The Nevermind Mix

"Veteran engineer Andy Wallace, who mixed Nirvana's Nevermind, is working on the project, according to a source close to the band. 'We're absolutely delighted with the mixes,' the source says." (Rolling Stone, 10/18/06)

Knowing Axl's fondness towards Dave Grohl's drumming on Smells Like Teen Spirit, lead single and opening track of Nevermind, there may be more to Wallace's employment than simply his impressive track record.

"We have been in the final stages of renegotiating our deal with our record label and it has been a long slow process. [...] The discussion started over a year ago but did not become serious until they started hearing the mixes. [...] The record company refused to conclude the renegotiation until we were ready to hand over the finished album." (Merck, 12/15/06)

The mixing itself doesn't usually take too long.

"[November Rain] was a very long process. That mix was on the board for a good week, ten days." (Bill Price, Mix Online, 11/01/00)

"[In early October] we were very excited as Axl's feeling was that we had two or three days of work left to tidy things up and we still had three weeks before the tour started, so we were in good shape." (Merck, 12/15/06)

The situation seemingly reminded the mixing of the Use Your Illusion albums in 1991.

"What happened was, having got my way through about 20 songs, I was then in the position of waiting for the next song to be finished. [...] They still hadn't finished the album when their massive 18-month world tour started. So the last half a dozen songs were recorded, overdubbed, vocal'ed and guitar'ed, what have you'ed, in random recording studios dotted about America when they had a day off between gigs." (Bill Price, Mix Online, 11/01/00)

"Unfortunately the muse disappeared just as fast as she came. [The three weeks preceding the tour were] a break through period as Robin, Bumblefoot and Frank had all made important contributions to the album that made it even stronger." (Merck, 12/15/06)

"Recently, Bumblefoot and Frank played on a few tracks that will appear on Chinese Democracy." (Del James, 10/31/06)

"[Shackler's Revenge] was one of the first songs we worked on. I played all the solos - the fretless solo followed by the fretted solo, the end tapping stuff and the bends over it - also the rhythms throughout the song with all the riffing in them." (Ron, Rock Brigade, 10/08)

"When we were doing the "Chinese..." stuff it was songs I never heard before. They wouldn't give me any listen ahead of times to get to know the songs and to think about them. To get to know the song and grow with it and learn everything else that's going on in it so that I could really find my own voice within it all." (Ron, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

During the UYI days, concurrent recording was a bit hazardous to the mixing process.

"They got Bob Clearmountain to mix [the UYI's] in one studio whilst Axl was still doing vocals in another studio and Slash doing guitars in a third. Which was, quite obviously, a recipe for chaos. I think Bob mixed about 20 songs, but he had absolutely no contact with the band, because they were recording other stuff in other studios." (Bill Price, Mix Online, 11/01/00)

Sanctuary Compromised

All the while, Merck was clearing his desk at Sanctuary Group. Former GNR manager Doug Goldstein might've already jumped ship at that point.

"Sanctuary Group's artist management unit, the independent music company's cornerstone asset, is bracing itself for a structural sea change, well-placed sources tell Billboard. The departure of longtime high-level executive Merck Mercuriadis from the music firm is imminent and will be announced within the next couple of weeks, sources say.

The company's co-founder and worldwide head of artist relations Rod Smallwood may also be on the way out, taking with him the company's oldest management client, Iron Maiden, according to executives close to the situation. [...] Smallwood and [...] Andy Taylor founded [...] Sanctuary Group in 1976. [...] As previously reported, Taylor was axed from Sanctuary May 26, following a rocky financial period that nearly sank the company." (Billboard, 09/23/06)

"In February, [Sanctuary auditor] Baker Tilly said Sanctuary had understated losses for 2005 by £15.9m. [...] The [dismissal of Taylor] followed a review of the company's 2005 financial statements in response to questions raised by accounting oversight body the Financial Reporting Review Panel. [...] Sanctuary reported losses of £142.6m in 2005, up from £26.7m a year earlier. The group, which has run into problems after expanding too quickly, narrowly avoided bankruptcy thanks to a £110m rescue plan this year." (Guardian UK, 05/26/06)

"Mercuriadis is expected to join mega-managers Irving Azoff and Howard Kaufman at Front Line Management. Sources say he will continue to manage some of his acts, including Morrissey, Guns 'N Roses and Joss Stone." (Billboard, 09/23/06)

In the Old World

The band overtook a successful European tour, aside the Axl's occasional scuffles with the authorities. The most notable shift in dynamics occurred in late June.

"Guns N' Roses have been forced to postpone their show in Zurich at the Hallenstadion this evening the 21st of June, 2006. Their drummer Brain aka Bryan Mantia has had to return to San Francisco earlier than scheduled to be with his pregnant wife. The band have been travelling with understudy drummer Frank Ferrer. [...] It is expected that Brain will return to the tour in approximately 2 weeks time." (GNR, press release, 06/21/06)

Brain was now scheduled to return on around July 5th. His wife was reported to have given birth to their daughter on the day before his assumed return.

