FAQ: GUNS N' ROSES
Jeff Boerio
Frequently Asked Questions
Version: 2.0
Date: September 27, 1994
[ Special Note: The GNR FAQ Version 2.0 brings a lot of new
information and as such, I can't remember which sections have
been updated. You might want to read the whole thing :-) ]
This "Frequently Asked Questions" guide is a compilation of
commonly asked questions regarding the band. Great efforts
are taken to make sure this information is true and accurate.
This guide is known to be incomplete, and information is
always being sought to complete this guide.
If you have information that you believe should be added to
this guide, please send your information to
boe...@teleport.com.
*** I do not WANT to include rumors, facts that cannot ***
*** verified, etc. But the nature of most recent ques- ***
*** tions requires that I do so. I want to turn rumors ***
*** into truths as quickly as possible. ***
INTRODUCTION
This file contains some Frequently Asked Questions regarding
Guns n' Roses as well as information that may be hard to come
across in everyday conversation. This is the compilation of
work done by Jeff Boerio, with significant input from Doug
Fierro and Dave Alexander. Our thanks also go to the fans of
Guns n' Roses and readers of the Internet newsgroup
alt.rock-n-roll.metal.gnr for their information, which helps
make this information more complete and accurate.
This FAQ is broken down into the following headings:
- Fan Club Information
- Other Sources of GnR Information
- Biographical Data of the Band
- Chronological History of the Band
- EP or Full-length Material Released by the Band
- Home Videos Released by the Band
- Videos Released by the Band (MTV)
- Singles Released
- Record Sales
- Movies Band Members Have Appeared In
- Movies GnR Songs Have Appeared In
- GnR Songs that Have Appeared on Compilation Albums
- Songs GnR Members Have Been In
- GnR Songs Other Bands Have Recorded
- Other Published Material
- Videos GnR Members Have Appeared In
... MTV/Music Videos
... Home Videos
- Awards the Band Has Received
- Trials and Tribulations of the Band
- Meaning Behind Songs
- Other Facts and Tidbits About ...
... The Band
... The Covers
... The Songs
... The Videos
... TSI?
... Current Projects
... Solo Projects
... Their Live Shows
... Misc Questions
[ NOTE: * represents information that has been ]
[ added or changed since the last release. ]
There are some abbreviations that I use in this FAQ that you may
find helpful.
GNR Obviously, the abbreviation for the band's name
LLAS The EP, Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide
AFD Appetite for Destruction
UYI-1 Use Your Illusions I
UYI-2 Use Your Illusions II
UYI This will be used to reference both UYI-1 and UYI-2
TSI? The Spaghetti Incident?
FAN CLUB INFORMATION
As of July 31, 1994, I still have received nothing from the
fan club. As it turns out, my check hasn't been cashed yet
either. BFD Entertainment is investigating, but their
response is that they have recently switched organizations
and are now using Fan Asylum to manage the fan club.
The official Guns n' Roses fan club can be reached at the address
below:
Guns n' Roses Fan Network
P.O. Box 8989
Malibu, CA 90265-8989
OTHER SOURCES OF GNR INFORMATION
Most of you probably receive this FAQ as a result of reading the
Internet Newsgroup alt.rock-n-roll.metal.gnr, a newsgroup created
for the discussion of Guns n' Roses and related material.
There is an Internet Relay Chat (IRC) channel that has been formed,
which allows for interactive discussions of the band. This FAQ
will not offer information about how to use IRC, simply because
it's too detailed. If you know how to use IRC, join the fun! The
name of the channel is #GnR.
Lyrics from Guns n' Roses albums may be accessed via anonymous FTP
from ftp.teleport.com. The lyrics are in users/boerio/gnr/lyrics.
Currently, the lyrics from AFD, Lies, UYI, and TSI? are all there.
Lyrics may also be retrieved via FTP from ftp.uwp.edu. The lyrics
are in the pub/music/lyrics/g/guns.n.roses directory. Currently
(well, as of February 26, 1994), they have lyrics for AFD, Lies,
and UYI.
GIF images of Guns n' Roses may also by anonymously FTP'd from
ftp.teleport.com. They are located in users/boerio/gnr/images.
