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Guns N' Roses
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Guns N' Roses
Left to right: Robin Finck, Tommy Stinson, Axl Rose, Dizzy Reed, (Back) Bryan Mantia, Chris Pitman, (Front) Richard Fortus, Ron Thal.
Background information
Origin United States
Genre(s) Hard Rock
Years active 1985 - present
Label(s) UZI Suicide
Geffen
Universal
Website www.gunsnroses.com
Members
Axl Rose
Dizzy Reed
Robin Finck
Tommy Stinson
Chris Pitman
Bryan Mantia
Richard Fortus
Ron Thal
Former members
Ole Beich
Rob Gardner
Tracii Guns
Steven Adler
Izzy Stradlin
Gilby Clarke
Slash
Matt Sorum
Duff McKagan
Josh Freese
Paul Tobias
Buckethead
Guns N' Roses (GN'R) is an American hard rock band that gained fame during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The band's 1987 major label debut, Appetite for Destruction, earned them worldwide popularity. Their 1991 effort, the simultaneous release of Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II, and subsequent world tour solidified their status. Guns N' Roses have sold an estimated 90 million albums worldwide.
The band's musical style, onstage presence, and image helped usher in a new era within the dominant hard rock and heavy metal scene of the 1980s. With hair metal as the leading genre in record sales, video charts, and radio airplay, Guns N' Roses offered a grittier, more traditionalist take on rock music, and won many fans who admired their apparent authenticity. The band enjoyed worldwide success from 1987 through 1993, but the clashing personalities of various band members, coupled with heavy alcohol and drug abuse hindered the group's ability to work together. Today, frontman Axl Rose is the only original member in the band's current lineup.
Contents [hide]
1 Rise to fame (1985–1989)
1.1 Early history
1.2 Discovery
1.3 Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide
1.4 Appetite for Destruction
1.5 Touring success and controversy
1.6 GN'R Lies
2 Use Your Illusion (1990–1993)
3 Decline (1994–1997)
3.1 The Spaghetti Incident?
3.2 Breakup
4 Chinese Democracy (1998—Present)
5 The Guns N' Roses sound
6 Legacy
7 Members
7.1 Current members
7.2 Former members
7.3 Touring members
7.4 Touring substitutes
7.5 Touring guests
8 Discography
9 Accomplishments
9.1 Awards
9.2 Televised performances
9.3 Webcast performances
10 References
10.1 Books
11 See also
12 External links
[edit]
Rise to fame (1985–1989)
[edit]
Early history
Guns N' Roses was founded in Los Angeles in March, 1985 by singer Axl Rose and guitarist Tracii Guns as an informal merger of their respective previous bands, Hollywood Rose and L.A. Guns. The name Guns N' Roses was derived from the two earlier names, and the original Guns N' Roses lineup included members from both bands: Rose's longtime friend Izzy Stradlin on rhythm guitar, bassist Ole Beich (later replaced by Duff McKagan), and drummer Rob Gardner. The band's unique style integrated rock, hard rock, blues, punk and other genres of music into the popular heavy metal music of the time.
When Tracii Guns and Rob Gardner could not appear at one of the first Guns N' Roses shows in Seattle, Rose recruited guitarist Slash and drummer Steven Adler for the performance. In early 1986, the pair joined full-time, with the lineup comprising of: Axl Rose (lead vocals), Slash (lead guitar), Izzy Stradlin (rhythm guitar), Duff McKagan (bass) and Steven Adler (drums). On the way back to Los Angeles, Axl wrote the lyrics for "Welcome to the Jungle", which became one of their signature songs.
[edit]
Discovery
Tom Zutaut, a Geffen Records A&R executive, witnessed a Guns N' Roses show at the Troubadour, then falsely warned other scouts that "they suck" so he could have more time and leeway to sign them. Axl Rose demanded and received a $75,000 advance from Zutaut before revealing that he promised an A&R from Chrysalis that the band would sign with her if she walked naked down Sunset Boulevard. For three days, Zutaut nervously watched from his Sunset office window for a naked A&R executive before he could close the deal.[1] Alan Niven was subsequently hired as the band's manager, and the team then set out to record the band's full-length debut album.
Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide[edit]
Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide
In late 1986, the band released a self-produced EP titled Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide. Designed to gauge public opinion of the band outside of Los Angeles, the record contained covers of Rose Tattoo's "Nice Boys" and Aerosmith's "Mama Kin", along with two original compositions: the punk anthem "Reckless Life" and the classic rock inspired "Move to the City". Despite having the look and sound of a live album, band members have admitted that the tracks were actually studio recordings with a live audience overdubbed. Only 10,000 vinyl copies of the album were produced, and even though the tracks were re-issued verbatim two years later as part of the GN'R Lies EP, the original Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide has been a valuable and sought after collector's item among fans since the late 1980s.
[edit]
Appetite for Destruction
Appetite for Destruction (revised)Appetite for Destruction was released on July 21, 1987. In the US, "Welcome to the Jungle" was issued as its first single with an accompanying music video. Initially, the album and single did not perform well, but when Geffen Records founder David Geffen was asked to lend support to the band, he obliged by personally convincing MTV executives to add "Welcome to the Jungle" to their after hours rotation. Even though the video was played at inopportune times like 5am, rock fans took notice and began requesting the video and song en masse.
In the United Kingdom, "It's So Easy" was released prior to the album itself. The band quickly gained popularity through radio airplay and via a rousing performance at London's famous Marquee Club on June 28, 1987. A 12-inch single for "It's So Easy" included Marquee Club performances of "Shadow of Your Love" and "Move to the City".
Countries overseas were often treated to Guns N' Roses material that never saw release in the US market and went unexposed to US fans: the original UK "Welcome to the Jungle" single was backed with the Marquee performance of AC/DC's classic "Whole Lotta Rosie" and a 12-inch single included live renditions of "It's So Easy" and the Bob Dylan classic "Knockin' on Heaven's Door". In Japan, an entire EP entitled Live from the Jungle was issued, which contained the album version of "Sweet Child O' Mine" and most of the Marquee Club recordings. European and Asian single releases were often peppered with Slash or Axl Rose interviews, which was common practice in those countries.
Appetite for Destruction (original)The album underwent an artwork change after the original Robert Williams cover design (a surrealist scene in which a dagger-toothed monster is vengefully attacking a robot rapist) spawned complaints from religious groups and caused some record stores to brown bag, obscure, or refuse to sell the album. The revised cover was gleaned from a tattoo that Axl had recently commissioned featuring skeleton faces of the five musicians arranged on a cross. Rose later insisted that the Gold and Platinum plaques issued by the RIAA be set using the original Williams cover. Copies of the LP with its original artwork are now rare collectors items. The artwork from the original cover can be found in the booklet of the CD release.
"Sweet Child O' Mine" was the album's second US single. Due to the growing grassroots success of the band and the cross-gender appeal of the tune, the song and its accompanying music video received heavy airplay on both radio and MTV, and became a smash hit during the summer of 1988. "Welcome to the Jungle" was then re-issued as a single, with new pressings of records and tapes and new artwork. The UK re-release was backed with an acoustic version of "You're Crazy", recorded much earlier than the one featured on the 1988 EP GN'R Lies.
By the time "Paradise City" and its video reached the airwaves, the band's touring success and fame had catapulted the album to #1 on the Billboard charts. "Welcome to the Jungle", "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Paradise City" were each US top ten singles. To date, Appetite For Destruction has sold over twenty million copies and remains one of the best-selling debut albums of all time.
Guns N' Roses logo, 1988-1999[edit]
Touring success and controversy
Guns N' Roses began opening shows for major rock acts, but as their fame began to take hold, a world tour in support of Appetite for Destruction was scheduled. The band traveled across the United States, and in spring of 1988 were invited to the notorious Monsters of Rock Festival at Castle Donington, where they shared the stage with legendary groups like KISS and Iron Maiden. At the start of the Guns N' Roses set, the capacity crowd of over 100,000 began jumping and surging forward. Despite Axl's requests that the crowd move away from the stage, two fans were trampled to death. Without knowledge of the extent of fan injuries, the band continued playing, and was largely blamed by the media for the tragedy. Events such as these during the Appetite for Destruction tour earned the group their title of "world's most dangerous band".
