 "Guns and Roses" redirects here. For other uses, see Guns and Roses (disambiguation).
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses onstage in Venezuela in 2010
From left to right: Dizzy Reed, Bumblefoot, Richard Fortus, Axl Rose, DJ Ashba, Chris Pitman, Tommy Stinson
Background information
Also known as G N' R, GnR
Origin Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres Hard rock, heavy metal,[1][2][3][4][5] glam metal[6][7]
Years active 1985–present
Labels Geffen, UZI Suicide
Associated acts Hollywood Rose, L.A. Guns, Neurotic Outsiders, Praxis, Road Crew, Slash's Snakepit, Velvet Revolver
Website gunsnroses.com
Members
Axl Rose
Dizzy Reed
Tommy Stinson
Chris Pitman
Richard Fortus
Frank Ferrer
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal
DJ Ashba
Past members
See List of Guns N' Roses band members
Guns N' Roses (sometimes abbreviated as G N' R) are an American hard rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The classic lineup, as signed to Geffen Records in 1986, consisted of vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKagan, and drummer Steven Adler. Today, Axl Rose is the only remaining original member, in a lineup that comprises lead guitarists Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal and DJ Ashba, rhythm guitarist Richard Fortus, bassist Tommy Stinson, drummer Frank Ferrer, and keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman. The band has released six studio albums, accumulating sales of more than 100 million albums worldwide,[8] including shipments of 45 million in the United States.[9]
A year after its release, Guns N' Roses' debut album Appetite for Destruction (1987) reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200, on the strength of the hit "Sweet Child o' Mine," their only single to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.[10] The album has sold in excess of 28 million copies worldwide,[11] including 18 million units sold in the United States, making it the best-selling debut album of all time in the U.S.[12] The success of their debut was followed by the eight-song album G N' R Lies (1988). The twin albums Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II (1991) debuted at No. 2 and No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and have sold a combined 35 million copies worldwide,[citation needed] including 14 million units sold in the United States alone.[12] The cover album "The Spaghetti Incident?" (1993) was the band's last studio album to feature Slash and McKagan. After more than a decade of work and many lineup changes, Guns N' Roses released the long-awaited album Chinese Democracy (2008). It debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, but underperformed industry expectations.[13]
Guns N' Roses have been credited with reviving the mainstream popularity of rock 'n' roll, at a time when popular music was dominated by dance music and pop metal.[13] Their late 1980s and early 1990s years have been described as the period in which they brought forth a "hedonistic rebelliousness" reminiscent of the early Rolling Stones.[14] 1.1 Formation (1985–1986)
1.2 Appetite for Destruction and G N' R Lies (1987–1989)
1.3 Use Your Illusions, "The Spaghetti Incident?" (1990–1993)
1.3.1 Use Your Illusion I and II
1.3.2 Use Your Illusion Tour
1.3.3 "The Spaghetti Incident?"
1.4 Hiatus (1994–1998)
1.5 The "New" Guns N' Roses, Chinese Democracy (1999-2011)
1.6 Next album and Rock and Roll Hall of fame (2011-2012) Guns N' Roses was formed in March 1985 by singer Axl Rose and rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin of Hollywood Rose, along with lead guitarist Tracii Guns, bassist Ole Beich, and drummer Rob Gardner of L.A. Guns.[15] The band coined its name by combining two of the group members' names. After only a short time, during which they reportedly played just two or three shows, Beich was replaced by Duff McKagan, while Guns' lack of attendance at rehearsals led to his replacement by Slash. Gardner quit soon after and was replaced by Steven Adler.[16] Stradlin had previously played with Slash in Hollywood Rose, while Slash had played with McKagan and Adler in Road Crew.
In June 1985, just four days after the lineup was finalized, the band embarked on a short, disorganized tour of the West Coast, from Sacramento, California, to McKagan's hometown of Seattle, Washington.[17] The so-called "Hell Tour" cemented the band's first stable lineup, with McKagan later commenting, "This trip had set a new benchmark for what we were capable of, what we could and would put ourselves through to achieve our goals as a band."[18]
Through their increasing presence on the Hollywood club scene—playing such famed bars as The Troubadour and The Roxy—Guns N' Roses drew the attention of major record labels. They were signed by Geffen Records in March 1986, receiving a $75,000 advance.[19] In December of that year, they released the four-song EP Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide, designed to keep interest in the band alive while they withdrew from the club scene to work in the studio. The EP 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." Although billed as a live recording, the four songs were taken from the band's demo tapes and overdubbed with crowd noise. Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide was released on the Geffen subsidiary UZI Suicide, with production limited to 10,000 vinyl copies.
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