Guitar TAB and CHORD files are also available via anonymous FTP
from ftp.teleport.com. They're located in users/boerio/gnr/tabs.
For all you Webheads and Mosaic lovers (OK, lynx too!) there is
a Guns n' Roses WWW page at http://www.teleport.com/~boerio/gnr.html.
It features the latest possible information, including news from my
contacts at Geffen Records, an HTML version of this FAQ,
discography, tour information, song listings, interviews, and
guitar tabs.
HISTORICAL BIOGRAPHICAL DATA OF THE BAND
It would be nice to have birthdates for all these guys.
W. Axl Rose Born William Bailey, Lafayette, IN. 2/6/62
Slash Born Saul Hudson, Stoke-on-Trent, England. 7/22/65
Izzy Stradlin Born Jeff Isabelle, Lafayette, IN. 4/8/62
Duff McKagan Born Michael McKagan, Seattle, WA. 2/5/62
Steven Adler Born Steven Adler, Cleveland, OH. 1/22/65
Matt Sorum Born Matthew Sorum, Long Beach, CA. 11/2/60
*** There are rumors about what names the following go by, ***
*** but so far, nothing concrete. Have concrete info? ***
*** Contact me. ***
Gilby Clarke
Dizzy Reed Born Darren Reed
CHRONOLOGICAL HISTORY OF THE BAND
1979 Izzy moves to LA.
1981 By this time, Duff has been in 30 different bands (in Seattle)
and even has an EP.
Duff meets Slash and Steven after reading announcement in
"Recycler." 'Road Crew' forms as a 3-man band.
1982 Slash is playing rhythm guitar in the Los Angeles band 'London'.
1983 Izzy joins a punk band called "Naughty Women."
Axl fronts 'Rose', with Chris Weber. When Izzy joined, the
band became known as 'Hollywood Rose'. This band soon
split.
Duff is playing guitar in '10 Minute Warning'. The drummer
is Greg Gilmore, who would eventually become the drummer
for Mother Love Bone.
1984 Izzy is a member of the band 'London' (he actually replaced
Slash).
Axl fronts 'L.A. Guns'. After bassist and drummer quit,
L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose fuse to become Guns n' Roses.
Both bands had gigs booked, and since neither had a
complete band, the fusion helped out in both respects.
Guns n' Roses starts to come together. The line-up looked
something like this:
W. Axl Rose - Lead Vocals
Izzy Stradlin - Guitar
Tracii Guns - Guitar
Duff McKagan - Bass
Robert Gardner - Drums
1985 Duff sets up a road trip (Hell Tour), but when things
weren't working out, Tracii and Robert split. With three
days notice before first gig, Slash and Steven join.
June. Slash and Steven join the group:
W. Axl Rose - Lead Vocals
Slash - Lead Guiter
Tracii Guns - Rhythm Guitar
Duff McKagan - Bass
Steven Adler - Drums
The band evolves into its most popular line-up, and the
line-up that would make the band famous.
W. Axl Rose - Lead Vocals
Slash - Lead Guitar
Izzy Stradlin - Rhythm Guitar
Duff McKagan - Bass
Steven Adler - Drums
1991 Steven Adler is fired from the band, and Izzy leaves. Dizzy
comes to the group from a band called The Wild. Gilby comes
from "Kill for Thrills" and before that, "Blackouts". Matt
comes from "The Cult".
W. Axl Rose - Lead Vocals
Slash - Lead Guitar
Gilby Clarke - Rhythm Guitar
Duff McKagan - Bass
Matt Sorum - Drums
Dizzy Reed - Keyboards
EP OR FULL-LENGTH MATERIAL RELEASED BY GUNS N ROSES
(Please note that I do not intend this section to be a complete
discography. There is a much better listing done by Doug Fierro,
and I want these to be kept separate. Also, I will not list bootleg
items in this FAQ).
"Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide" (1986) Uzi Suicide Records
Appetite for Destruction (1987) Geffen Records / Uzi Suicide Records
Lies (1988) Geffen Records / Uzi Suicide Records
Use Your Illusion I (1991) Geffen Records / Uzi Suicide Records
Use Your Illusion II (1991) Geffen Records / Uzi Suicide Records
The Spaghetti Incident? (1993) Geffen Records / Uzi Suicide Records
HOME VIDEOS RELEASED BY GUNS N ROSES
Making Fucking Videos Volume I, Don't Cry (1993)
Making Fucking Videos Volume II, November Rain (1993)
Use Your Illusion I (1993)
Use Your Illusion II (1993)
The Making of "Estranged", Part IV of the Trilogy, (April 26, 1994)
VIDEOS RELEASED ON MTV
I would like to have dates for these, if anyone has them.
Welcome to the Jungle (1987)
Sweet Child of Mine (1988)
Paradise City (1988)
Patience (1988)
You Could be Mine (1991)
Live and Let Die (1991)
Don't Cry (original and alt. lyrics) (1991)
November Rain (1992)
Yesterdays (1992)
Garden of Eden (1992)
The Garden (1993)
Dead Horse (1993)
Estranged (1993)
Since I Don't Have You (1994)
SINGLES RELEASED
These are singles that were released by the band. I am trying to
find out how they fared on the singles charts.
Song Peak Wks in Top 40 Debut Date
----------------------------------------------------------
Sweet Child O' Mine 1 14 07/23/88
Paradise City 5 11 01/28/89
Welcome to the Jungle 7 12 11/05/88
Patience 4 10 04/22/89
Live and Let Die ? ?
You Could be Mine ? ?
Don't Cry ? ?
November Rain ? ?
Yesterdays ? ?
The Garden ? ?
Estranged ? ?
Ain't it Fun ? ?
Hair of the Dog ? ?
Since I Don't Have You 31 4
RECORD SALES
Accurate figures!! Thanks to Jens Backlund!
RECORD USA WORLDWIDE
LLAS: 10,000
AFD: 10 million 17 million
LIES: 4 million 5 million
UYI-1: 4 million 13 million
UYI-2: 4 million 13 million
TSI?: 1 million
MOVIES BAND MEMBERS HAVE APPEARED IN
Axl, Slash, Izzy, Duff, Steve - "The Dead Pool". They were in
two scenes. The first was the funeral scene at the
gravesite. The second was on the pier by the harpoon.
There was a rumor that Axl would be making an appearance in a
Highlander movie. I have been told this wouldn't be the case.
There have been rumors that the band was planning a full-length
movie called "Terfect Crime" which may or may not be true. I
have been told by Geffen that the band did film everything from
the UYI tour, but have not decided how to use it.
MOVIES GNR SONGS HAVE BEEN IN
These songs probably appear on soundtracks for the respective
movies and thus will not appear in the 'compilation' section below.
Move to the City was in the movie "American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt"
Welcome To The Jungle has been featured in several films, "The
Dead Pool", "Lean On Me", and "The Program".
Sweet Child O' Mine was used in the trailer of "Bad Dreams".
You Could Be Mine was used in "Terminator 2: Judgement Day"
but it is not on the soundtrack.
Knockin' on Heaven's Door was used in "Days of Thunder".
Patience was used in "Cape Fear"
GNR SONGS THAT HAVE APPEARED ON COMPILATION ALBUMS
This section does NOT include songs which appear on movie
soundtracks above.
Civil War appears on the compilation record, "Nobody's Child".
Shadow Of Your Love appears on the compilations record, "Time To
Rock".
SONGS GNR MEMBERS HAVE APPEARED IN
This does not include songs the members were in before they were
members of Guns n' Roses.
Axl's voice appears on several songs from various artists.
"I Will Not Go Quietly" (Don Henley, "The End of The Innocence)
"Free Fallin'" (Tom Petty)
"Welcome to the Jungle" (Ice-T remake)
"I Did You No Wrong" (Steve Jones)
"Dead Flowers" (Gilby Clarke, "Pawn Shop Guitars")
Slash's trademark guitar work can be found on the following songs.
