Guns N’ Roses – The most dangerous band in the world

The band formed in L.A 1985, and was immediately tagged  “dangerous and controversial”.

They released their first album in 1987.

The album was appropriately named “Appetite For Destruction”.

This album is the best selling debut album ever, but it had a very tough release, most retailers refused to stock it because of the “controversial” artwork, which depicted a dagger-toothed monster vengefully attacking a robot rapist.

The band then had to change the cover to the well known “band members as skulls” cover.

A whole year passed, the album didn’t sell and no one wanted to play them.

But then David Geffen(founder of Geffen Records) personally convinced MTV to play the music video for “Welcome To The Jungle”.

They agreed to play it. Once. At 4.am. on a Sunday.

It blew up, fans kept requesting it, so MTV played the sxxx out of them.

MTV started playing the 3rd single of the album: “Sweet Child O’mine”

slash actually said that he hated the song because the opening riff was just a string skipping exercise that was meant to be a joke, but the fans liked it.

Appetite For Destruction had many rock anthems in it, full with energy, rhythm, and great guitar solos.

Those songs make you want to run and move,

They give you an “appetite for destruction”, it’s classic hard rock!

Everyone in the band was one of the best in their fields, it’s as if they were a supergroup, but they had the chemistry and bond of a band that started together from nothing.

Slash had his riff’s and solos.

And especially Axl’s lyric writing abilities, special voice, and stage presence.

The beautiful truthful criticizing lyrics added with guitar solos and brilliant producing can be seen in this 10 minute long masterpiece that defines the band’s sound.

(Listen to the end part’s lyrics – 7:50)

and in this protest song against war.

“My hands are tied
For all I’ve seen has changed my mind
But still the wars go on as the years go by
With no love of God or human rights
‘Cause all these dreams are swept aside
By bloody hands of the hypnotized
Who carry the cross of homicide
And history bears the scars of our civil wars”

“Your power hungry sellin’ soldiers
In a human grocery store”

In my opinion, one of the biggest reason for their popularity was their ability to make interesting, dynamic music that changes through the song.

A proof is in their covers, they took an existing song and made it their own.

listen for example:

Bob Dylan – Knocking On Heaven’s door(Original)

Guns N’ Roses – Knocking On Heaven’s Door (cover)

Paul McCartney – Live And Let Die

Guns N’ Roses – Live And Let Die (cover)

It’s impossible not to mention “November Rain”.

The iconic music video that starts with a beautiful wedding and guitar playing in a desert outside a church, and ends with the tragic funeral of the bride.

The way that mood change is reflected in this classic rock ballad is just incredible!