In addition, the behavior of the band was also garnering negative attention from the media. McKagan, Slash and Adler were often seen intoxicated both on and off stage. Members of the crew at the time stated that Slash often had to be carried onstage by a group of people and would sometimes pass out after the concert ended. When touring in England in 1987 the bandmembers were treated badly by the press with Slash being refered to as 'Slosh', 'Slug' and 'Slush'.
[edit]
GN'R Lies
GN'R LiesGuns N' Roses' next release was the EP G N' R Lies in 1988, which reached #2 on the Billboard music charts. The album included the four Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide recordings on one side, and four acoustic songs on the other. The song "One in a Million", which included the words "niggers" and "faggots", led to controversy in which critics accused both the band and Axl Rose of racism and homophobia. Rose responded by saying the claims are unfounded, particularly when considering Slash himself is half black and half Jewish. He also went on to explain that the song reflected racial and prejudicial problems of society, rather than promoting them. Rose also cited that he was a fan of homosexual singers like Freddie Mercury and Elton John. The band had played gigs alongside the all-black group Body Count, and lead singer Ice-T said in his book The Ice Opinion that Axl had been "a victim of the press the same way I am".
After Slash and Duff appeared on the nationally televised American Music Awards visibly intoxicated and using profanity, Geffen Records executives asked the band to curtail their behavior. The members took steps to deal with their addictions after Rose threatened to end the band if they continued with their heavy drug abuse. He even spoke up about the situation, specifically the heroin addictions, during an opening set for the Rolling Stones in 1989 at the Los Angeles Coliseum.
[edit]
Use Your Illusion (1990–1993)
Use Your Illusion IIn 1990, Guns N' Roses returned to the studio to begin recording their most ambitious undertaking yet. During recording sessions, drummer Steven Adler was unable to perform due to his struggles with cocaine and heroin addiction. Axl said later in an interview that "'Civil War' was recorded a good sixty times because of Adler." Coincidentally, "Civil War" is the only post-GN'R Lies song on which Adler appears, and was featured (along with a cover of the UK Subs punk anthem "Down on the Farm" wink in a televised excerpt of the band's set at Farm Aid IV on April 7, 1990 which became the last concert appearance of the band with Adler as drummer. He was fired in August 1990, and replaced with former Cult drummer Matt Sorum. About the same time, keyboardist Dizzy Reed joined the band as a full time member. The band's manager, Alan Niven, was fired in May 1991 and was replaced with Doug Goldstein.
With enough music for a double album, the band instead chose to release Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II as two separate albums on September 17, 1991. The tactic paid off when the albums debuted at #2 and #1 respectively on the Billboard charts, which set a record as they became the first and only group to achieve this feat. Additionally, the albums spent 108 weeks on the chart. Prior to the release of both albums, Guns N' Roses embarked on the twenty-eight month long Use Your Illusion World Tour to support them. It would become famous for both its financial success and the many controversial incidents that occurred at the shows.
The tour included a Slash guitar solo incorporating The Godfather theme, and a piano driven Axl Rose solo of "It's Alright" by Black Sabbath. An extended jam on the classic rock inspired "Move to the City" was where Rose showcased the ensemble of musicians assembled for the tour.
Much of the sucessful and brilliant performances during the tour were equally matched and often overshadowed in the press by riots, late starts and outspoken rantings by Rose. While the band's previous drug and alcohol issues were seemingly under control, Axl was often agitated by lax security, sound problems, and unwanted filming or recording of the performances. He also used the banter inbetween songs to fire off political statements or retort against music critics or celebrity rivals.
