The Booklet, the Cover & The Art

[kato69]

WHERE CAN I BUY THE CD WITH THE HAND?


As for the booklet, I am a little disapointed.
The art and graphic design is very dull and "cliché", and mainstream.
But i was never really waiting for something very original.

but I LOVE the front cover and the red star painting.
And the end page "red cross" ( i think i saw that painting in a exhibit a few years ago in paris).

What matters is THE MUSIC, right?
[/quote]

[seely]

it wasnt officially released, so good luck finiding one!

[DAVE_AXL]

I think everybody should quit moaning and discussing the album cover. There's nothing wrong with it and the inside and back of it are realy good/different.
At the end of the day he did it his way. Why shouldn't he ?. It's his album.
Just get on with passing the word round to the world that it's awsum listening and get as many people to support them on tour as possible, because thats what counts. They are amazing live and have to be seen even by sceptics.

[sleazydream]

Does anyone know the location where the cover photo was shot?

[Ezza]

only thing I find disappointing is that the pictures are just editted live photos from the bands myspace, no pro photo shoots, group shots etc etc

[AxlRoseCalifornia]

[Use Your Illusion III]

Pretty sure that was proven to be fake. It was rumored to be the re-released version when Best Buy lost the "exclusive" deal.

[seely]

No, it's very much legit
There's more pictures of/from it, and the tab book has the same artwork

[Bomb Squad]

It's real select copies managed to find there way out. Sad thing is some people have it and have no idea what they are actually holding just thinking its a regular copy.

[hbk]

Where`s CD Whit Hand ??

HBK

[BarbiStolatVonG]

This is the story of the Rocket Queen Bicycle (Axl basically twisted my arm so I would tell it here....   ).

This story goes way back to the late 70s/early 80s. Axl used to visit us in Australia because our granparents know eachother from WW2. We used to have fun times hanging out - Axl got us into the latest KISS album and were listening to some early U2. I remeber Axl saying: "Look out for that Bono guy!" We used to push back the furniture and jam/dance/put on shows. Axl was basically my first music teacher. One time Axl showed us an awesome dance with a candle on his head! I had a tape of circus tunes that we would muck around to. I used to do a funny dance to the Elephant Walk that would crack Axl up.... he took that tape back with him to the States....( I found out later that the band used to play it in the studio....) !

We would get around the neighbourhood on my brothers bicycle that had chopper handle bars and a red metallic plastic seat. Axl used to dinky me on the handlebars and take me to my dance classes. We were all excited because Axl couldn't stop talking bout how he was going to start up a Rock n' Roll band. We kids had an in joke because we managed to convince the old folks that Axl was going to be a concert pianist.

Anyway, it was getting towards the end of this particular visit and we thought that we would give him a memorable send off. My brother and his mates built a ramp at the end of the yard and Axl and the guys spent the afternoon trying to jump it. I was pissed off because I wasn't allowed to join in and so I spent a lonely afternoon watching the action through the windows. Everytime Axl rode past he would pull faces at me and generally show off. He would disappear from view and then I could hear a huge crash at the other end of the yard. Axl had tied a bandanna around his head to keep his hair off his face.

"I see you standing.... standing all alone......"


My brother came in to see how I was doing and told me that they had decided on a band name - Rocket Queen - and that is what they called the bicycle. If they could jump the ramp it would all come true...... And they did!

(They came up with Rocket Queen because in WW2 my Great Aunty's Polish Resistance group found an unexploded V2 Rocket prototype in a creek bed. They were involved in a dangerous mission to get the rocket to a plane so it could be sent to England for testing. They actually transported the rocket to the meeting point on the back of a tandem bicycle!)

Before Axl left, he n I had a chat about music, the band, this n that.....Axl told me to look out for the album credits because Barbi Von Grief was me. He teased me and said "Von Grief" because, I was always a handfull, getting him into trouble with the old folks...... lol. Next thing you know he jumped onto the back of a mates motorbike and rode off. We would keep in touch on the phone over the years (Until my dad saw the phone bills!    But Axl would also pop up every now n then when I least expected it....

In 1985 (might have been earlier), Axl called me to let me know that the band had been signed but the name was changed to Guns N' Roses. One of my middle names is Rose and Ax n I thought that that was awesome!

Fast forward to 2008...Though I enjoyed being dinkied around the neighbourhood by Axl Rose, it did take some persuading! I remember telling him quite earnestly that dinkying on the handle bars was illegal! He said I would never be a Rock n' Roller if I always played by the rules. 

All these years later, the front cover of Chinese Democracy brings back so many childhood memories..... It's nice to see that Axl did take my concerns into account and put a basket on the back of the bike - much safer to get around in!


Bits of There Was A Time/Rhiad were inspired by my visit to see the band in 1990.... might tell you bout that someday..... 

[King bumb.l.foot II]

i can tell you about the time i inspired catcher in the rye sometime too

[Mister Shackler]

i can tell you about the time i inspired catcher in the rye sometime too

  Genius.