Axl Rose: No GNR reunion, no Rock Hall appearance and no induction, please

Says it all. Axl, how you wound us so. Or, go eff yourself.

Assuming this is for real - and the fact that it was Tweeted from GNR's official Twitter account seems to say that it is - what we have here is Axl Rose saying three things:

1) He will not be playing with Slash, Duff, Izzy and Adler Saturday in Cleveland.
2) He rejects the Hall's induction
3) He isn't attending, and doesn't want to be inducted in absentia

The main quandary for the slimy critics, members of the media and fans to consider: Does this make Axl the lamest or coolest rocker ever?

For GNR fans, he's a piece of shit because they'll never get to see the classic lineup again.

But to Rock Hall critics, this might be an amazing statement. Read on and see what you think.

Axl's letter to The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, Guns N' Roses Fans and Whom It May Concern

by Guns N' Roses on Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 4:19pm ·

To: The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, Guns N' Roses Fans and Whom It May Concern,
When the nominations for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame were first announced I had mixed emotions but, in an effort to be positive, wanting to make the most of things for the fans and with their enthusiasm, I was honored, excited and hoped that somehow this would be a good thing. Of course I realized as things stood, if Guns N' Roses were to be inducted it'd be somewhat of a complicated or awkward situation.

Since then we've listened to fans, talked with members of the board of the Hall Of Fame, communicated with and read various public comments and jabs from former members of Guns N' Roses, had discussions with the president of the Hall Of Fame, read various press (some legit, some contrived) and read other artists' comments weighing in publicly on Guns and the Hall with their thoughts.

Under the circumstances I feel we've been polite, courteous, and open to an amicable solution in our efforts to work something out. Taking into consideration the history of Guns N' Roses, those who plan to attend along with those the Hall for reasons of their own, have chosen to include in "our" induction (that for the record are decisions I don't agree with, support or feel the Hall has any right to make), and how (albeit no easy task) those involved with the Hall have handled things... no offense meant to anyone but the Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony doesn't appear to be somewhere I'm actually wanted or respected.
For the record, I would not begrudge anyone from Guns their accomplishments or recognition for such. Neither I or anyone in my camp has made any requests or demands of the Hall Of Fame. It's their show not mine.

That said, I won't be attending The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction 2012 Ceremony and I respectfully decline my induction as a member of Guns N' Roses to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

I strongly request that I not be inducted in absentia and please know that no one is authorized nor may anyone be permitted to accept any induction for me or speak on my behalf. Neither former members, label representatives nor the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame should imply whether directly, indirectly or by omission that I am included in any purported induction of "Guns N' Roses".

This decision is personal. This letter is to help clarify things from my and my camp's perspective. Neither is meant to offend, attack or condemn. Though unfortunately I'm sure there will be those who take offense (God knows how long I'll have to contend with the fallout), I certainly don't intend to disappoint anyone, especially the fans, with this decision. Since the announcement of the nomination we've actively sought out a solution to what, with all things considered, appears to be a no win, at least for me, "damned if I do, damned if I don't" scenario all the way around.

In regard to a reunion of any kind of either the Appetite or Illusion lineups, I've publicly made myself more than clear. Nothing's changed.

The only reason, at this point, under the circumstances, in my opinion whether under the guise of "for the fans" or whatever justification of the moment, for anyone to continue to ask, suggest or demand a reunion are misguided attempts to distract from our efforts with our current lineup of myself, Dizzy Reed, Tommy Stinson, Frank Ferrer, Richard Fortus, Chris Pitman, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal and DJ Ashba.
Izzy came out with us a few times back in '06 and I invited him to join us at our LA Forum show last year. Steven was at our show at the Hard Rock, later in '06 in Las Vegas, where I invited him to our after-party and was rewarded with his subsequent interviews filled with reunion lies. Lesson learned. Duff joined us in 2010 and again in '11 along with his band, Loaded, opening in Seattle and Vancouver. For me, with the exception of Izzy or Duff joining us on stage if they were so inclined somewhere in the future for a song or two, that's enough.

There's a seemingly endless amount of revisionism and fantasies out there for the sake of self-promotion and business opportunities masking the actual realities. Until every single one of those generating from or originating with the earlier lineups has been brought out in the light, there isn't room to consider a conversation let alone a reunion.

get's rough. We love our fans and work to give them every ounce of energy and heart we can.

So let sleeping dogs lie or lying dogs sleep or whatever. Time to move on. People get divorced. Life doesn't owe you your own personal happy ending especially at another's, or in this case several others', expense.
But hey if ya gotta then maybe we can get the "no show, grandstanding, publicity stunt, disrespectful, he doesn't care about the fans" crap out of the way as quickly as we can and let's move on. No one's taking the ball and going home. Don't get it twisted. For more than a decade and a half we've endured the double standards, the greed of this industry and the ever present seemingly limitless supply of wannabes and unscrupulous, irresponsible media types. Not to imply anything in this particular circumstance, but from my perspective in regard to both the Hall and a reunion, the ball's never been in our court.
In closing, regardless of this decision and as hard to believe or as ironic as it may seem, I'd like to sincerely thank the board for their nomination and their votes for Guns' induction. More importantly I'd like to thank the fans for being there over the years, making any success we've had possible and for enjoying and supporting Guns N' Roses music.