During a July 2, 1991 concert at the recently-built Riverport Amphitheater in Maryland Heights, Missouri, just outside of St. Louis, Axl Rose jumped into the audience and tackled an unruly fan who was recording the show with a video camera. After being pulled from the audience by his security team, Rose subsequently left the stage, ending the show early. The angry crowd began to riot, and dozens of people were injured. Rose was charged with having incited the riot, but police were unable to arrest him until almost a year later, as the band went overseas to continue the tour. Charges were filed against Rose, but a judge ruled that he did not directly incite the riot. In his defense, Rose stated that the Guns N' Roses personal security team had made four separate requests to the venue's security staff to remove the camera, all of which were ignored; that other members of the band had reported being hit by bottles from the audience; and that the venue's security had been lax, allowing weapons into the arena and refusing to enforce a drinking limit.[1]
During this time, guitarist Izzy Stradlin quit the band due to differences with both Rose and Slash. He was replaced by Los Angeles based guitarist Gilby Clarke. In late 1991, Rose added a touring ensemble to the band which included a horns section and several background vocalists.
Use Your Illusion IIIn 1992, the band appeared at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, performing a two song set. Later in the year they went on a mini-tour with American heavy metal band Metallica. During a show in August 1992 at Montreal's Olympic Stadium, Metallica frontman James Hetfield suffered severe burns after stepping too close to a pyrotechnics blast. Metallica was forced to cancel the second hour of the show, but promised to return to the city for another show. After a long delay, during which the audience became increasingly restless, Guns N' Roses took the stage. However, the shortened time between sets did not allow for adequate tuning of stage monitors resulting in musicians not being able to hear themselves. Compounding the situation were Rose's claims that he had problems with his voice which caused the band to leave the stage early. The cancellation led to another riot by audience members, reminiscent of the rioting that had occurred in St. Louis one year earlier. Rioters overturned cars, smashed windows, looted local stores and set random fires. Local authorities were barely able to bring the mob under control.
The Use Your Illusion Tour is also notable for the many videos the band released to support it, including "Don't Cry", "November Rain" [2] and "Estranged" - some of the most expensive videos ever made. The hit ballad "November Rain" became the most requested video on MTV, eventually winning the 1992 MTV Video Music Award for best cinematography. During the awards show, the band performed the song with Elton John accompanying on piano.
In May 1993, Gilby Clarke broke his wrist in a motorcycling accident and the band needed a replacement for some dates in Europe. Izzy Stradlin briefly returned for a string of five shows.
The historic tour ended in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 17, 1993. The tour set attendance records and lasted for twenty-eight months in which more than 200 shows were played. The last show in Buenos Aires also marked the last time original members Slash and McKagan as well as the newcomers Gilby Clarke and Matt Sorum would play a live show with their frontman.
[edit]
Decline (1994–1997)
The Spaghetti Incident?[edit]
The Spaghetti Incident?
On November 23, 1993, Guns N' Roses released a collection of punk covers entitled The Spaghetti Incident?. Despite protests from Rose's bandmates, an unadvertised cover of the Charles Manson song "Look at Your Game Girl" was included on the album at his request. Years later, Rose said he would remove the song from new pressings of the album, citing that critics and the media had misinterpreted his interest in Manson. However, as of 2006, the song is still present on the album. The Spaghetti Incident? did not match the success of the Illusion albums and tensions increased within the band.
[edit]
Breakup
In 1994, Gilby Clarke was let go from the band as Axl felt his songwriting skills were inadequate for their future projects. That same year, a cover version of The Rolling Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil" was recorded by the band for the movie Interview with the Vampire. The addition of Axl's childhood friend Paul Tobias in place of Clarke did not sit well with remaining band members. During the recording of "Sympathy for the Devil", Tobias recorded an echo of Slash's solo at Axl's request. Slash was infuriated when he heard the song's final mix and that Tobias' guitar had been placed on top of his.
Slash then drifted in and out of the band for the next year or so, beginning a side project called Slash's Snakepit before finally quitting in late 1996, citing musical differences with Rose. He was replaced by Robin Finck. The next year, drummer Sorum was fired from the group following a verbal dispute with Rose regarding negative comments Paul Tobias had made about Slash. In mid 1997, McKagan opted out of his contract. This left Rose as the sole original member of the group. Slash, Duff McKagan, and Matt Sorum later formed the rock supergroup Velvet Revolver with former Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland and guitarist Dave Kushner, where they released their first CD, and had immediate success.
