Guns N ' Roses - wikipedia Guns N ' Roses `` Guns and Roses '' redirects here. For other uses, see Guns and Roses ( disambiguation ). Guns N ' Roses Guns N ' Roses in 2017. From left to right, Dizzy Reed, Richard Fortus, Duff McKagan, Axl Rose, Slash, Melissa Reese & Frank Ferrer Background information Also known as G N ' R, GNR Origin Los Angeles, California, U.S. Genres Hard rock heavy metal Years active 1985 -- present Labels Geffen Uzi Suicide Black Frog Associated acts BulletBoys the Dead Daisies Hollywood Rose Johnny Crash Kings of Chaos L.A. Guns Love Spit Love Metallica Neurotic Outsiders Nine Inch Nails Praxis Primus the Psychedelic Furs Road Crew Slash 's Snakepit Velvet Revolver Website gunsnroses.com Members Axl Rose Duff McKagan Slash Dizzy Reed Richard Fortus Frank Ferrer Melissa Reese Past members See : List of Guns N ' Roses band members Guns N ' Roses, often abbreviated as GNR, is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. The lineup, when first 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. Guns N ' Roses has released six studio albums, accumulating sales of more than 100 million records worldwide, including 45 million in the United States, making them the 41st best - selling artist of all time. Guns N ' Roses ' debut album, Appetite for Destruction ( 1987 ), reached number one on the Billboard 200 a year after its release, on the strength of `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '', the band 's only single to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The album has sold approximately 30 million copies worldwide, including 18 million units in the United States, making it the best - selling debut album of all time in the US, as well as the eleventh best - selling album in the United States. The success of the debut was followed by the eight - song album G N ' R Lies ( 1988 ) which reached number two on the Billboard 200. The twin albums Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II ( 1991 ) debuted at number two and number one on the Billboard 200 respectively and have sold a combined 35 million copies worldwide, including 14 million units in the United States. 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 several lineup changes, Guns N ' Roses released the long - awaited album Chinese Democracy ( 2008 ) which, at an estimated $14 million in production costs, is the most expensive rock album to ever be produced in music history. It debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 but undersold industry expectations, despite mostly positive critical reception. Former members Slash and McKagan both rejoined the band in 2016, embarking on the Not in This Lifetime... Tour. The tour is currently the fourth highest - grossing concert tour of all - time, grossing over $480 million by December 2017. Guns N ' Roses ' late 1980s and early 1990s years have been described as the period in which the group brought forth a `` hedonistic rebelliousness '' reminiscent of the early Rolling Stones, a reputation that had earned the group the nickname `` the most dangerous band in the world ''. The band 's classic lineup, along with later members keyboardist Dizzy Reed and drummer Matt Sorum, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, its first year of eligibility. The band 's membership has changed many times since the early 1990s, with Rose and Reed as the only two constant members since 1990. The current lineup consists of Rose, Slash, McKagan, Reed, guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer and keyboardist Melissa Reese. Contents 1 History 1.1 Formation ( 1985 -- 1986 ) 1.2 Breakthrough and mass popularity ( 1987 -- 1989 ) 1.2. 1 Appetite for Destruction 1.2. 2 G N ' R Lies 1.3 International success and band turmoil ( 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 Member departures and sporadic activity ( 1994 -- 1999 ) 1.5 The `` new '' Guns N ' Roses and Chinese Democracy ( 1999 -- 2008 ) 1.6 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, touring and Appetite for Democracy ( 2009 -- 2014 ) 1.7 Regrouping, Not in This Lifetime... Tour and future ( 2015 -- present ) 2 Legacy, style, influence and criticism 3 Band members 4 Awards 5 Discography 6 Tours 7 References 8 Bibliography 9 External links History Formation ( 1985 -- 1986 ) Main articles : Hollywood Rose and L.A. Guns Pre-Guns N ' Roses band Hollywood Rose playing in 1984. In 1984, Hollywood Rose member Izzy Stradlin was living with L.A. Guns member Tracii Guns. When L.A. Guns needed a new vocalist, Stradlin suggested Hollywood Rose singer Axl Rose. Guns N ' Roses was formed in March 1985 by Rose and rhythm guitarist Stradlin, along with lead guitarist Tracii Guns, bassist Ole Beich, and drummer Rob Gardner of L.A. Guns. The band coined its name by combining the names of both previous groups. Rejected names for the band included `` Heads of Amazon '' and `` AIDS ''. After a short time, during which the band reportedly played two or three shows, Beich was fired and replaced by Duff McKagan. Tracii Guns left the band after an argument with Rose leading to his replacement by Rose and Stradlin 's one - time Hollywood Rose bandmate, Slash. Gardner quit soon after and was replaced by another former Hollywood Rose member, Steven Adler. Slash had also previously played with McKagan and Adler in Road Crew. `` We had a singer ( Mike Jagosz ) that our manager did n't like, so we fired him. So then I asked Axl to join L.A. Guns and he was in the band for about six, seven months. The same manager ended up hating Axl and he wanted to fire him. We 're all living together at this point and Axl and I sat down and went ' What are we going to do ? ' So we both said ' Fuck that ', and came up with the name Guns N ' Roses, which was going to be just a record label that we 'd put singles out on. '' -- Original guitarist Tracii Guns The band 's `` classic '' lineup was finalized on June 4, 1985 when Adler and Slash officially joined. After two days of rehearsals, the band played their first show with the lineup on June 6, 1985. Two days later, the band embarked on a short, disorganized tour of the West Coast, from Sacramento, California, to McKagan 's hometown of Seattle, Washington. The band drove in a separate van and had to abandon their gear when both vans broke down on the way to Seattle, forcing them to hitch - hike up the coast and back home to LA with only their guitars. The so - called `` Hell Tour '' settled 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. '' Through the band 's increasing presence on the Hollywood club scene -- playing famed bars such as The Troubadour and The Roxy -- Guns N ' Roses drew the attention of major record labels. The group signed with Geffen Records in March 1986, receiving a $75,000 advance. They had turned down an offer from Chrysalis Records that was nearly double Geffen 's, due to Chrysalis wanting to change the band 's image and sound and Geffen offering full artistic freedom. In