"Give in to Me" (Michael Jackson, "Dangerous")
"Black or White" (Michael Jackson, "Dangerous")
"Will You Be There" (Michael Jackson, "Dangerous")
"Always on the Run" (Lenny Kravitz, "Mama Said")
"Fields of Joy" (Lenny Kravitz, "Mama Said")
"Tie Your Mother Down" (Brian May, Tonight Show)
"Hey Stoopid" (Alice Cooper, "Hey Stoopid")
"I Ain't No Nice Guy" (Motorhead, "March Or Die")
"Wiggle Wiggle" (Bob Dylan)
"I Don't Live Today" (Band of Gypsies, "Stone Free: A Tribute
to Jimi Hendrix")
"The Hunter" (Paul Rodgers, "Tribute to Muddy Waters")
"Believe In Me" (Duff, "Believe In Me")
"Just Not There" (Duff, "Believe In Me")
"Cure Me ... Or Kill Me ..." (Gilby Clarke, "Pawn Shop Guitars")
"Tijuana Jail" (Gilby Clarke, "Pawn Shop Guitars")
Duff can be found playing various instruments with:
"Jail Guitar Doors" (Gilby Clarke, "Pawn Shop Guitars")
Matt pounds a solid beat for these artists:
"(Fucked Up) Beyond Belief" (Duff, "Believe In Me")
Gilby's rhythm guitar can be found on these songs:
"10 Years" (Duff, "Believe In Me")
Slash and Duff appear on Iggy Pop's album. They performed on:
"Home"
"Butt Town"
"Pussy"
"My Baby Wants Rock n Roll"
Slash and Duff performed on "Burn Out" (tribute to Les Paul)
Slash, Izzy, and Axl perform on "Under My Wheels", a remake with
Alice Cooper for the soundtrack to 'The Decline of Western
Civilization Part II: The Metal Years')
GNR SONGS OTHER BANDS HAVE COVERED
Asphalt Ballet covered the song "Crash Diet" on their album "Pigs".
Ice-T has covered "Welcome to the Jungle".
VIDEOS GNR MEMBERS HAVE APPEARED IN
MTV/MUSIC VIDEOS
Slash, Duff, Steve, Izzy - "Wild Thing" (Sam Kinison)
Axl - "Dead, Jail, or Rock n Roll" (Michael Monroe)
HOME VIDEOS
Duff, Home video, "Give Peace a Chance". Duff is a member of
the Peace Choir
Hard N' Heavy Metal Magazine, Volume 13 [ Since I have
this, I will look into it and see what other juicy
things are in there ]
OTHER PUBLISHED MATERIAL
Thanks to Paul Negyesi for compiling this information
"Appetite for Destruction: The Days of Guns n' Roses"
Danny Sugerman St. Martin's Press, New York, U.S.A.
(c) 1991 ISBN 0-312-07634-7
"Guns n' Roses, The World's Most Outrageous Hard Rock Band"
Paul Elliott Hamlyin Publishing Group, New York, USA
(c) 1990 ISBN 0-688-10054-6
"Guns n' Roses, The Most Dangerous Band in the World"
Mick Wall Hyperion
(c) 1991 ISBN 1-56282-951
"Guns n' Roses: Low Life in the Far Lane"
Eddy McSquare Omnibus Press, England
(c) 1991 ISBN 07119-2793-6
"Guns n' Roses: The Photographic History"
Robert John, Forward by W. Axl Rose
Little Brown&Co, Boston, USA
(c) 1993 ISBN 0-316-46695-6
This is not about Guns n' Roses, per se, but should contain the
story "Without You", for which the song "November Rain" is based.
"The Language of Fear", Del James. Rumored release is Spring, 1994
I have a friend who works in a bookstore, and she can't
find it anywhere.
AWARDS THE BAND HAS RECEIVED [ I have never paid attention to this. Your
help in completing this section is appreciated ]
1988 MTV: Best New Artist
MTV: Best Video (Welcome to the Jungle)
1989 American Music Awards: Best Heavy Metal Album for Appetite
for Destruction?)
American Music Awards: Best Heavy Metal Song for Paradise
City?)
MTV: Best Heavy Metal Video (Steet Child O' Mine)
1991 MTV: "Michael Jackson" Vanguard Award for Lifetime Achievement
THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF THE BAND
1985 Two days after the original lineup is formed, GnR embarks on
their first tour, The Hell Tour. All dates except first on in
Seattle are cancelled. The band wound up hitching a ride
to the show after their car broke down.
