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Guns N’ Roses | Tunes + Guitar Lessons

Combining Sunset Strip attitude with classic rock swagger, Guns N’ Roses created one of the most explosive debuts in rock history. With raw riffs, melodic solos, and arena-sized hooks, they rewrote the rules!

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Guns N’ Roses: From Grit to Glory

Formed in the mid-’80s in Los Angeles from members of L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose, Guns N’ Roses stood apart from the rock bands of their era.

While others embraced spandex, hairspray, makeup, and tapping solos, Guns N’ Roses stayed true to their roots—channelling the grit and swagger of their biggest influences, Aerosmith and The Rolling Stones.

Their now-legendary debut Appetite For Destruction (1987) wasn’t an immediate hit. It took Sweet Child O’ Mine climbing the charts for the other anthems—Paradise City and Welcome To The Jungle—to gain traction. Other standouts from the album include My Michelle and Mr. Brownstone.

In hindsight, Appetite For Destruction is regarded as one of the greatest debut albums of all time. Slash’s autobiography offers insight into just how much work went into crafting the record—from tracking the band live and overdubbing solos in a separate studio, to meticulously shaping the lead guitar tone that became iconic.

Multiple mixes were attempted. At one point, Izzy Stradlin took charge and declared he’d nailed it—though the rest of the band felt it was overloaded with rhythm guitars.

But once they got it right, gave it time to grow, hit the road, and let Sweet Child O’ Mine open the floodgates, Guns N’ Roses exploded. They became the most talked-about band on the planet.

The Road to Use Your Illusion: Covers, Ballads, and Ambition

Their next release was a self-titled EP featuring a few live tracks—one of which was allegedly faked. The standouts were two covers: Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door (Bob Dylan) and Whole Lotta Rosie (AC/DC). Years later, Axl Rose would end up fronting AC/DC on tour when Brian Johnson suffered vocal issues.

Following that 1988 live EP came another release, Lies. This included Mama Kin (Aerosmith) and a track originally recorded by Hollywood Rose—one of the bands Guns N’ Roses had evolved from. The second half of Lies featured four acoustic originals, with Used To Love Her and the hit single Patience standing out.

What many don’t realise is that several of the major songs from Use Your Illusion I and II—released simultaneously in 1991—had been written during these early years.

From Use Your Illusion I, both Don’t Cry and November Rain were older tunes that had been rejected during the Appetite sessions. The band felt one ballad (Sweet Child O’ Mine) was enough at the time. Another single, Live and Let Die (a Paul McCartney & Wings cover), also became a live staple. The deluxe version includes yet another cover—Wild Horses by The Rolling Stones.

Use Your Illusion II also includedYou Could Be Mine—a song originally written during the Appetite days but shelved until it was featured in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. To me, it’s the highlight of the album.

The deluxe version offers more live covers, including Mama Kin again and Hendrix’s Voodoo Child (Slight Return).

Another standout is Estranged, the third in Axl Rose’s trilogy of ambitious rock ballads. It came with what was, at the time, the most expensive music video ever made—a testament to Axl’s growing ego, which arguably both fuelled and fractured the band.

The Rise, Fall, and Strange Second Act of Axl Rose

During the Use Your Illusion world tour, Guns N’ Roses were undeniably the biggest band on the planet. I saw them in Stockholm—naturally, they went on late. By then, Axl’s pre- and after-parties had become legendary (and notoriously extravagant). Word is, when the partying started to matter more than the performances, Izzy Stradlin had enough and walked away.

Looking back, it’s incredible to realise that almost all of the band’s best material was written between 1986 and 1987, during their formation and the creation of Appetite for Destruction. That short creative window essentially built their entire legacy.

After the colossal Use Your Illusion era, Guns N’ Roses quickly faded. The Spaghetti Incident? (1993) and Chinese Democracy (2008) are both weak records—poorly received in terms of both production and songwriting. The magic was gone.

By this point, the original lineup had disintegrated. Only Axl remained, surrounded by a revolving door of musicians, endless legal disputes, and ballooning studio bills.

Then came Axl’s unlikely tour with AC/DC in 2016. It must’ve started with someone hearing his version of Whole Lotta Rosie. The rock world was stunned when it was announced that Axl would temporarily replace Brian Johnson for 23 shows—but somehow, it worked. If nothing else, it got both bands the headlines they needed.

After the AC/DC stint, Guns N’ Roses reunited for more touring. The only new member to survive the reshuffle was Richard Fortus—someone I had the pleasure of touring with in 2016. He’s a phenomenal guitarist, and it made perfect sense when he stepped into the role of Izzy Stradlin, who declined to rejoin. Seems he still hadn’t forgiven Axl for those parties.