[edit]
Chinese Democracy (1998—Present)
Rumors circulated in 1997 that Axl Rose had returned to the studio to begin work on a new album. The album's producer was supposedly Mike Clink. Nothing came out of the rumors in 1997, and GN'R remained in hiatus. In 1998, Axl formally returned to the studio accompanied by drummer Josh Freese (of The Vandals), bassist Tommy Stinson (formerly of The Replacements), guitarist Robin Finck (formerly of Nine Inch Nails), rhythm guitarist Paul Tobias (aka Paul Huge), effects man Chris Pitman, and keyboardist Dizzy Reed. In 1999, the band released one new song, "Oh My God", which was included on the soundtrack of End of Days. The song's release was intended to be a prelude to their new album, now officially titled Chinese Democracy. Geffen also released Live Era: '87-'93, a collection of live performances from various concerts during the Appetite for Destruction and Use Your Illusion tours.
Guns N' Roses logo, 2000-2005In 2000, avant-garde guitar virtuoso Buckethead joined Guns N' Roses to complement Robin Finck, and drummer Josh Freese was replaced with Bryan Mantia (formerly of Primus). The revised lineup debuted on stage in January 2001 with two well-received concerts, one in Las Vegas and one at the Rock in Rio Festival in Rio de Janeiro. The band played a mixture of old hits as well as new songs from their forthcoming album. During their Rock in Rio set, Rose made the following comment regarding former members of the band:
"I know that many of you are disappointed that some of the people that you came to know and love could not be with us here today. Regardless of what you have heard or read, people worked very hard (meaning my former friends) to do everything they could so that I could not be here today. I say ******** that. I am as hurt and disappointed as you that, unlike Oasis, we could not find a way to all get along."[3]
Axl Rose during a 2002 concertThe new lineup played another two shows in Las Vegas at the end of 2001. In 2002, rhythm guitarist Paul Tobias left the band because of his frustrations with life on the road. He was replaced by Richard Fortus, formerly of the bands The Psychedelic Furs and Love Spit Love. The band then played several shows in August of 2002, headlining festivals and concerts throughout Asia and Europe. They made their way to New York for a surprise appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards in September.
The band's first North American tour since 1993 was organized in the autumn of 2002 to support Chinese Democracy, and called the Chinese Democracy Tour. However, the opening show in Vancouver was canceled by the venue when Rose failed to show up in a timely manner and a riot ensued. This tour was met with mixed results. Some concerts in smaller markets did not sell well, while shows in larger markets such as New York sold out in minutes. Due to a second absence by Axl Rose in Philadelphia and the resulting riot by fans, promoter Clear Channel canceled the remainder of the tour.
The band went into hiatus until they were scheduled to play at Rock in Rio 4 in May 2004. However, Buckethead left the band in March of that year, causing the band to cancel their appearance.
Also in March 2004, Geffen released Guns N' Roses' Greatest Hits, since Rose had failed to deliver a new studio album in more than ten years. Rose expressed his displeasure with this album as its track listing was established without his consent and went as far as trying to block its release by suing Geffen Records.
Guns N' Roses logo, 2006-presentIn February 2006, demos of the songs "Better", "Catcher In The Rye", "I.R.S.", and "There Was a Time" were leaked on the Internet through a Guns N' Roses fan site. The band's management requested that all links to the MP3 files and all lyrics to the songs be removed from forums and websites. Despite this, radio stations began adding "I.R.S." to playlists, and the song actually reached 49th on trade mag Radio & Records' Active Rock National Airplay chart for the final week of February 2006 - the first time an internet leak had done so.