Since the "tour" didn't work out, they moved back to LA,
living in the infamous "Hellhouse." They lived and
rehearsed there, sold drugs, sold women, and threw parties.
They would even steal money from purses.
1986 March 26. Band is signed to Geffen Records.
Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide sells all 10,000 issues in two weeks.
Mint condition copies of this record are worth over $350 in
some collectors markets. Sealed copies of this record do
exist but are very rare.
1987 July 31. Appetite for Destruction is released. This debut
album would become the first debut album in the Top Five
since Led Zeppelin in 1969.
Controversy surrounding the original cover arrises and the
band changes the cover. Shrink-wrapped copies of this
record are worth $60+ in collectors markets.
1988 December 5. Lies is released. [ Someone says 11/30/88??? ]
Band participates in "Party Ninjas All-Star Benefit",
raising money for 'Find the Children'.
Axl is arrested, and pleads guilty, on assault charges
after attacking a security guard during a performance in
Atlanta. The guard was apparently harassing one of Axl's
friends. A roadie sang "Communication Breakdown", Izzy
sang some Rolling Stones covers, and Slash did a 15 minute
instrumental to complete the set.
1989 While on tour with the Rolling Stones, Axl announced the band
was finished because one of the members of the band was too
busy dancing with Mr. Brownstone. That member was Slash,
who admitted the addiction on stage the following night.
Guns n' Roses is the first band since 1969 to have two albums
in the Top Five ("Appetite for Destruction" and "Lies").
Izzy got banned from air travel after relieving himself in an
airplane galley. Nothing happened to him on the plane, but
he was greeted by a dozen police officers when the plane
touched down.
Duff and Slash, drunk while accepting an award during
the live American Music Awards, swore a few times. They
have not been live since. Slash later says of the
controversy, "In the general scheme of thigs, who the fuck
cares?"
1990 April 1. Duff divorces his wife, Mandy Brix, lead singger
for Lame Flames.
April 7. Guns n' Roses performs at Farm Aid IV.
April 28. Axl marries Erin Everly and annulls it later the
same year.
Axl is arrested on assault charges by a neighbor. Charges
are eventually dropped due to lack of evidence.
1991 A riot in St. Louis breaks out because Axl sees someone from
the second row taking pictures of the band. Security refuses
to take action, so Axl dives into the crowd after him. Axl
walks off stage, followed by the band. In the riot, the band
loses all their equipment: PA, guitars, etc. Axl would
eventually be charged for inciting a riot.
Throughout the Use Your Illusion tour, Axl is notorious for
starting shows late. Tickets are printed with "Showtime
around 8:30pm." Some shows did not start until after midnight,
and could last more than three hours.
September 17. Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II
are released.
After receiving the vanguard award, Axl says it has nothing
to do with Michael Jackson as he leaves the stage.
1992 Slash marries Renee Suran.
Duff marries Linda Johnson. She takes the name McKagan.
During the summer tour with Metallica in Montreal, Axl
stopped the show 50 minutes into their set, saying "Please
get your money back, I'm outta here." A riot ensues. This
is also the same show where James Hetfield from Metallica
was burned in a pyrotechnic explosion.
1993 Slash is blasted for sponsoring Black Death Vodka, a
product which is packaged in a coffin.
The band (and Axl) gets pounded by the media for the
inclusion of the song "Look At your Game Girl" on their
cover abum, "The Spaghetti Incident?". Industry sources
say that Manson's royalties could amount to $62,000 for
every million copes of TSI? that are sold. Axl plans to
donate profits from having that song on the release to an
environmental group the help protect wildlife and the oceans.
According to court rulings, all royalties due Manson will
in fact go to Bartek Frykowski, the son of Wojiciech
Frykowski who was one of seven victims of the 1969 Manson
family murder rampage in Los Angeles.
1994 Axl is sued by ex-wife Erin Everly and ex-girlfriend
Stephanie Seymour for battery. The story makes headlines
in "People" magazine on the heels of OJ Simpson's
murder trial.