December of that year, the group released the four - song EP Live ? ! * @ Like a Suicide, designed to keep interest in the band alive while the group withdrew from the club scene to work in the studio. The EP release was designed to sooth over the label, who felt the band did n't have enough songs to record an album. The EP contained covers of Rose Tattoo 's `` Nice Boys '' and Aerosmith 's `` Mama Kin '', along with two original compositions : the punk - influenced `` 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. Breakthrough and mass popularity ( 1987 -- 1989 ) Guitarist Slash ( left ) and lead singer Axl Rose ( right ) were the band 's most public faces during its late 1980s - early 1990s heyday Appetite for Destruction Guns N ' Roses ' debut album Appetite for Destruction was released July 21, 1987. The album underwent an artwork change after the original cover design by Robert Williams, which depicted a surrealist scene in which a dagger - toothed monster vengefully attacks a robot rapist, was deemed too controversial. The band stated the original artwork was `` a symbolic social statement, with the robot representing the industrial system that 's raping and polluting our environment. '' The revised cover was done by Andy Engell, based on a design by tattoo artist Bill White Jr., who had designed the artwork for a tattoo Rose had acquired the previous year. The artwork featured each of the five band members ' skulls layered on a cross. In the U.S., `` Welcome to the Jungle '' was issued as the album 's first single, with an accompanying music video. Initially, the album and single lingered for almost a year without performing well, but when Geffen founder David Geffen was asked to lend support to the band, he obliged, personally convincing MTV executives to play `` Welcome to the Jungle '' during the network 's after - hours rotation. Even though the video was initially only played once at 4 a.m. on a Sunday, heavy metal and hard rock fans took notice and soon began requesting the video and song en masse. The song, written in Seattle, was about Los Angeles. The music video took place in New York. According to Rose, the inspiration for the lyrics came from an encounter he and a friend had with a homeless man while they were coming out of a bus into New York. Trying to put a scare into the young runaways, the man yelled at them, `` You know where you are ? You 're in the jungle baby ; you 're gon na die ! '' The song was featured in the 1988 Dirty Harry film The Dead Pool, starring Clint Eastwood, and members of the band had a cameo appearance in the film. Steven Adler ( left ) was the band 's drummer from 1985 to 1990, when he was replaced by Matt Sorum ( right ). Sorum was fired from the band in 1997. Guns N ' Roses `` Welcome to the Jungle '' ( 1987 ) Sample of `` Welcome to the Jungle '' from Appetite for Destruction, the album 's opening track and the band 's first single in the United States. Problems playing this file ? See media help. `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' was the album 's second U.S. single, a love song co-written by Rose as a poem for his then - girlfriend Erin Everly, daughter of Don Everly of the Everly Brothers. Due to the growing grassroots success of the band and the cross-gender appeal of the song, `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' and its accompanying music video received heavy airplay on both radio and MTV, becoming a huge hit during the summer of 1988 and reaching the top of the charts in the U.S. Slash later commented, `` I hated that song with a huge passion for the longest time, and it turned out to be our hugest hit, so it goes to show what I know. '' The song was released in Japan as part of the EP Live from the Jungle, which also featured a selection of live recordings from the band 's June 1987 dates at London 's The Marquee, the group 's first shows outside the United States. The song is the highest charting Guns N ' Roses song, and is the band 's only song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100. After the success of `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '', `` Welcome to the Jungle '' was re-issued as a single and reached No. 7 in the U.S. By the time `` Paradise City '' and its video reached the airwaves, peaking at No. 5 in the U.S., Appetite for Destruction had reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200. To date, the album has sold in excess of 30 million copies worldwide, including 18 million units sold in the United States, making it the best - selling debut album of all time in the U.S, in addition to being the eleventh best - selling album in the United States. Guns N ' Roses toured extensively in support of their debut album, embarking on the 16 - month - long Appetite for Destruction Tour. In addition to headlining dates in Europe and the U.S., the band opened North American shows for The Cult, Mötley Crüe, and Alice Cooper throughout the second half of 1987. During the 1987 tour, drummer Steven Adler broke his hand in a fight, and was replaced for 8 shows by Cinderella drummer Fred Coury. Bassist Duff McKagan missed several shows in May 1988 to attend his wedding ; Kid `` Haggis '' Chaos from The Cult filled in. Don Henley of the Eagles played drums for the band during the 1989 AMA show while Adler was in rehab. The band proceeded to tour the United States, Australia and Japan, while serving as opening acts on North America shows by Iron Maiden and Aerosmith. Tim Collins, Aerosmith 's then - manager, remarked, `` By the end of the tour, Guns N ' Roses were huge. They basically just exploded. We were all pissed that Rolling Stone Magazine showed up to do a story on Aerosmith, but Guns N ' Roses ended up on the cover of the magazine. Suddenly, the opening act was bigger than we were. '' G N ' R Lies Izzy Stradlin was the band 's rhythm guitarist from 1985 until 1991. Guns N ' Roses ' next album, G N ' R Lies, was released in November 1988. It included the four recordings from the band 's 1986 EP Live ? ! * @ Like a Suicide, as well as four new acoustic tracks. `` Patience '', the only single released from G N ' R Lies, peaked at No. 4 in the U.S., while the album itself reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The album cover, a parody of tabloid newspapers, was modified after initial pressings to remove the headlines `` Wife - beating has been around for 10,000 years '' and `` Ladies, welcome to the dark ages ''. The song `` One in a Million '' raised accusations of racism and homophobia. Rose denied that he was a racist and defended his use of a racial slur, claiming that `` it 's a word to describe somebody that is basically a pain in your life, a problem. The word nigger does n't necessarily mean black, '' as well as listing the rap group N.W.A. and the John Lennon song Woman Is the Nigger of the World as other examples of musicians using the word. Several years later, Rose conceded that he had