Story of a Lonely Guy

[AxlsMainMan]

I found this poem by Paul Simon that has always reminded me of Axl,

A winter's day
In a deep and dark
December;
I am alone,
Gazing from my window to the streets below
On a freshly fallen silent shroud of snow.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

I've built walls,
A fortress deep and mighty,
That none may penetrate.
I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.
It's laughter and it's loving I disdain.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

Don't talk of love,
But I've heard the words before;
It's sleeping in my memory.
I won't disturb the slumber of feelings that have died.
If I never loved I never would have cried.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

I have my books
And my poetry to protect me;
I am shielded in my armor,
Hiding in my room, safe within my womb.
I touch no one and no one touches me.
I am a rock,
I am an island.

And a rock feels no pain;
And an island never cries.

In response to the question, yes I do believe that Axl has always had a desire to raise a family. When he was with Stephanie he was briefly a father to her son Dylan, who he clearly cares for and an interview im sure Jarmo has laying around Axl says he wants Chinese Democracy to be a way of communicating with Dylan. I think that since him and Stephanie broke up, Axl has lost alot of trust in women and friends and he probably feels betrayed by the former band members which i think ultimately discourages him from trusting people and eliminates his desire for companionship. Reclusive people never really get lonely as they gradually become accustomed to keeping themselves company, id know since i kind of am one. Personally I  prefer to be on my own and not have friends around me outside of school. Axl enjoys his privacy, and Im sure he would love nothing more then a beautiful wife and new born baby somewhere down the road in his life, until then he remains disenchanted and lost within his work on Chinese Democracy, and why wouldnt he since music doesnt betray you, and is always there to comfort you.

[alwaysoutparading]

^^ Good post. I agree. As far as Axl and Beta... who knows. I think it's a hard pill to swallow since she is a bit older and not the 6ft 110 lb supermodel we expect him to be with.  She seems very devoted to him and that's probably what a woman who dates/marries Axl would need to be.  It seems like he would demand all of her attention and that's exactly what (as far as we know) Beta gives. Maybe Axl found what he's always wanted in her and doesn't care. I kinda found this strange when I read it... from Betsy's site.
 
It's supposedly a letter from Axl:

You can say what you want about the trip. Just try not to give the
crazies to much to work with in regard to my home itself or xxxx.
I have appreciated your respect as well as your patience.

http://axl_rose_shrine.tripod.com/trip2.html/page8.html

XXXX = beta ? could have been out of courtesy to her privacy or maybe their relationship?


anyway I hate getting caught up in all of this... who knows.

[SLCPUNK]

As odd as it sounds, some people benefit from a world of seclusion. I know I do.

LOL..me too.

[Rebecca Duff Rose]

I found this poem by Paul Simon that has always reminded me of Axl,

That poem is very good!
Very good post mate! You're very creative i take it!  

In response to the question, yes I do believe that Axl has always had a desire to raise a family. When he was with Stephanie he was briefly a father to her son Dylan, who he clearly cares for and an interview im sure Jarmo has laying around Axl says he wants Chinese Democracy to be a way of communicating with Dylan. I think that since him and Stephanie broke up, Axl has lost alot of trust in women and friends and he probably feels betrayed by the former band members which i think ultimately discourages him from trusting people and eliminates his desire for companionship. Reclusive people never really get lonely as they gradually become accustomed to keeping themselves company, id know since i kind of am one. Personally I  prefer to be on my own and not have friends around me outside of school. Axl enjoys his privacy, and Im sure he would love nothing more then a beautiful wife and new born baby somewhere down the road in his life, until then he remains disenchanted and lost within his work on Chinese Democracy, and why wouldnt he since music doesnt betray you, and is always there to comfort you.

I agree with you!!  

[horsey]

i wish axl all the luck finding that special woman.it takes time but i feel he will find her.

[Snakepit__]

Axl is a lonley man, like you said about the november rain song

Everybody need sometime on their own..

I'm also a guy who is alone and a few years ago i went underground because life sucked and i don't have any friends and shit like that..

I don't think Axl is happy, he need someone to talk to i think..

But This One Is For Sure.. He ALWAYS Gonna' Have Us!!

We Love You W. Axl Rose..

[marknroses]

Axl has been working on Chinese Democracy for years now, obsessed with perfecting his artistic vision through a revolving door lineup of band members and assorted hangers-on.  It's become his white whale.  However, I sometimes wonder what Axl's personal life is like now.  A dozen years ago, while fronting the biggest rock band in the world, he was dating a supermodel.  But I don't think Axl has had a real relationship forever.  I wonder...is he a lonely man?  Does he still date, or have any interest in a relationship with a woman at all?

I remember reading in some article about Axl from 1999 that around that time he often had guests over at his mansion.  Once (I think it was Halloween), he even dressed in an animal costume to entertain the kids of some of his guests.  Axl in an animal costume!  He's over 40 now.  Do you think he's ever wanted to have a kid?  I've never heard him mention it in any interview, but it makes you think.

In the old days, had he been lonely, Axl could rest on the support of his friends and bandmates.  But now it seems that the two categories are not the same.  After all, besides making all efforts to avoid his old bandmates, during the 2002 tour, he would travel separately from the band, hardly ever seeing them except onstage and maybe in the studio.  There's certainly not much of a "group" ethos anymore.

We all know Axl is reclusive, but I sometimes wonder about his ways as a loner.  After all this time, is he starting to feel like he's really alone in the world?  I mean, I'm not Dr. Phil or anything, but all this reclusiveness and isolation must be affecting him somehow.

I rarely post these days (im waiting on VR to deliver the rock n' roll goods).