I wish the Hall a great show, congratulations to all the other artists being inducted and to our fans we look forward to seeing you on tour!!

Sincerely,
Axl Rose

P.S. RIP Armand, Long Live ABC III

CDNR readers: Don Henley should be in the Rock Hall

Congratulations to Donald Hugh "Don" Henley, who has been selected by YOU, the readers of Cleveland Does Not Rock, as the next solo artist who should be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

According to the poll, which appeared on this site for several months, 10 people said Henley should get in, 5 people said Sting should be next, and 4 people picked Phil Collins.

Now I don't know about you, but these figures seem to be just a little misleading and it might not represent the most scientific data ever gathered. That might be because only 19 people voted out of the thousands who likely stumbled onto this sacred plot of virtual space by accident.

However, there are a few deductions that can be made from this poll:

Sting: Gracious in defeat. Maybe a little too much so.

- It is believed that Henley is the least lame of the three. I can get behind that: He freaking sang "Hotel California" and "Boys of Summer." How badass is that? He's a drummer who sings. Double badass! He made the album "End of the Innocence," which features a duet with Axl Rose and ample amounts of Bruce Hornsby. Uh ...

- Readers believe that Henley is the better of the two drummer-singers in the poll, blasting Phil Collins out of the water. I'm not down with this. Collins is a better singer; Henley whines like his nuts are dragging on the ground like some old dog walking around a dusty little league baseball field. Collins is (was) ten times cooler, having been the drummer for the best prog band ever, Old Genesis (as opposed to New Genesis, which is pretty assy). Henley is zero percent cool.

- Sting sucks ass.

- This was a horrible poll question.

You might not like this, but DD must go in before Sting.

- People don't give a shit. This might be the most important deduction of all, because while it's sort of a total long shot that Henley and Collins will ever get in as solo artists, the danger is very real that Sting could get in soon. The voters are facing a tough stretch here as '80s bands are coming up. Will these lame f*cks ever vote in any of the amazing left-of-the-dial bands? (Replacements, The Pixies, Hüsker Dü, Minutemen, etc.) What's the verdict on New Wave stuff like Duran Duran? Will they realize that there are more than three rap acts in the history of music? If the answer is no to all of those, Sting enters the picture. Thankfully, the results of this poll show that no one gives a crap if he gets in or not, because any jerk who's into Sting and tripped their way onto this page would have seen the word "Sting" and done whatever they could to make sure their Gordie got critical acclaim.

- Henley rules, and of the two overwrought, cynical, super-smug, post-Eagles people-are-livin'-seedy-lives tracks, the readers of CDNR clearly prefer his "Dirty Laundry" to Glenn Frey's "Smuggler's Blues." You be the judge, and hold on to your horses for a "Dirty Laundry" vs. "Smuggler's Blues" post.

The Biggest Benefactor of a Guns 'N' Roses Induction: Fred Durst

Why he's here we can't quite remember.

Somebody tell me the difference between Axl Rose and Fred Durst.

What’s your case? While you think about it, here’s my case.

There is no difference. Both are giant walking egos who believe their fame is deserved – the result of their hard work and their God-given talent. 

Both put forth overwrought chart-topping albums that produced a few songs most of us wish others didn’t still have memorized. 

Neither began or influenced their respective rock genres. Glam rock was around well before Rose doused his head with a can of hairspray. 

White boys were playing guitars and rapping was around before the Florida-born Durst donned a Yankees cap.


Their landmark albums, “Appetite for Destruction” and “Significant Other,” didn’t at all introduce a new style of music. Yet, somehow, those images are considered the faces genres. Seriously, we thought THESE guys were cool looking.

Let’s also look at Durst's guitar work while we’re at it.

Perhaps the biggest thing Rose and Durst have in common is that they were the reasons people got tired of their genre’s music. People got tired of their played-out music, their billboard-sized egos and their full-on diva outbursts. Public opinion ran the furthest distance from them within the rock spectrum – from the make-up and tights of glam rock to the undyed, unwashed hair of grunge; from the homoerotic chauvinism of rap-rock to meek and melodic ways of emo.

In fact, that should be the case against Guns 'n' Roses.

Sure they were the biggest band on Earth for a handful of years. Beyond two big albums (By my count, the “Use Your Illusion” albums count as one.), Guns 'n' Roses' biggest contribution was making people not like the rock and roll that made them famous.The end result of Guns 'n' Roses popularity was Nirvana.

Let's hear it for the Boys.

Matchbox 20 dude will induct them.

The lone difference between the two is that Rose will probably be “enshrined” into the Rock Hall. 

But even that’s debatable. Whatever Fred Durst is doing, he needs to stop and lobby for Guns 'n' Roses.

could be another. 

Even Backstreet Boys have a case now.

Their extent of fame rose and fell around the mushroom clouds that were their two big albums. 

Their subsequent albums were bombs of another nature, and their fame died almost immediately after the first disappointing week of sales.

And now all of them are active, touring and recording music. 

Rock Hall, stop this.