used the word as an insult towards black people who had tried to rob him, also using the word because it was taboo. In response to the allegations of homophobia, Rose stated that he considered himself `` pro-heterosexual '' and blamed this attitude on `` bad experiences '' with gay men. Guns N ' Roses ' late 1980s shows were often eventful for more than just the band 's performance. During a November 1987 show in Atlanta, Rose assaulted a security guard and was held backstage by police, while his band mates continued playing with a roadie singing. Riots nearly broke out during two August 1988 shows in New York State. At England 's Monsters of Rock festival, held that same month, two fans were crushed to death during the group 's set by the slam - dancing crowd. During the first of four October 1989 dates opening for the Rolling Stones at the L.A. Coliseum, Rose announced that the shows would be the group 's last if certain members of the band did not stop `` dancing with Mr. Brownstone, '' a reference to the band 's song of the same name about heroin. Events such as these helped earn Guns N ' Roses the moniker `` The Most Dangerous Band in the World. '' International success and band turmoil ( 1990 -- 1993 ) Use Your Illusion I and II Main articles : Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II The band 's logo typeface In 1990, Guns N ' Roses returned to the studio to begin recording the band 's most ambitious undertaking yet. Drummer Steven Adler was briefly fired from the band over his drug use, but he was reinstated after signing a contract in which he vowed to stop taking drugs. During the recording session of `` Civil War '', Adler was unable to perform well due to his struggles with cocaine and heroin addiction, and his difficulties in the studio caused the band to do nearly 30 takes. Adler claimed at the time he was sick from taking opiate blockers to try to kick his addictions. Adler was fired on July 11, 1990 as a result, and later filed a lawsuit against the band. Adler recalled the reason for the lawsuit and recapped his firing in a 2005 interview : Doug Goldstein called me into the office about two weeks later. He wanted me to sign some contracts. I was told that every time I did heroin, the band would fine me $2,000. There was a whole stack of papers, with colored paper clips everywhere for my signatures. What these contracts actually said was that the band were paying me $2,000 to leave. They were taking my royalties, all my writing credits. They did n't like me anymore and just wanted me gone. That 's why I filed the lawsuit -- to get all those things back. Martin Chambers ( Pretenders ) and Adam Maples ( Sea Hags ) were considered for the vacant drum position. Jussi Tegelman, a drummer from local band Havana Black, assisted on drums in studio sessions before a permanent replacement was found. The position was filled by drummer Matt Sorum, who had played briefly with The Cult. Slash credited Sorum with preventing the band from breaking up at the time. Duff McKagan was the band 's bassist from 1985 until 1997, returning in 2016. In response to an interviewer 's suggestion that replacing Adler with Sorum had turned Guns N ' Roses from a rock ' n ' roll band into a heavy metal one, Stradlin responded, `` Yeah, a big musical difference. The first time I realized what Steve did for the band was when he broke his hand in Michigan. Tried to punch through a wall and busted his hand. So we had Fred Coury come in from Cinderella for the Houston show. Fred played technically good and steady, but the songs sounded just awful. They were written with Steve playing the drums and his sense of swing was the push and pull that give the songs their feel. When that was gone, it was just... unbelievable, weird. Nothing worked. '' Guns N ' Roses `` November Rain '' ( 1991 ) Sample of November Rain from Use Your Illusion I, the longest song to reach top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Problems playing this file ? See media help. A few months prior, keyboardist Dizzy Reed became the sixth member of the group when he joined as a full - time member. Reed was previously bandmates with Matt Sorum in Johnny Crash. The band fired its manager, Alan Niven, replacing him with Doug Goldstein in May 1991. According to a 1991 cover story by Rolling Stone magazine, Rose forced the dismissal of Niven ( against the wishes of some of his band - mates ) by refusing to complete the albums until he was replaced. With enough music for two albums, the band released both Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II on September 17, 1991. The tactic paid off when the albums debuted at No. 2 and No. 1 respectively in the Billboard charts, setting a record as the band became the only group to achieve this feat until hip - hop artist Nelly accomplished the same in 2004. The albums sold 770,000 units ( Use Your Illusion II ) and 685,000 units ( Use Your Illusion I ) in first week sales. Both albums spent 108 weeks on the chart. The two albums have sold a combined 35 million copies worldwide, as well as 14 million sold in the United States. Guns N ' Roses accompanied the Use Your Illusion albums with many videos, including `` Do n't Cry '', `` November Rain '' and `` Estranged '', some of the most expensive music videos ever made. The hit ballad `` November Rain '' ( No. 3 US ) became the most requested video on MTV, eventually winning the 1992 MTV Video Music Award for best cinematography. It is also the longest song in US chart history to reach the Top Ten, clocking in at 8 : 57. During the awards show, the band performed the song with Elton John accompanying on piano. Both prior to and after the release of the albums, Guns N ' Roses embarked on the 28 - month - long Use Your Illusion Tour. It became famous for both its financial success and the many controversial incidents that occurred at the shows. The tour had 92 dates in 27 countries, with over seven million people attending concerts. It is considered the ' longest tour in rock history '. Use Your Illusion tour Main article : Use Your Illusion Tour The Use Your Illusion World Tour program included a guitar solo from Slash based on The Godfather theme, a piano - driven cover of `` It 's Alright '' by Black Sabbath, and an extended jam on the classic rock - inspired `` Move to the City '', where the group showcased the ensemble of musicians assembled for the tour. Many of the successful performances during the tour were overshadowed in the press by riots, late starts, and outspoken rants by Rose. While the band 's previous drug and alcohol issues were seemingly under control, Rose was often agitated by lax security, sound problems, and unwanted filming or recording of the performances. He also used the time between songs to fire off political statements or retorts against music critics or celebrity rivals. On July 2, 1991, at the Riverport Amphitheater in Maryland Heights, Missouri, just outside St. Louis, during