Chinese Democracy North American tour logoOn May 5, 2006, Axl Rose appeared on the Friday Night Rocks with Eddie Trunk radio show (during an interview with Sebastian Bach) and revealed that the new Guns N' Roses album would be released in Fall 2006. Later that month, the band launched a European tour, headlining both the Download Festival and Rock In Rio-Lisboa. Four warm-up shows preceded the tour at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, and became the band's first live concert dates since the aborted 2002 tour. The shows also marked the debut of virtuoso fusion guitarist and composer Ron Thal (a.k.a Bumblefoot) on lead guitar, replacing Buckethead. During the course of this tour, Izzy Stradlin and Sebastian Bach made frequent guest appearances.
A North American tour, again called the Chinese Democracy Tour, has been announced and will commence on October 20, 2006. Four warm-up shows for the tour were held in September 2006, with two at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and two at Warfield Theatre in San Francisco.
Chinese Democracy has been in production for almost nine years at a cost of over thirteen million dollars, making it the most expensive album ever recorded. However, in a press release regarding the new Chinese Democracy Tour, it cryptically states, "As for Guns N' Roses forthcoming "Chinese Democracy" album, the only comment at this time is that there are 13 Tuesdays left between now and the end of the year". This implies that the album will be released sometime between October 3rd and December 26, 2006. On October 5th, 2006, a source close to Rolling Stone claimed that the album had a "firm release date of November 21st, 2006". This is said to have been confirmed by the band itself.
[edit]
The Guns N' Roses sound
The music of Guns N' Roses is a complex fusion of blues, punk, metal and classic rock and roll, presented in a layered fashion.
In the 1990s, the band integrated keyed instruments (played by either Axl or Dizzy Reed) into the band, and for roughly half of the Use Your Illusion tour, added a horn section to the stage. While Reed's keyboard and Rose's piano remain in some of the Chinese Democracy demos and in concert, the aborted 2002 tour and the 2006 tour (to date) have not included winded instruments, though the band has employed synthesized horns on some of their new songs.
An acknowledged heavy influence in both image and sound is the short-lived original era of Finnish band Hanoi Rocks (singer Michael Monroe and Rose have collaborated on various occasions).Axl Rose has on record stated that the band were massively inspired by bands like the Rolling Stones and AC/DC and also that the sound of Appetite for Destruction was based on the influence of Aerosmith and AC/DC. Most of the lyrics in the Guns N' Roses catalog were written by Rose and Izzy Stradlin.
[edit]
Legacy
Guns N' Roses on the cover of Rolling Stone in 1988Guns N' Roses are considered to be the last rock and roll band to achieve legendary status before the tastes of American youth culture shifted to alternative rock, electronica, and then hip-hop throughout the course of the 1990s. They are also recognized as a band that changed rock and metal music in the late 1980s by bringing a more serious, emotional, and sometimes political edge to 80's rock, in stark contrast to the carefree themes of hair metal characterized by facial make-up and spandex pants.
A central component of the Guns N' Roses legend lies in the sheer velocity and audacity with which they rose to fame. In an era where most rock and metal acts spent years bulding credibility and 'paying dues' in the form of club touring, failed signing attempts, and unsucessful album releases, Guns N' Roses signed with a major label within nine months of their inception and topped national sales charts merely weeks after garnering late hours airplay on MTV. The record breaking achievement of Appetite For Destruction as the highest selling debut album of all time is often cited as evidence of the band's imprint on rock and roll history.
Their peers in the music industry often spoke highly of the band: Ozzy Osbourne and Joe Perry called GN'R "the next Rolling Stones." In 2002, Q magazine named Guns N' Roses in their list of the "50 Bands To See Before You Die". Also, the television network VH1 ranked Guns N' Roses ninth in its "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" special. Appetite for Destruction appeared in Rolling Stone Magazine's special issue "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time".
Unfortunately, the band has not been free of criticism by the media. The flagrant alcohol and drug abuse by some members of the group, particularly Slash and McKagan, and Axl's fondness of Charles Manson T-shirts, were used by the media to portray GN'R as a poor example and negative influence on their young fans. The long periods of time that the band took to release albums were also a source of heavy criticism.