However, I used to be the biggest Axl fan ever. The dude and his lyrics and songs saved my life, and continue to play a great part in how I live and what I do (which is mainly to kick a lot of ass, and to live up to my human spirit, rather than being dragged down by haters).

But now I realize that Axl himself is a figure of human tragedy. He's 42. His personal life is in shambles. He looks weird. He can't sing. WHAT A SHAME

PPL, if you could only understand...Axl was the Messiah of Rock. He is one smart dude. Read his interviews, listen to his songs, the dude is a musical genius. Not only that, he was the whole package. He could perform. He could act. He was a great conceptualist, arguably the greatest since the Beatles. I truly believe this and many others in this forum believe this as well (which is why CD gets more hype than Contraband by VR).

But Axl's enemies are his best friends. The people who say yes to him are the very people holding him back. People on this board are "yes" men as well. Duff Mckagan made a note of this. The guy was so talented that he surrounded himself with only yes men. Nobody can smack him and tell him to do his job anymore. He's invincible. However, he is no longer a rock star. He's a rock joke. His time came and past. I no longer have faith in him to deliver the goods. He's so out of touch with reality that it's ridiculous. At least Slash is in touch and he is talented. Therefore, he has a multi-platinum career ahead of him, whereas Axl is figuring out his next Chess Move to defeat his rivals. Axl's CD is done. Why hasn't he released it? Cuz he thinks too far ahead. He's too much of a perfectionist.

He's also a fucking asshole. I love how he performs. I love his songs, but now I understand that it comes from someone who is messed up in the head with a lot of $$$ to buy out everyone else. He needed Izzy to balance him out (something that Slash once said). Now Izzy is gone and he has nothing to keep him straight. Paul Huge was a Yes Man, and while he may have helped Axl write great songs (that WE FANS HAVE NOT HEARD YET), he didn't have enough balls to tell him to put them out, rather leaving it up to Axl's vision of messianic redemption to wait until putting them out.

The greatest lesson I learned from Axl's tragedy is that "YOU CANNOT LIVE ON GRUDGES". A human being cannot base his life on hating people who at one time opposed him. At some point, things happen, things change and you gotta live and let live.

Axl has taught me a lot about life, thru his good and his bad. But he is no longer my hero. He was my hero in the early 1990's, fronting the greatest band ever after being fucked in the ass by his father. He has never let that go. That has done him in.

I will live my life and learn from his triumphs and mistakes. Axl is not perfect people. It's is time to root for rock n' rollers who get their lives back together (mainly DUFF "THE BUFF" MCKAGAN).

LETS GO VELVET REVOLVER!!!
 
Love,
MNR

[Doc Emmett Brown]

But now I realize that Axl himself is a figure of human tragedy. He's 42. His personal life is in shambles. He looks weird. He can't sing. WHAT A SHAME

Be careful dude!  You'll be branded a dreaded 'hater'!    

So do ya think that Doug Goldstein is a 'yes' man?

[marknroses]

Be careful dude!  You'll be branded a dreaded 'hater'!    

So do ya think that Doug Goldstein is a 'yes' man?

Yes.
So are people who lick his ballz on these and other boards.
I love Axl. I only wish people would be a little bit more realistic around him. Duff McKagan described him best, surrounded by all these "yes" men, who feel he can;t do wrong. The inly thing he has done wrong is that he has delayed beyond the pinnable of his career. He will never achieve the heights he could have achieved.  He is too smart and too ambitious for his own good - he forgot that society can only have so much time to care about an individuals' talents. Good Bye GNR.

Hello VR.
 
MNR

[Rebecca Duff Rose]

I will live my life and learn from his triumphs and mistakes. Axl is not perfect people. It's is time to root for rock n' rollers who get their lives back together (mainly DUFF "THE BUFF" MCKAGAN).

LETS GO VELVET REVOLVER!!!
 

I'm pleased your positive about VR!  

But what da hell do you mean about Duff???

  OMG! DO YOU FANCY DUFF?

Oh nooooooo!
You can't have him!!!!!!!!!!!
He's mine!
I'm not sharing!
I don't care if ya call me greedy either mate!

[MadmanDan]

Maybe he's married,maybe he has kids. We don't know shit about his personal life in the last 10 years

[horsey]

did someone say licking axl's ballz ? thats something i haven't thought of yet h a h a.

[marknroses]

I'm pleased your positive about VR!  

But what da hell do you mean about Duff???

  OMG! DO YOU FANCY DUFF?

Oh nooooooo!
You can't have him!!!!!!!!!!!
He's mine!
I'm not sharing!
I don't care if ya call me greedy either mate!

I mean the simple fact that Duff was practically knockin on heaven's door following the UYI tour, and nearly died because of his alcoholism. However, he's kicked the habit, has taken on a new sense of self with his athletics, his academic ambitions, his MODEL wife, and now Velvet Revolver.

I think Duff , more than Axl, is a hero from GNR. He hasn't stayed in the background moaning about his past and present tribulations. He's found his way out and is well on his way to establishing his rock n' roll career. He has seen the depths of self-destructions, and now he's on the verge of hitting the heights a second time. He's also a great talent as well and Im sure that Axl was least thrilled about losing him.

But Duff didn't see Axl's grand vision. He only sees a way out that is both sensible and healthy.

Mazal Tov Duff!!!
MNR

[Rebecca Duff Rose]

MarkN'Roses rocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
I love this guy! wooooo!  

I SOOOOOO AGREE ABOUT DUFF!  

He just reeks of awesomeness, talent n' of course sexiness!  

Super post!