a performance of `` Rocket Queen '', Rose discovered that a fan was filming the show with a camera. After asking the venue 's security to take away the camera, Rose decided to take it himself, jumping into the audience and tackling the fan. He had a heated confrontation with the fan before physically assaulting him. After being pulled out of the audience by members of the crew, Rose said, `` Well, thanks to the lame - ass security, I 'm going home ! '', threw his microphone to the ground and stormed off the stage. The angry crowd rioted, injuring dozens. Footage was captured by Robert John, who was documenting the entire tour. Rose was wanted by the police for inciting 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 security team had made four separate requests to the venue 's security staff to remove the camera, all of which were ignored, and that other members of the band had reported being hit by bottles launched from the audience, while the security staff was refusing to enforce a drinking limit. As a result, Use Your Illusion 's liner notes featured a hidden message amidst the Thank You section : `` Fuck You, St. Louis ! '' Dizzy Reed joined the band as keyboardist in 1990. Rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin abruptly quit the band on November 7, 1991, after a repeat of the St. Louis incident nearly unfolded during a concert in Germany. Stradlin cited a combination of Rose 's personal behavior, his mismanagement of the band, and difficulties being around Slash, Sorum, and McKagan, due to his new - found sobriety and their continuing alcohol and substance addictions. Stradlin later commented, `` Once I quit drugs, I could n't help looking around and asking myself, ' Is this all there is ? ' I was just tired of it ; I needed to get out. '' Slash commented on finding a replacement, saying, `` When Izzy left, we realized that we either had to find a new guitarist in three weeks or cancel a bunch of gigs. I had a piece of paper with about 30 - odd candidates listed. Duff was looking around and Axl had his ideas, but nobody seemed right. For a while it looked like Dave Navarro from Jane 's Addiction was going to join, but he could n't get it together, so that never happened. '' Stradlin was eventually replaced by Los Angeles - based guitarist Gilby Clarke, whom Slash credited for saving the band. During many shows throughout the tour, Rose introduced Clarke to the audience, and Slash and Clarke would then play `` Wild Horses '', a Rolling Stones cover. In late 1991, the band added a touring ensemble, which included a horns section and several background vocalists. In 1993, Clarke broke his arm in a motorcycle accident during the tour, and was replaced for several weeks by Stradlin. In 1992, the band appeared at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert, performing a three - song set. Because of the controversial song `` One in a Million '', activist group ACT UP demanded that the band be dropped from the bill, and urged other artists to shun the group and the crowd to boo it. Members of Queen dismissed the activists, with lead guitarist Brian May stating `` People seem so blind. Do n't they realize that the mere fact that Guns N ' Roses are here is the biggest statement that you could get ? '' Slash later performed `` Tie Your Mother Down '' with the remaining members of Queen and Def Leppard vocalist Joe Elliott, while Rose performed `` We Will Rock You '' and sang a duet with Elton John on `` Bohemian Rhapsody ''. Their personal set included `` Paradise City '' and `` Knockin ' on Heaven 's Door ''. When the band returned to the US for the second leg of the Use Your Illusion Tour, Brian May opened the shows with The Brian May Band. Rose had originally wanted the grunge band ( and Geffen labelmates ) Nirvana to open the band 's Use Your Illusion Tour, but lead singer Kurt Cobain refused. Later in the year, Guns N ' Roses went on the Guns N ' Roses / Metallica Stadium Tour, with American heavy metal band Metallica, being supported by Faith No More, Motörhead, and Body Count. During a show in August 1992 at Montreal 's Olympic Stadium, Metallica 's lead singer James Hetfield suffered second degree burns to his hands and face after malfunctions with a pyrotechnics blast. Metallica was forced to cancel the second hour of the show, but promised to return to the city for another performance. 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 members of G N ' R not being able to hear themselves. In addition, Rose claimed that his throat hurt, causing the band to leave the stage early. The cancellation led to another audience riot, with three police officers and 10 rioters injured. Police made at least a dozen arrests related to the incident. The pyro incident and riot can be seen on video in A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica. In a segment on the video, Hetfield mocked Rose and read his personal tour rider, making fun of various items on the list. Rose responded by addressing the crowd during a later concert, labeling Hetfield a racist for his decision to pull Body Count from the tour, and called him a ' stupid little cocksucker ' while bashing the rest of the band. On VH1 's Behind the Music documentary about Metallica, Hetfield stated that `` We could n't relate to Axl and his attitude. '' Other members of Metallica and Rose himself both stated that the two groups ' never really gelled '. External image Guns N ' Roses receiving an MTV Video Music Award in 1992. From left to right : Duff McKagan, Gilby Clarke, Axl Rose, Slash, Dizzy Reed, Matt Sorum In mid-1993, former drummer Steven Adler 's lawsuit against the band was settled out of court ; Adler received a back - payment check of $2,250,000 and 15 % royalties for songs he recorded. The Use Your Illusion tour ended in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 17, 1993. The tour set attendance records and lasted for 28 months, in which 194 shows were played. The show in Buenos Aires marked the last time that Sorum and Clarke would play in the band, as well as the last time Slash performed in the group until rejoining in 2016. `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' Main article : `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' Gilby Clarke replaced Izzy Stradlin as rhythm guitarist, playing from 1991 to 1994. On November 23, 1993, Guns N ' Roses released a collection of punk and glam rock covers entitled `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' Izzy Stradlin 's recorded guitar parts were replaced by Gilby Clarke. Many of the tracks were recorded during the same sessions as the Illusions albums, which were originally intended to produce 3 or 4 albums. Initially, the band was going to release a covers EP in 1992 or 1993, but decided on making a full album and recorded more songs. Bassist Duff McKagan sings on many of the album 's tracks and Hanoi Rocks frontman Michael Monroe appears on `` Ai n't It Fun '' as