MEANING BEHIND SONGS
I have a lot of stuff off-line on the meanings of songs, but
haven't had the time to include it. Please send along your
knowledge. I really want stuff that's *proven*, not hypotheses,
like interpretations of songs and stuff. Here's a couple of
examples. Thanks to Greg Lucas for transcribing an interview
with the information in it!!
The following songs are from "Appetite For Destruction"
Welcome to the Jungle: About life on the streets of LA
It's So Easy: It's about how easy it can be to take ad-
vantage of people. "we didn't have money, but we
had a lot of hangers on and girls we could
basically live off of...things were just too easy."
- Duff
Night Train: "This song's not about drugs or anything,
it's about a walk in the park". - Slash Most of
the band will tell you it was the only alcohol
they drank because it was cheap and you could get
blasted.
Out Ta Get Me: "It's just being railroaded into something
and trying to get out from underneath it. You know
- parents, teachers, preachers... everybody." - Axl
Mr. Brownstone: "It's a good little ditty that people can
listen to and maybe think about what they're doing.
Try and get themselves in perspective." - Slash
Paradise City: I wrote this song "when I first moved to
L.A., when I didn't know me anybody and was kinda
feeling a little down. So that kinda came out,
like reaching for something, you know?" - Duff
My Michelle: "I met her when I was 13, and went out with
her later. But we ran into a hassle and I wrote
this song." - Axl
Think About You: "It's a quick love song about drugs, sex,
Hollywood and money." - Izzy
Sweet Child O' Mine: "That's a true story about my
girlfriend at [the] time." - Axl "That's a real
love song." - Izzy
You're Crazy: "It was written on acoustic, about another
girl we know who was crazy." - Axl
Anything Goes: "Basically, I just wanted that song an
'anything goes in sex' type song." - Axl
Rocket Queen: "I'm singing as if it's me, but it's about
this girl I know. I'm singing as though I was in
her shoes, and then at the end of the song I'm
singing the song to her. The girl it's written
about, her life's history now.. I mean, she's
alive, but there's not much left of it.." - Axl
From "Lies":
One in a Million: "It was originally written as comedy. It
was written watching Sam Kinison during one of his
first specials. I was sitting around with friends,
drunk, with no money. One of my friends had just
gotten robbed for seventy-eight cents on Christmas
by two black men. ... The song is very generic.
it's very vague, it's very simple, it was meant to
be that way, it was written that way." - Axl
From "The Spaghetti Incident?":
Look At Your Game Girl: "it's about a woman who has thrown
things away. She thinks she's gaining love but
basically she's gaining sadness." - Axl
OTHER FACTS AND TIDBITS ABOUT ...
... THE BAND:
Where did Axl's name come from?
Axl's biological father's name was Rose. 'Axl' was apparantly
the name of an early band of his. Keeping the 'W' from his
birthname William, his name became W. Axl Rose. There are those
who say that he chose this name because it's an anagram for
"Oral Sex".
What is Matt Sorum's history?
Matt did some session recording for various people, including
Belinda Carlisle, Jeff Paris, Tori Read, Ed Mann.
In the late 1970's, he was in and Australian band called "IQ".
How did Matt come to be a member of the band?
"I was doing the tour with the Cult, and our last two shows were in
L.A. at the Universal Amphitheatre. Slash and Duff, the guitarist
and bass player for Guns N' Roses, came out to the show. They hung
out at the sound board the whole time. About five weeks after that
got a phone call, "Hey Matt, this is Slash. Do you want to come and
record our album? Steven is no longer in the band." I went down
thinking I was just going to do the album, which is what I told the
guys in the Cult, figuring I'd be able to do the Cult album after
that About two weeks into rehearsals, Slash asked me if I wanted to
be in the band as a member." - Matt Sorum
How does the band like to record their material?
According to Matt, they don't use click tracks, ever. The band
doesn't believe in punching in anywhere, ever, "so those
eight-minute songs had to make it all the way to the end. On the
song "Coma," I made it all the way through the track and then blew
the last fill. When that kind of stuff happened I'd say, "Can't we
just punch that in?" "No way, sorry."
What does "Uzi Suicide" mean/represent?