"[Frank Ferrer] came into the fold through guitarist Richard Fortus. [...] When GN'R were making arrangements for someone to fill in for Brain, both Richard and bassist Tommy Stinson knew what the perfect fit would be when they recommended Frank. After one rehearsal, everyone else in the band knew they were 100 percent in the right." (Del James, GunsNRoses.com, 10/31/06)

As it was back at the Leeds-Carling festival in 2002, a big deal was made of the Newcastle show during the UK tour on July 19th, as the band closed the show after playing their regular set due objects thrown to the stage. However, the body of the tour remained intact, with the most memorable change coming up in the very end.

"Guns N' Roses completed their European Tour last night with their second consecutive sold out show at London's Wembley Arena. [...] The final show at Wembley almost didn't come to fruition as vocalist Axl Rose was diagnosed with low blood pressure and low blood sugar Sunday morning. He became ill after performing two concerts on Saturday night - [...] the second an unannounced surprise semi acoustic set.

[...] Rose became ill a couple of hours after the 75 minute performance ended, with a doctor being called to his hotel room. [...] He made it through the two hour performance to the final song of the evening - Nightrain - before collapsing. The mic was handed to his friend, Sebastian Bach, who completed the performance with an encore of Paradise City." (GNR, press release, 08/01/06)

The first full-fledged European tour in nearly fifteen years was over.

The Freshman

In mid-April, four warm-up shows in the Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, were announced. The shows would occur in between May 12th and 17th. Meanwhile, a replacement was sought for Buckethead.

"Prior to the European tour... the band was hoping that Buckethead would come back and made very effort to make that happen... When it was apparent that Bucket would not be re-joining, the band had to move forward... Auditions were held in Los Angeles, but the band did not find the right guy to replace Buckethead." (Del James, GunsNRoses.com, 10/31/06)

"Boston-based guitarist Joshua Craig was called to audition for Guns N' Roses last week - presumably as the replacement for Buckethead, who quit the group in early 2004.'" (Blabbermouth, 04/20/06)

"Then they reached out and said, "Can we work this out?"  (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"[In late April,] I got a call from Guns N' Roses to join the band and start rehearsing the next week for a comeback tour starting the week after. I had my first rehearsal with Guns on May 3rd, our first show was 9 days later." (Bumblefoot, Official Site, 01/18/11)

"We got together in New York and we jammed. Did like three songs and got together and it was like, "Alright, cool. We'll get tomorrow night and do another three." We jammed seven times and hit the road and that was it."  (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"[Axl] was really nice to me from the first time we were in a room jamming together." (Bumblefoot, HTGTH, 10/10/13)

"[Axl] came down to a rehearsal and we jammed to the song "Riad" and he was yelling in my ear, "This part of the song reminds me of 'Hey Bulldog' from the Beatles." I was like, "Yeah, you're right." Eating some burgers and it was just totally normal." (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"He was always good to me... [The others] did not want me in the band. And it's not me - they just didn't want a third guitar player." (Bumblefoot, HTGTH, 10/10/13)

"Without sounding belittling, I wasn't thinking of it like a huge deal. I was thinking, "Alright, these are just another bunch of guys. We're gonna jam and go out and do some stuff and have some fun." (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"It was a set of circumstances... The way I was brought into it, and the things that transpired in the beginning - and even previous relationships that I inherited... A lack of communication from the management that was there... ‘Cause at the time, they had worked it out for [Robin and Richard]. Then suddenly [manager Merck Mercuriadis] hits them up one day, and the tour was, like, two weeks away. He said, “your new guitar player is coming down”. And they're like, “what the hell - who the fuck is this?” " (Bumblefoot, HTGTH, 10/10/13)

"I figured we would be playing - I didn't know where we'd be playing - the House of Blues-type places. The next thing you know we go to Europe and festivals for 100,000 people where we're headlining. We're like, "What the hell? Alright, it is what it is." I didn't think it was at that level but obviously I was wrong. It was an experience." (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"I realized that they would have treated anybody [badly]... and I showed up, and they wouldn't even look at me." (Bumblefoot, HTGTH, 10/10/13)

"Even when I had to learn the songs to start touring in the very beginning when I was first joining the band, they wouldn't give me the music to learn. So I had to learn all the stuff on "Chinese Democracy" we were gonna play live, I learned it with a pen and paper and headphones on the road manager's laptop in a half-hour just writing while the band was taking a break from rehearsal in the next room." (Bumblefoot, Ultimate Guitar, 07/02/14)

"For that first tour, you know, I was treated like shit. Like absolute shit. They wouldn't really talk to me. If I spoke, they'd roll their eyes and walk out of the room. I was made to feel as unwelcome as possible. Until, finally, I had to get a little violent. And then they started realizing that I'm not gonna leave. They're gonna get hurt... Physically." (Bumblefoot, HTGTH, 10/10/13)

Axl appeared in Eddie Trunk's radio show, known for its IRS leak in 2003, in early May, and touched the subject of the new guitar player.

"Trunk: And you can't announce who the new guitar player is, or you don't have one yet?
Axl: No, we have one, but I'm not announcing him." (Eddie Trunk show, 05/05/06)