a guest vocalist. Slash described the recording of the album as `` spontaneous and unpainted ''. The title of the album is an inside joke referring to a food fight that occurred between Axl Rose and Steven Adler. During his lawsuit against the band, Adler 's attorney described the food fight as `` the Spaghetti Incident ''. The meaning was explained by drummer Matt Sorum in a 1994 interview with Much Music and confirmed by Slash in his autobiography, Slash. An unadvertised cover of the Charles Manson song `` Look at Your Game, Girl '' was included on the album. The track was kept secret, and was not included on advance tapes sent out to reviewers. Band manager Doug Goldstein stated `` There is a bonus track on the album, but Axl wants it to speak for itself, '' and that `` It was n't done for the critics or anybody else. It was a bonus for the fans. '' The inclusion of the song caused controversy, with law - enforcement and victims - rights groups expressing outrage. Rose claimed `` the reason we did n't list that song on our album is we wanted to downplay it. We do n't give any credit to Charles Manson on the album ; it 's like a hidden bonus track. '' The band considered removing the song from new pressings of the album, and David Geffen stated in a phone interview, `` I would hope that if Axl Rose had realized how offensive people would find this, he would not have ever recorded this song in the first place. The fact that Charles Manson would be earning money based on the fame he derived committing one of the most horrific crimes of the 20th Century is unthinkable to me ''. Slash mentioned that the song was `` done with naive and innocent black humor on our part ''. Rose stated he would donate all performance royalties from the song to a nonprofit environmental organization. Slash stated that the group intended to remove the song before the band decided to keep it after learning that royalties from the song would be donated to the Bartek Frykowski, the son of Wojciech Frykowski, a victim of Manson during the Tate Murders. Geffen Records released a statement mentioning that the label 's share of royalties would be donated to the Doris Tate Crime Victims Bureau. Years later, Rose said the song would be removed from new pressings of the album, claiming that critics and the media had misinterpreted his interest in Manson. Rose can be seen wearing a Manson shirt in the video for `` Estranged '' and during a concert in Milton Keynes, England, in 1993. Rose explained wearing the shirt as `` trying to make a statement '' because `` a lot of people enjoy playing me as the bad guy and the crazy. Sorry, I 'm not that guy. I 'm nothing like him. '' Despite the statement that the track would be removed, `` Look at Your Game, Girl '' is still featured on pressings of the album. The album debuted at number 4 on the Billboard charts, and sold 190,000 copies its first week. Despite initial success, `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' did not match the sales of the Illusion albums and its release consequently led to increased tension within the band. Member departures and sporadic activity ( 1994 -- 1999 ) Interviews with band members suggest that, between 1994 and 1996, the band sporadically wrote and recorded new material -- most of which, according to Slash, was written by Rose. Rose stated the exact opposite in an open letter on the official GN'R website in 2008, saying the album was mostly a `` Slash album '' and Rose was allowed very little input. According to Matt Sorum, in 1996, the band had recorded seven songs, with seven more in the writing stages, and intended to release a single album with 10 or 12 songs in spring 1997. Sorum also mentioned that Slash 's Snakepit 's debut album, It 's Five O'Clock Somewhere, `` could have been a Guns N ' Roses album, but Axl did n't think it was good enough. '' `` We still needed the collaboration of the band as a whole to write the best songs. Since none of that happened, that 's the reason why that material got scrapped. '' -- Axl Rose In May 1994, Gilby Clarke mentioned that there was `` no ' next ' Guns N ' Roses album '' : `` We started working on one, and it got canned. '' Sorum described the would - be album as `` not as sophisticated as Illusion, but not as wild as Appetite. '' The album was described by McKagan as consisting of `` up - tempo rock songs '' with `` no ballads ''. In 2002, Rose complimented the guitar work Slash had laid down, saying it was the `` best playing ( he 's ) done at least since Illusions. '' Rose mentioned the material was scrapped due to the lack of collaboration between band members. He told USA Today in 2012 that he did n't write any music `` for years '' in the mid-1990s because of criticism from Slash, McKagan, and ex-fiancee Stephanie Seymour. In January 1994, Rose inducted Elton John into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and later that night performed a duet with Bruce Springsteen on a cover of The Beatles ' `` Come Together ''. It was Rose 's final public performance for six years. Also in 1994, all of the members of the band at the time contributed to Gilby Clarke 's debut album, Pawnshop Guitars. In December 1994, GN'R released a cover of the Rolling Stones ' `` Sympathy for the Devil ''. The song appeared in the films Interview with the Vampire and Fallen and was released as a single. Entertainment Weekly stated that the ' note - for - note remake works up a decent lather but seems utterly bankrupt '. It is the final GN'R track to feature Slash on lead guitar, McKagan on bass, and Sorum on drums. The song also featured Rose 's childhood friend and Hollywood Rose collaborator Paul `` Huge '' Tobias on rhythm guitar. Tobias 's presence on the track and in the band created tension ; reportedly Slash had ' creative and personal differences ' with Tobias. A 2001 interview revealed Slash told his bandmates in September 1996, `` I 'm going to confront it. Either Paul goes, or ( I go ). '' `` The music was going in a direction that was completely indulgent to his friend ( Huge )... And another factor is this guy that Axl brought in and told us, ' This is our new guitar player '... There was no democracy there. And that 's when Slash really started going, ' Fuck this. What, this is his band now ? or something ? '... It was ridiculous. I 'd go down there to start rehearsal at 10, and Axl would show up at four or five in the morning. That sort of thing was going on for a couple of years. '' -- Duff McKagan Guitarist Zakk Wylde played with the band for several weeks and was considered as a potential second guitarist in 1995. Gilby Clarke 's contract was not renewed and he was gone from the band by 1995. Slash stated in his book that Rose fired Clarke without consulting anyone, claiming he was a `` hired hand ''. Clarke was not involved in the recording of ' Sympathy for the Devil ' : `` I knew that that was the ending because nobody told me about it. Officially I