Chinese Democracy "Chinese Democracy", tour for a year or two, then release the second album without having to return to the studio. The band worked with producer Sean Beavan from 1998 to 2000. Stinson stated that "most of the songs on the album started and ended with what [Beavan] did". Beavan worked with the band when Rose recorded most of the vocal tracks that appear on the final album in 1999. Rose's vocal parts were recorded in less than a week. Beavan claimed to have worked on 35 songs during his time with the band. In late 1999, Guns N' Roses released
Chinese Democracy Geffen had removed "Chinese Democracy" from its release schedule and withdrawn funding, stating: "Having exceeded all budgeted and approved recording costs by millions of dollars, it is Mr. Rose's obligation to fund and complete the album, not Geffen's." Around that time, manager Merck Mercuriadis said the album was close to complete. According to a March 2005 "New York Times" article, production costs for the album had reached $13 million, making it probably the most expensive recording "never made". Mercuriadis dismissed the article, writing in a letter that the newspaper's sources had not been involved with the project for several years.