Guns N’ Roses

At seventeen, former choirboy William Bailey decided to change his last name to Rose, his dad’s last name. ‘Bailey’ belonged to his step-father.

Picking up the Axl handle, as a tribute to some former bands, Rose headed for L.A., to connect with his friend Izzy Stradlin. They hooked up with Tracii Guns becoming the L.A. Guns. Eventually, Guns left and guitarist Slash (Saul Hudson), drummer Steven Adler and bassist Duff McKagan signed on.

In ’86, Guns N’ Roses recorded an EP for the Uzi/Suicide label, “Live ?!*@ Like A Suicide.” that brought them to the attention of Geffen Records and landed the band spot opening for Iron Maiden.

Their major label debut, “Appetite For Destruction,” was a monster selling six million copies before the dust settled. “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” written about Axl’s future ex-wife, Erin Everly, rode heavy-duty vocals and Slash’s blistering guitar solo straight to the top. They followed that up with the Metal frenzy of “Welcome To The Jungle.”

Next up was the covers set “The Spaghetti Incident.” Guns N’ Roses had done covers before but not to this extent. It was another commercial success.

As the mid-90’s arrived, Guns N’ Roses halted with Slash sliding into Slash’s Snakepit. That adventure caused Rose to announce that Slash was no longer in the group.

In addition to Slash, McKagan was gone. And getting another album recorded was proving extraordinarily difficult. Tracks were laid down, then discarded. Songs were finished only to be shelved. But the album did have an official name, when and if, it arrived: “Chinese Democracy.”

Geffen, probably tired of waiting for new product, issued “Live Era: 87 – ‘93” which culled performances from the “Appetite For Destruction” and “Use Your Illusion” tours.

Over the years band members came and went, One notable guitarist was Buckethead
who had established a marginal solo career, left in ’04. GN’R’s official statement summed up the Buckethead experience:

“During his tenure with the band, Buckethead has been inconsistent and erratic in both his behavior and his commitment, despite being under contract, creating uncertainty and confusion and making it virtually impossible to move forward with recording, rehearsals, and live plans with confidence.”

Rose too was guilty of increasingly erratic behavior,

Thanks in part to the release of “Guns N’ Roses Greatest Hits” the group remained a viable concert draw with an expanded, if ever changing, line-up.

Dr Pepper, the soft drink maker, decided to garner a little publicity at GN’R’s expense. They promised that if “Chinese Democracy” were released any time in ’08, they would provide a free Dr Pepper to everyone in the U.S. That appeared to be a no risk proposition.

But after a mere 13-year wait “Chinese Democracy” was finally released. It sold 261,000 copies during its first week of release to debut at #3 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Dr Pepper made good on its offer. “We never thought this day would come,” said Dr. Pepper VP of Marketing Tony Jacobs. “But now that it’s here all we can say is: The Dr Pepper’s on us. “However, many fans experienced difficulties trying to retrieve the free-soda coupon the company promised. GN’R’s lawyer weighed in issuing a letter making all sorts of demands – ranging from extending the offer period to making a public apology in several national publications.

“Chinese Democracy” reviews were generally favorable (not the group’s best album but up there). However, there was one major dissenting voice. China’s communist government condemned “Chinese Democracy” saying the album was an attack on the country and added that GN’R was part of a Western conspiracy to “grasp and control the world using democracy as a pawn.”

The Chinese were reportedly upset with a lyric in the album’s title track referencing Falun Gong, a spiritual practice/movement founded in China that is often at odds with the government.

Shortly after “Chinese Democracy” had run its course, Rose said he was open to performing with ex-GN’R members (there were a lot of them) at some point but vowed never to play again with Slash. “One of the two of us will die before a reunion . . . however sad, ugly or unfortunate anyone views it,” declared Rose.

In ’11it, the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame announced that Guns N’ Roses would be inducted the following year. It would include Rose, Slash, Stradlin, McKagan and Adler (the line-up that created “Appetite For Destruction”), plus Dizzy Reed and Matt Sorum (who joined in ‘90).

After a lot of public proclamations Rose was a no-show when GN’R was honored. Green Day handled the actual induction and frontman Billie Joe Armstrong came close to replacing Rose when GN’R performed. But in the end, it was Slash’s vocalist, Miles Kennedy (Alter Bridge), who filled in.

Following extensive discussions, GN’R’s “Appetite For Destruction”-era lineup (Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan performed for the first time in nearly twenty-six years at the Troubadour in L.A. The ’16 debut reunion show was billed as “Not In This Lifetime,” quoting what Rose said in ’12 about a possible reunion. The show was actually a warm-up for the “Not In This Lifetime” tour that launched in Detroit.

The tour won the ’17 “Top Tour/Top Draw” category at Billboard‘s annual Touring Awards in L.A. and grossed more than $400 million in a year-and-a-half with 159 shows in 41 countries.