was in the band at that time, and they did that song without me. '' Clarke mentioned that before the final show of the Use Your Illusion Tour, Rose told him `` Hey, enjoy your last show ''. Clarke later sued the band over the use of his likeness in Guns N ' Roses Pinball. In 1996, Rose, Slash, McKagan, and former member Izzy Stradlin guested on Anxious Disease, the debut album by The Outpatience, featuring GN'R collaborator West Arkeen. The recording of `` Sympathy for the Devil '', coupled with tension between Slash and Rose, led the former to quit the band officially in October 1996. Rose sent a fax notifying MTV of the departure, and Slash responded : `` Axl and I have not been capable of seeing eye to eye on Guns N ' Roses for some time. We tried to collaborate, but at this point, I 'm no longer in the band. '' Slash stated, `` Axl 's whole visionary style, as far as his input in Guns N ' Roses, is completely different from mine. I just like to play guitar, write a good riff, go out there and play, as opposed to presenting an image. '' Slash was replaced by Nine Inch Nails touring guitarist Robin Finck in January 1997. He signed a two - year contract with the band in August 1997, making him an official member. Finck was originally recommended by Matt Sorum to Rose a year earlier as a possible second guitarist to complement Slash. Slash 's departure was followed shortly thereafter by Matt Sorum in April 1997, who was fired by Rose after getting in an argument about Tobias 's inclusion in the band. Sorum later stated Tobias was the `` Yoko Ono of Guns N ' Roses ''. McKagan was the last of the Appetite lineup to leave, resigning as bassist in August 1997. McKagan had recently become a father and wrote about his decision to leave in his autobiography : `` Guns had been paying rent on studios for three years now -- from 1994 to 1997 -- and still did not have a single song. The whole operation was so erratic that it did n't seem to fit with my hopes for parenthood, for stability. '' McKagan was replaced later that year by former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson. An actual break - up of Guns N ' Roses never occurred, as new players were brought in as the old ones left. Rose reportedly purchased the full rights to the Guns N ' Roses name in 1997. Slash claimed he and bandmates signed over the name under duress : `` Axl refused to go onstage one night during the Use Your Illusion tour in 1992 unless the band signed away the name rights to the band. Unfortunately, we signed it. I did n't think he 'd go on stage otherwise. '' Rose denied the claim, saying `` ( it ) Never happened, all made up, fallacy and fantasy. Not one single solitary thread of truth to it. Had that been the case I would have been cremated years ago legally, could 've cleaned me out for the name and damages. It 's called under duress with extenuating circumstances. '' Rose auditioned multiple potential members, including Chris Vrenna, Zakk Wylde, Dave Abbruzzese, and Michael Bland. Rolling Stone reported in April 1997 that the lineup of Guns N ' Roses was Rose, McKagan, Tobias, Finck & Vrenna. Dizzy Reed 's roommate and friend Sean Riggs participated with the group as a studio drummer sporadically during these years, receiving writing credits on `` Oh My God ''. Josh Freese was ultimately hired to replace Sorum on drums, joining in the summer of 1997. By the end of 1998, a new version of Guns N ' Roses had emerged : Rose, bassist Tommy Stinson, drummer Josh Freese, lead guitarist Robin Finck, rhythm guitarist Paul Tobias, keyboardist Dizzy Reed, and multi-instrumentalist Chris Pitman. Geffen released an edited single disc version of the Illusion albums in 1998, entitled Use Your Illusion. In November 1999, the label released Live Era ' 87 -- ' 93, a collection of live performances from various concerts during the Appetite for Destruction and Use Your Illusion tours. Former guitarist Slash described the selection of songs of the album as a `` very mutual effort '', further adding `` the live album was one of the easiest projects we all worked on. I did n't actually see Axl, but we communicated via the powers that be. '' Tommy Stinson, Chris Pitman, Bryan `` Brain '' Mantia, Robin Finck & Josh Freese all joined the band in the late ' 90s. The `` New '' Guns N ' Roses and Chinese Democracy ( 1999 -- 2008 ) Main articles : Chinese Democracy and Chinese Democracy Tour A new Guns N ' Roses album had reportedly been in the works since 1994, with Rose the only original member still in the band. Moby was reported to be producing with Guns N ' Roses in 1997, with work that sources described as `` sounding different from the sound you know... definitely electronic influenced. '' Mike Clink, who had previously produced every Guns N ' Roses album, was also attached to produce in May 1997. In April 1998, Moby was replaced by Youth, and the album was still in the writing stages. In July 1998, journalist Neil Strauss indicated that an ' electronica influenced ' album by a new Guns N ' Roses lineup was due in 1999. Rolling Stone stated that the label planned for the album to be released in late 1999. By August 1999, the band had recorded over 30 songs for the album, tentatively titled 2000 Intentions. September 1999 saw Youth being replaced by producer Sean Beaven. In November 1999, during an interview with Kurt Loder for MTV, Rose said that he had re-recorded Appetite for Destruction with the then - new band, apart from two songs which he had replaced with `` Patience '' and `` You Could Be Mine ''. During the interview, Rose announced the title of the upcoming album Chinese Democracy, stating : There 's a lot of Chinese democracy movements, and it 's something that there 's a lot of talk about, and it 's something that will be nice to see. It could also just be like an ironic statement. I do n't know, I just like the sound of it. ( The album has ) a lot of different sounds. There 's some heavy songs, there 's a lot of aggressive songs, but they 're all in different styles and different sounds. It is truly a melting pot. Band manager Doug Goldstein stated in November 1999 that the band had ' almost finished ' recording the music, and the album was due out some time in 2000. Later that month, the band released a new song, the industrial styled `` Oh My God '', which was included on the soundtrack of the film End of Days. The track featured additional guitar work by Dave Navarro and Gary Sunshine, Rose 's personal guitar teacher. Rose claimed that former members Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum had ' failed to see the potential ' of the song and had no interest in recording or playing the piece. Buckethead was the band 's lead guitarist from 2000 to 2004, while Richard Fortus joined on rhythm guitar in 2002. In August 1999, guitarist Robin Finck departed to rejoin his former band, Nine Inch Nails, on tour. In March 2000, avant - garde guitarist Brian Carroll, more commonly referred