Uzi Suicide is the name of the label that Guns n' Roses used to
release "Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide". According to Geffen Records,
no other bands have released material on this label, and according
to the creative rights in their recording contract, the label is
kept around on all their released material. The complete name is
actually "Uzi Suicide Record Co."
Though Geffen says no other band has released material on this
label, Hanoi Rocks re-released their albums on this label. Axl is
also looking for other groups to sign to this label.
Davis Farm, a band from Los Angeles, will be recording their debut
album on Uzi Suicide. Assassin, a band with Axl's brother in it,
will also be recording an album on this label.
... THE COVERS:
Where did the original cover from "Appetite for Destruction" come from?
It's a picture done by Robert Williams. [ He actually has a book
that contains this picture. ]
Why was the original cover banned?
Apparently, some distributers thought the cover was demeaning to
women, so the band had to change covers. There was one pressing
of this cover in the US. The original cover was not banned in
Europe.
What is the story behind the inside of the "Lies" cover?
There was an original pressing of "Lies" in the US without the
censored breasts. It was then re-released with the censored line.
This was not censored in European releases, but may no longer be
available.
Where did the cover concepts for the UYI releases come from?
According to an interview with Axl, Slash and he were at an art
show and saw a painting whose title was "Use Your Illusion". The
artist of this painting was Mark Kostabi.
The actual paintings for the albums are a stylized version of a
huge Renaissance painting by Raphael. The name of this painting is
"School of Athens".
... THE SONGS:
Who are Dr. Michael Smolens, Sam Straton and Steve Rogers, credited in
"Coma"?
These guys were the doctors and ambulance attendents who saved
Axl's life after a drug overdose. During the recording session,
Axl asked if they would like to help. They agreed and are the
voices saying:
(at 2:57 of the song)
1st: "OK, let's get this guy in the program please, we're losing
him."
2nd: "Start an IV please."
1st: "Come on ... his airways ... someone's got to protect his
airways. I want two ..."
2nd: "Where's the defibbrilator?"
1st: "Two IV's over here please. That's two more now. We're
losing him."
2nd: "Let's go."
1st: "OK, we're starting to lose this guy. Where's the crash
cart? I want his airways protected, two IV's."
2nd: " ... slow motion here. This guy's goin ..."
3rd: "Let's get him in ER."
2nd: "... goin out on us."
3rd: "Who's got the defibrillator?"
(at 5:44 of the song)
1st: "OK, we're starting to lose this guy. I want that IV and
his airway protected!"
2nd: "Let's get some people in here!"
1st: "Get the crash cart please, we're losing this guy. He's
goin ..."
2nd: "Give me an airway please."
1st: "... goin under."
2nd: "How 'bout an IV stat?"
1st: "OK ... you better protect the airway, you're starting to
lose him."
What are the definitions given in the video "Estranged"?
There were three definitions given for "Estranged":
1. "Estranged: to remove customary environment or associations".
2. "Estranged: to arouse esp. mutual enmity or indifference in where
there had formerly been love, affection, or friendliness."
3. "syn 'Estrange' implies the development of indifference or
hostility with consequent separation or divorcement; "
There were two definitions given for "Disillusion":
1. "disillusion: the condition of being disenchanted"
2. "disillusion: to leave without illusion or naive faith and trust -
disillusionment"
... THEIR VIDEOS:
Who is the other person who appears singing in "Don't Cry?"
It's Shannon Hoon, lead singer of Blind Melon. He grew up in
Lafayette, IN, as did Axl, and after moving out to LA, hooked up
with Axl. Shannon sings many background tracks on the UYI
releases.
Where were the live performance shots for the "Paradise City" taken from?
New Jersey's Giants Stadium and Donnintown Castle.
Who is the "devil" in the video for "Since I Don't Have You"?
Gary Oldman, a British actor. He has starred as Sid Vicious
"Sid & Nancy", Dracula in "Bram Stoker's Dracula", and Lee Harvey
Odwald in "JFK".
... THE SPAGHETTI INCIDENT?:
What happened to the punk EP they were going to release?
TSI? is that release. According to Slash, it just ballooned into
a bigger project.
