a chair is thrown on and a plume of toxic smoke rises it spells another night of mini-riots across the campsite as scaffolding and fences are torn down whilst fires spring up everywhere. They may no longer be able to draw a huge crowd or justify themselves in the way they once could but they certainly know how to start fires. If the fame thing fails at least Axl could get a job working at a power station.
http://www.roomthirteen.com/cgi-bin/tour_set.cgi?SetID=2889
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Post by Blackstar Thu 11 Feb 2021 - 22:13

From Sebastian Bach's autobiography:

Thus [in 2006] began a rekindling of our friendship that proved to be extremely helpful to my solo career. Axl does not let many people into his world. But when he does, he treats you like family and is as generous and giving as can be. He began inviting me to cities around the globe, to jam with him onstage at the end of Guns N’ Roses shows. I would get a call and it would say: “Baz, get to JFK. You have a First Class ticket to Dortmund, Germany. You’re going to be on stage with Guns N’ Roses in 12 hours at Rock AM Ring in front of 70,000 people. Get your ass to the airport.” The expense and effort he would go to, just to have me sing one song with him in a foreign country, was astonishing to me.

One night, at Castle Donington in England, the insanity was palpable in the air. Axl had been late going to some of his shows and his then-manager, Merck Mercuriadis, pleaded with me in any attempt, however vain, to somehow get him to the stage on time. Axl’s vocal warm-up, even in 2006, was on a cassette. Even with the advent of recordable CDs, and by that time digital music players, the biggest rock star in the world was warming up his voice to a cassette. There was no cassette player in the hotel room that day. Merck and Fernando were frantically scouring the local area around the hotel for an analog cassette player, to no avail.

Somehow a tape player was located and the show went on. We all took a helicopter to the concert site. We were late for the show and the crowd was restless.

Axl’s friend, a girl named Diane from New York, was on the side of the stage. Her fun, happy demeanor changed when she, along with everyone else, felt the crowd turn a black mood. Axl came onstage, only to stop the show after a couple of songs due to the stage being slippery. He refused to go back on until it was made “safe,” and he would not slip, while performing. Diane burst into tears as the crowd started to boo. I told her this was all part of rock ’n’ roll. She did not understand how heavy this shit could get. Having been on the road with Axl Rose for decades now, I fully understood the volatility and intensity of how the situation could get. Diane didn’t understand that Guns N’ Roses fans expected danger.

The band went back onstage and finished the show. Near the end of the set, bass player Tommy Stinson took his instrument off and proceeded to smash a cameraman over the head who got too close to him near the front of the stage. The cameraman was part of the GNR crew and did not understand why he was being attacked for simply doing his job. Tommy was so drunk, I bet he didn’t even know he was attacking his own employee.

The show finished. Axl was in a rotten mood. “Come on. With me. Right now.” He demanded that I get on the helicopter with him and Diane. He was so mad at Merck, that he refused to let him on the helicopter ride back home. Merck was completely incensed that Axl would take me on the helicopter, instead of him. He was left to drive hours back in a car, along with the 70,000 or so concertgoers, the considerable distance back to London from the Donington festival site.

We took off in the helicopter back to London. Axl was in foul spirits and refused to put his seat belt on. I had been drinking and I had a pretty good buzz on by now. Axl was despondent about the show, and kept talking about how bummed out he was and what a shit mood he was in. His hand fidgeted nervously on the door handle of the helicopter. I looked at him, thinking to myself, Oh my God. He is going to open up the door and jump right the fuck out of here. To his death. It’s up to me to save him. I spent the rest of the flight with my eyes affixed to his every movement. Like a laser beam. I was not going to let my friend die. Axl was just crazy enough to make me think this was a possibility.
Sebastian Bach, 18 and Life on Skid Row; Harper Collins, 2016
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Post by Soulmonster Thu 31 Mar 2022 - 9:54

Sebastian Bach recounting a story that took place after he and Axl got back to their hotel in London:

We got back to the hotel, which happened to be the Mandarin Oriental, on London’s prestigious West End. Sat down at the bar downstairs and started inhaling bottles of red wine. Axl started getting into a good mood. The waitress approached us. “Hi! Axl! Sebastian! Do you know who is sitting over there?” she whispered to us. We both shook our heads. “Jon Bon Jovi.” I couldn’t believe it.