to as Buckethead, joined Guns N ' Roses as a replacement for Finck. Also in March 2000, drummer Josh Freese left the band, being replaced with Bryan `` Brain '' Mantia ( formerly of Primus ). Mantia, a childhood friend of Carroll 's, had previously worked with Buckethead in several bands, including Praxis. Robin Finck returned to the band in late 2000, to complement Buckethead on lead guitar. Queen guitarist Brian May and former Queen producer Roy Thomas Baker worked with the band in 2000. With the album nearing completion in mid-2000, Baker convinced Rose to re-record the entire album, causing further delays. In an interview with Rolling Stone in February 2000, Rose played several songs of the upcoming album to reporters, including `` Chinese Democracy '', `` Catcher in the Rye '', `` I.R.S. '', `` The Blues '', `` There was a Time '' and `` Oklahoma ''. Rose mentioned that part of the delay of the new album was him ' educating himself about the technology that 's come to define rock ', stating that `` it 's like from scratch, learning how to work with something, and not wanting it just to be something you did on a computer. '' Rolling Stone described the album as `` Led Zeppelin 's Physical Graffiti remixed by Beck and Trent Reznor. Rose mentioned that the expense of the record would be negated by the recording sessions yielding multiple albums, including a record that is `` more industrial and electronica - influenced than Chinese Democracy ''. At that point, the album had gone through multiple producers, including Youth, Moby, Mike Clink, Roy Thomas Baker, Eric Caudieux. At the time, Sean Beavan was producing, but Caram Costanzo and Axl Rose became the final credited producers on the album. The album had been completely re-recorded several times with varying musicians and producers. In a 2001 interview, Rose described the album as having `` all kinds of styles, many influences as blues, mixed in the songs '' and said that it was `` not industrial ''. Describing why he continued using the Guns N ' Roses name, instead of labeling the upcoming album an ' Axl Rose solo album ', Rose stated `` It is something I lived by before these guys were in it. And there were other people in Guns n ' Roses before them, you know. I contemplated letting go of that, but it does n't feel right in any way. I am not the person who chose to try to kill it and walked away. It 's not an Axl Rose album, even if it 's what I wanted it to be. Everybody is putting everything they 've got into singing and building. Maybe I 'm helping steer it to what it should be built like. '' Also in the interview, Rose attributed the breakup of the old lineup to drug addictions and ' an effort from inside the band to destroy him ', stating `` There was an effort to bring me down. It was a king - of - the - mountain thing, '' and that he `` needed to take control to survive ''. Rose also described the dissolution as `` a divorce ''. Jim Barber, a former A&R executive with Geffen stated that the new album `` reminded me of the best moments of Seventies Pink Floyd or later Led Zeppelin. There 's nothing out there right now that has that kind of scope. Axl has n't spent the last several years struggling to write Use Your Illusion over again. '' Eight years after the previous Guns N ' Roses concert, the band made a public appearance 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 both songs from previous albums and songs from then - unreleased Chinese Democracy. During the band 's 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 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 am as hurt and disappointed as you that unlike Oasis, we could not find a way to all get along. External image Buckethead and Rose performing with Guns N ' Roses during the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards. The group played a further two shows in Las Vegas at the end of 2001. Former guitarist Slash claimed that he tried to attend a show and was turned away at the door by security. Due to his frustrations with touring, rhythm guitarist Paul Tobias left the band in 2002 and was replaced by Richard Fortus ( formerly of The Psychedelic Furs and Love Spit Love ). Fortus is good friends with and had previously collaborated with bassist Tommy Stinson, who recommended him for the position. Producer Roy Thomas Baker was fired in February 2002. Drudge Report reported in June 2002 that Chinese Democracy was scheduled for a September 2, 2002 release. The band then played several shows in August 2002, headlining festivals and concerts throughout Asia and Europe, including Pukkelpop, Summer Sonic Festival, and The Carling Weekend. At the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards on August 29, 2002, Guns N ' Roses closed the show in a previously unannounced performance, playing Welcome to the Jungle, Madagascar, and Paradise City. In November 2002, the band 's first North American tour since 1993 was organized to support Chinese Democracy, with CKY and Mix Master Mike joining. However, the opening show in Vancouver was canceled by the venue when Rose failed to turn up. According to Guns ' management, `` Axl 's flight from L.A. had been delayed by mechanical troubles ''. A riot ensued. This tour was met with mixed results. Some concerts did not sell well, while shows in larger markets such as New York City sold out in minutes. Due to a second riot by fans in Philadelphia when the band failed to show up again, tour promoter Clear Channel canceled the remainder of the tour. Rose later mentioned in 2006, `` There are reasons that I have not spoken more about ( cancelled shows in Vancouver and Philadelphia ) that have been extremely complicated and are not legally resolved behind the scenes to this day and could have possibly jeopardized the future of Guns N ' Roses. '' Rose then apologized to the city of Philadelphia when playing there in 2012, adding `` I 'm not saying I 'm innocent ''. Guns N ' Roses tour canceled. Typical. And freakishly expected. Haha. Really bad idea. I would n't suggest they come back. -- Opening band CKY The band went on hiatus in 2003. While on hiatus on September 1, 2004, baseball player Mike Piazza leaked a previously unheard track, `` I.R.S. '' on the Eddie Trunk radio show. The band management heard about the nationwide leak, and obtained a cease and desist order for all stations that had a copy of the like tracks. The band 's hiatus continued until it was scheduled to play at Rock in Rio Lisboa in May 2004. However, Buckethead left the band in March of that year, causing the band to cancel. Buckethead reportedly left the band because of the `` inability to complete an album or tour '', according to his manager. Rose claimed `` the band has been put in an untenable position by guitarist Buckethead and his untimely departure. During his tenure with the band, Buckethead has been inconsistent and erratic in both his behavior and 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. His