What is the meaning behind the title, "The Spaghetti Incident?"?
According to Axl, no one will ever guess. He says it's an inside
joke with the band, but there really is a spaghetti incident.
Slash says it has something to do with while they were in court.
Apparently, while Steven was still in the band, he ate some of
Slash's leftover spaghetti. This was brought up in court as 'the
spaghetti incident'.
Where can the original songs that appear on TSI? be found?
This information is from "Entertainment Weekly," November 26, 1993
SONG TITLE ARTIST RECORD
New Rose The Damned Anarchy in the UK (Rhino)
I Don't Care About You Fear The Record (Slash)
Raw Power The Stooges Raw Power (Columbia)
Human Being The New York In Too Much Too Soon (Mercury)
Dolls
Ain't It Fun The Dead Boys We Have Come for Your
Children (Sire)
You Can't Put Your Arm Johnny Thunders So Alone (Sire/Warner Bros.)
Around a Memory
Big Dumb Sex Soundgarden Louder Than Love
Who wanted which songs to appear on TSI?
Axl wanted the following songs on the CD: "Since I Don't Have You",
"Down On The Farm", "Bleack Leather", and "Look At Your Game
Girl".
Duff was responsible for "New Rose", "Attitude", and "Can't Put Your
Arm Around a Memory".
Slash got these songs onto TSI?: "Buick Makane / Big Dumb Sex", "Hair
of the Dog", and "I Don't Care About You".
The whole band wanted "Human Being" on the CD.
Michael Monroe was responsible for "Ain't It Fun" being on the CD.
What is the name of the thirteenth (hidden) track from TSI?
It is called "Look At Your Game Girl" which was originally written
by Charles Manson.
... CURRENT PROJECTS
What is the status of their next record?
According to Geffen Records and BFD Entertainment, the band
has started pre-production work on their next album. Slash
says there are 8 songs written for the new album. According to
Slash, they are waiting for lyrics from Axl before they begin
official recording. The band is under no contractual agreement
to release an album this year.
What is the status of Gilbly's solo project?
Gilby's solo release, "Pawn Shop Guitars" was released on July 26,
1994.
... SOLO PROJECTS:
What releases do band members have as the result of solo projects?
Duff has released a solo album: "Believe in Me" on Geffen Records
Izzy has a released a solo album: "Izzy Stradlin and the Ju Ju
Hounds" on Geffen Records
Gilby has released a solo album: "Pawnshop Guitars" on Virgin
Records
... THEIR LIVE SHOWS:
What bands have Guns n' Roses opened for?
The Cult, September, 1987
Motley Crue, 1987
Alice Cooper, 1987
Aerosmith, 1987 (Permanent Vacation tour)
Iron Maiden, May, 1988 (quit when Axl developed voice problems)
Rolling Stones, October, 1989 (Los Angeles)
What bands have opened for Guns n' Roses?
Faith No More, 1992 (Stadium co-headlining tour with Metallica)
Nine Inch Nails, 1991 (Europe)
Skid Row, 1991, 1992
Smashing Pumpkins, 1991
Soundgarden, 1992
Blind Melon, 1993 (Spring tour)
Soul Asylum
Suicidal Tendencies
Motorhead
Body Count
Rose Tattoo, 1993 (Australia)
Brian May, 1993 (Winter/Spring tour)
Why did the band have a problem going on stage ON TIME during their
1991-1992 world tour?
According to Axl, he tries to put on the best show possible.
Sometimes he doesn't feel ready at showtime, so he waits until he
feels he can give the crowd the best possible performance.
... MISC QUESTIONS
Where is "Without You", the story written by Del James, published?
This story has not yet been published.
What does Axl have against Warren Beatty? (Axl ripped Warren to shreads
during the Pay-per-view performance from Paris, France in 1992)
Apparently, Warren left Stephanie Seymour and their kid, just
prior to her and Axl getting together, for Annette Bening, his
current wife.
Who is Craig Duswalt?
Craig is Axl's personal assistant.
--
Jeff Boerio \\ URL: http://www.teleport.com/~boerio/index.html
Systems Programmer \\
\\ Music pages, summer concert tour information
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