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Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses

Though fewer and fewer music lovers may remember it, there was a time when Guns N' Roses were arguably the Greatest Rock & Roll Band in the World. Formed out of two Hollywood hair-metal acts -- Hollywood Rose and L.A. Guns -- GN'R hit the scene in 1985. A core lineup featuring founding members Axl Rose and Izzy Stradlin was solidified with the addition of Duff McKagan on bass and Slash on guitar. Drummer Steven Adler joined around the same time and would be a part of the band's landmark 1987 album, Appetite for Destruction.
 
Combining the glittery sleaze of the Sunset Strip with a healthy dose of drugged-out ‘70s hard-rock, Appetite was something of a revelation, coming when it did amidst one of mainstream music's more tepid periods. The record sold millions and was followed by the excellent odds-and-sods set, GN’R Lies. The collection found GN'R at both their most rockin’ and most offensive, and courted a huge amount of controversy for a band already deemed dangerous by upstanding types.
 
The band’s immense popularity set the stage for 1991’s ambitious double-album (sold separately), Use Your Illusion I & II. In addition to Adler being replaced on drums by Matt Sorum, it was at this point that GN'R would slowly begin to morph into something of a solo vehicle for the restlessly creative yet psychologically tortured Rose. Volume I’s grandiose, piano-laden mega-hit "November Rain" had more in common with Elton John than Hanoi Rocks, while the high-concept video for “Don’t Cry” actually featured Rose talking to his therapist. Following a world  tour, the band would go on extended hiatus, releasing a covers album, The Spaghetti Incident, in 1993 and then remaining dormant for almost a decade.
 
While other members of the band indulged various side projects -- Stradlin with his Juju Hounds, Slash in his Snakepit and later Velvet Revolver -- Rose essentially became a recluse, embarking on a voyage of psychological self-discovery akin to Brian Wilson's heady days with Dr. Eugene Landy, all the while obsessing over his magnum opus, Chinese Democracy.
 
Rose emerged with a revamped GN'R lineup (which would feature ex-Replacement Tommy Stinson on bass and the mysterious Buckethead on guitar) at the dawn of the new millenium, and began making sporadic, spotty live appearances in anticipation of the release of Chinese Democracy. The album, one of the most anticipated ever, finally arrived in 2008. The set received generally positive reviews but didn't send Rose & Co. back to the top of the heap the way some had speculated it might. ~Nate Knaebel

      I've never read a more terrible critique of anything. This is terribly humiliating. "more more" hahahah what a retard this guy sucks

      no one else will post b/c i'm the only one to read this lonely blog, please don't write anymore or have children

      kdfjal

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