Frontman Axl Rose has become a source of both controversy and criticism since the other founding members left the group. His constant elusiveness, such as the fact that he has not held a press conference since 1994, has led to several stories claiming he is suffering from bipolar disorder. Music critics have blamed Rose for the break-up of the original group, and have criticized him for continuing the band after the original members had departed. They also cite his neurotic behavior and sense of perfectionism as a cause of personal conflict and the long delays between albums. However, Rose still has fans who view him as a sort of musical anti-hero.
Guns N' Roses will be eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame beginning in 2012. Critics and fans alike view this as an opportunity for the band's original lineup to reunite. On the VH1 special Behind the Music, Slash was questioned about a reunion and stated that "No matter how much money they throw in our faces, there's no reason for us to get together...unless there's a mutual respect or understanding...and we're way far from that."
[edit]
Members
Guns N' Roses lineup history (1985) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Tracii Guns - lead guitar
Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar
Ole Beich - bass guitar
Rob Gardner - drums
(1985-1990) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Slash - lead guitar
Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan - bass guitar
Steven Adler - drums
(1990-1991) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Slash - lead guitar
Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan - bass guitar
Matt Sorum - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
(1991-1994) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Slash - lead guitar
Gilby Clarke - rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan - bass guitar
Matt Sorum - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
(1994-1996) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Slash - lead guitar
Paul Tobias - rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan - bass guitar
Matt Sorum - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
(1997-199 cool Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Paul Tobias - rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan - bass guitar
Josh Freese - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
(1998-2000) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Paul Tobias - rhythm guitar
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar
Josh Freese - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
Chris Pitman - keyboards
(2000-2002) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Buckethead - lead guitar
Paul Tobias - rhythm guitar
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar
Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
Chris Pitman - keyboards
(2002-2004) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Buckethead - lead guitar
Richard Fortus - rhythm guitar
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar
Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
Chris Pitman - keyboards
(2004-2006) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Richard Fortus - rhythm guitar
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar
Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
Chris Pitman - keyboards
(2006-present) Axl Rose - lead vocals
Robin Finck - lead guitar
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal - lead guitar
Richard Fortus - rhythm guitar
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar
Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums
Dizzy Reed - keyboards
Chris Pitman - keyboards
[edit]
Current members
Axl Rose - lead vocals (1985-present)
Dizzy Reed - keyboards (1990-present)
Robin Finck - lead guitar (1997-99, 2000-present)
Tommy Stinson - bass guitar (1998-present)
Chris Pitman - keyboards, programming (1998-present)
Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums (2000-present)
Richard Fortus - rhythm guitar (2002-present)
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal - lead guitar (2006-present)
[edit]
Former members
Ole Beich - bass (1985)
Rob Gardner - drums (1985)
Tracii Guns - lead guitar (1985)
Steven Adler - drums (1985-1990)
Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar (1985-1991)
Gilby Clarke - rhythm guitar (1991-1994)
Slash - lead guitar (1985-1996)
Matt Sorum - drums (1990-1997)
Duff McKagan - bass (1985-199 cool
Josh Freese - drums (1997-2000)
Paul Tobias - rhythm guitar (1994-2002)
Buckethead - lead guitar (2000-2004)
[edit]
Touring members
Tracey Amos - backing vocals (1991-1993)
Teddy Andreadis - harmonica, keyboards, backing vocals (1991-1993)
Roberta Freeman - backing vocals (1991-1993)