Jon and I had had a falling-out about Skid Row royalties back in 1990. We traded barbs in the press. I said some extremely immature things that I had regretted years later. Jon took a chance on me, and our band. I had achieved the impossible, which was to make a living playing the music I love. At the end of the day, I will always be indebted to him for that.

Fuck it, I thought. I stood up and walked over to Jon. He looked up from his glass of wine and stared at me. What was I gonna do? He was trying to read me. Was I going to be cool? Was I going to be a dick? The ball was in my court. Maybe it was the wine talking. I had no desire to quarrel with him, or anybody at that moment. I stretched out my arm and we shook hands. Jon stood up. “Hey man!” We hugged each other like old friends. Which we were.

I invited him over to Axl’s table and we all sat down. The Italian wine flowing, we discussed the business of rock ’n’ roll, what we were all doing. Axl had told me he admired Jon’s business acumen. We talked about the tour and had a great conversation. At one point, I congratulated Jon on his latest single, which was a country crossover track called “Who Says You Can’t Go Home.” It was a hit, and based on that, I congratulated Jon on his success. Jon said “thanks a lot” and looked over at Axl. Axl did not say a word.

The next day, I was with Axl. “Hey man! That was really cool of you to congratulate Jon on the success of his song!!” Axl turned to me and snapped. “I never fucking congratulated him on the success of his fucking song! That was you! I never said anything! I never said that!!” Evidently, Axl wasn’t a fan of the song.
Sebastian Bach, 18 and Life on Skid Row; Harper Collins, 2016

Bon Jovi took us on our first tour and we signed some papers with him that he got a cut of, if we made it big, that he would get compensated for helping us out. Nobody expected us to get as big as we got. Nobody thought that we would become a big band. That happens all the time in the music industry. Jon was like, 'We'll take you on tour, but if you guys make it big,' then he gets a cut of it. So I was bitter about that for awhile, but then I realized that we probably wouldn't have made it as big, or maybe at all, if he didn't take us.

I actually had dinner with Jon a couple of years ago. We were staying at the Mandarin Oriental in London — me and Axl — and we were sitting there. And the waitress says, 'Hey, guess who's over in the corner.' And me and Axl go, 'Who?' She said, 'Jon Bon Jovi.' And I go, 'Get the fuck out of here.' He was in the corner. And I didn't know what to do. 'Cause we had had words… Most of them were mine. [laughs] So I go, 'You know what?! Fuck this. I'm gonna go over there and say 'Hi' to him.' 'Cause we used to be great, great friends; I had Christmas dinner at his house and stuff. So I stood up and walked over towards Jon, and Jon was looking at me, going, 'Are you gonna be a dick or are you gonna be nice?' He's looking at me, like, 'What are you gonna do? What are you gonna say?' And I was like, 'Hey, man, how is it going?' And he was, like, 'Hey, man?' And we stood up and we hugged and then he came over to me and Axl's table and we drank about 15 bottles of red wine, had a great time. He gave me his phone number and I've texted him a couple of times. He's a good guy. We're friends again.
ArtScenics TV/Blabbermouth, August 19, 2012
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Post by Soulmonster Fri 22 Jul 2022 - 8:19

In October 2008, Richard would be asked about having the audiences throw things at them and mention this show as a rare example of that happening:

No, we've never had any of that. I mean, actually we did have that in one festival in England, at Donington. [...] But I think we walked out feeling pretty victorious, I mean we really… You know, people are very skeptical: new members, a new band… But reception has been really great. I mean, by the end of the show things are always good.
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