Diane Jones - backing vocals (1991-1993)
Anne King - horns (1991-1993)
Lisa Maxwell - horns (1991-1993)
Cece Worrall - horns (1991-1993)
[edit]
Touring substitutes
Fred Coury - drums (1987-1988 - eight performances)
Stephen Harris - bass (1988 - one performance)
Don Henley - drums (1989 - one performance)
Izzy Stradlin - rhythm guitar (1993 - five performances)
Frank Ferrer - drums (2006 - twenty-one performances)
[edit]
Touring guests
Vince Neil - vocals (1988 - one performance)
Matt McKagan - horns (1989 - four performances)
Shannon Hoon - bongos, vocals (1991-1993 - nine performances)
Sebastian Bach - vocals (1991, 2006 - eighteen performances)
Lenny Kravitz - guitar, vocals (1992 - one performance)
Steven Tyler - vocals (1992 - one performance)
Joe Perry - guitar (1992 - one performance)
Brian May - guitar (1992-1993 - two performances)
Elton John - piano, vocals (1992 - two performances)
Ronnie Wood - guitar (1993 - two performances)
Tom Doyle - bongos (1993 - four performances)
Michael Monroe - vocals (1993 - one performance)
Blake Stanton - vocals (1993 - one performance)
Izzy Stradlin - guitar (2006 - seventeen performances)
Kid Rock - vocals (2006 - one performance)
Del James - vocals (2006 - two performances)
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Discography
Main article: Guns N' Roses Discography
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Accomplishments
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Awards
1988 - Best New Artist - MTV Video Music Awards ("Welcome to the Jungle" wink
1989 - Favorite Pop/Rock Single - American Music Awards ("Sweet Child O' Mine" wink
1989 - Best Heavy Metal Video - MTV Video Music Awards ("Sweet Child O' Mine" wink
1990 - Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist - American Music Awards
1990 - Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Album - American Music Awards (Appetite for Destruction)
1992 - Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist - American Music Awards
1992 - Video Vanguard - MTV Video Music Awards
1992 - Best Cinematography - MTV Video Music Awards ("November Rain" wink
1993 - Best Selling Hard Rock Artist - World Music Awards
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Televised performances
1988 - MTV at The Ritz (full set - live from New York City)
1988 - The Late Show ("You're Crazy", "Used to Love Her" - live from Los Angeles)
1988 - MTV Video Music Awards ("Welcome to the Jungle" - live from Los Angeles)
1989 - American Music Awards ("Patience" - live from Los Angeles)
1990 - Farm Aid IV ("Civil War", "Down on the Farm" - live from Indianapolis)
1991 - Rock in Rio II (two full sets - live from Rio de Janeiro)
1991 - MTV Video Music Awards ("Live and Let Die" - taped from London)
1991 - MTV New Year's Eve (three songs - taped from St. Petersburg)
1992 - American Music Awards ("Yesterdays" - taped from Las Vegas)
1992 - Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert ("Paradise City", "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" - live from London)
1992 - Use Your Illusion Tour (full set - live from Paris)
1992 - Use Your Illusion Tour ("Tie Your Mother Down", "We Will Rock You" - Queen covers taped from London)
1992 - MTV Video Music Awards ("November Rain" - live from Los Angeles)
1992 - Use Your Illusion Tour (full set - live from Santiago)
1992 - Use Your Illusion Tour (full set - live from Buenos Aires)
1993 - Use Your Illusion Tour (full set - live from Buenos Aires)
2001 - Rock in Rio III (full set - live from Rio de Janeiro)
2002 - MTV Video Music Awards (medley: "Welcome to the Jungle", "Madagascar", "Paradise City" - live from New York City)
2006 - Rock in Rio V (partial set - taped from Lisboa)
2006 - Download Festival ("My Michelle", "Paradise City" - taped from Donington Park)
2006 - Rock am Ring (partial set - taped from Nürburgring)
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Webcast performances
2006 - Rock in Rio V (full set - live from Lisboa)
2006 - Inland Invasion (full set - live from San Bernardino)
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References
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Books
Stenning, Paul (2004). The Band That Time Forgot: The Complete Unauthorised Biography of Guns N' Roses. Chrome Dreams. ISBN 1-84240-246-3.
Wall, Mick (1992). Guns N' Roses; The Most Dangerous Band in The World. Hyperion. ISBN 1-56282-951-3.
[edit]
See also
Best selling music artists
List of Guns N' Roses' unreleased songs
[edit]
External links
Label Site
Official MySpace Page
GunsNRoses.Com - Official website of Guns N' Roses
Official Guns N' Roses RSS Feed
Gn'R Online - Old Guns N' Roses website; now defunct. See www.gunsnroses.com.
 xXLadyKagomeXx · Sat Oct 14, 2006 @ 12:25am · 0 Comments |
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