transient lifestyle has made it impossible for even his closest friends to have nearly any form of communication with him whatsoever. '' That same month, Geffen released Guns N ' Roses ' Greatest Hits, since Rose had failed to deliver a new studio album in more than ten years. Slash and McKagan joined Rose in suing Geffen to stop the release of the album, which was compiled without authorization from any current or former band members. The lawsuit was thrown out and the album went triple platinum in the US, eventually going on to be the third longest charting album in the Nielsen SoundScan era. McKagan and Slash also joined Rose in an unsuccessful effort to prevent the release of The Roots of Guns N ' Roses. By 2005, Geffen had taken Chinese Democracy off of its release schedule and pulled funding, stating `` Having exceeded all budgeted and approved recording costs by millions of dollars, it is Mr. Rose 's obligation to fund and complete the album, not Geffen 's. '' Around then, manager Merck Mercuriadis stated that `` The ' Chinese Democracy ' album is very close to being completed ''. According to a 2005 report by The New York Times, Rose had allegedly spent $13 million in the studio by that point. Mercuriadis rejected the budget claims made by the New York Times article and claimed that the newspaper 's sources had not been involved with the project for `` six to nine years ''. The $13 million makes the album the most expensive rock album ever produced. In February 2006, demos of the songs `` Better '', `` Catcher in the Rye '', `` I.R.S. '', and `` There Was a Time '' were leaked on to 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 reached No. 49 on the Radio & Records Active Rock National Airplay chart in the final week of February. In August 2006, Slash and McKagan sued Rose over Guns N ' Roses publishing and songwriting credits, which Rose 's lawyer claimed were due to a ' clerical error ' while changing publishers. Izzy Stradlin on stage with Guns N ' Roses in 2006 After a recommendation by guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani, guitarist Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal was contacted by keyboardist Chris Pitman in 2004. After sending demos and jamming with the band, Thal officially joined Guns N ' Roses in 2006, replacing Buckethead. Thal made his live debut with the band at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on May 12, 2006, the band 's first live show in over three years. Five warm - up shows before a North American tour were held in September 2006. The tour officially commenced on October 24 in Miami. Drummer Frank Ferrer replaced Bryan Mantia, who took a leave of absence to be with his wife and newborn child. Ferrer had previously worked with Richard Fortus in the Psychedelic Furs and Love Spit Love ( and had been a member of several other bands, including The Beautiful ). Coinciding with the tour, the song `` Better '' was featured in an internet advertisement for Harley - Davidson in October 2006. Keyboardist Dizzy Reed stated that the release was an accident, with two versions being made, one ' experimental edit ' featuring a demo of Better and one with Paradise City. The ad with Better was mislabeled and inadvertently uploaded online for a day before being replaced by the intended ad with Paradise City. That same month, Rolling Stone published an article revealing that Andy Wallace would be mixing the final album. In November 2006 shows in Portland, Maine, were cancelled, with the band claiming it was `` due to limitations imposed by local fire marshals ''. Rose later apologized in a statement, stating `` We have chosen to take the public heat for these events in order to have another shot at the future today with a new album. '' In December 2006, Rose released an open letter to fans announcing that Merck Mercuriadis had been fired as the band 's manager. He revealed that the last four dates of the North American tour would be cut so the band could work on post-production for Chinese Democracy. He also set a tentative release date for the album for the first time since the album 's announcement : March 6, 2007. On February 23, 2007, Del James announced that the recording stage of Chinese Democracy was finished, and the band had now moved onto mixing the album, mentioning `` After some delays and scheduling difficulties, things appear to be moving along. '' However, this proved that March 6 release date would be impossible to achieve, and the album once again had no scheduled release date. In a December 2007 interview, Sebastian Bach claimed Rose had planned to have the album released by Christmas 2007 : `` I know Axl was very serious about putting something out before Christmas. He was talking to me about it. He was talking about finishing liner notes. '' Bach also said that Chinese Democracy 's delay might be because of business problems : `` I think there 's a lot of business shit that goes on with him. It 's just not as easy. It 's a little more complicated than people think. '' Also in February 2007, the ' final ' version of `` Better '' leaked online to positive reviews. On May 4, 2007, three more tracks leaked from Chinese Democracy ; an updated version of `` I.R.S. '', `` The Blues '' and the title track. All three tracks had previously been played live. Guns N ' Roses embarked on the 2007 leg of the Chinese Democracy World Tour in Mexico in June, followed by dates in Australia and Japan. The songs `` Nice Boys '' and `` Do n't Cry '' ( appearing as an instrumental Bumblefoot solo ) were played for the first time since the Use Your Illusion Tour. The tour ended on the twentieth anniversary of Appetite for Destruction 's release date, in Osaka. During this tour, the band featured vocalist Axl Rose, Robin Finck, Ron Thal and Richard Fortus on guitars, Tommy Stinson on bass, Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman on keyboards and Frank Ferrer on drums. Drummer Frank Ferrer joined the band in 2006. Rumors arose that Chinese Democracy had been handed over to Geffen Records, but had been delayed because the label and Rose could not agree on the marketing of the album in early 2008. Eddie Trunk also claimed Geffen might have the album : `` I hear the new GNR CD is actually done, but the delay in release is not the bands ( sic ) issues but the label. There is so much money tied up in this record that in todays ( sic ) business it will be virtually impossible to be profitable, meaning the label might want to sell it off but can not ( sic ) find a buyer since nobody buys CDs anymore. Problem might not be Axl this time around and might keep this CD in limbo for more years to come. Hopefully it gets resolved. '' However, in a February 2008 interview with Classic Rock Magazine, Rose 's manager, Beta Lebeis, debunked Trunk 's suggestion and stated the band is `` in negotiations '' with the record label, and the album had been finished since Christmas 2007. On March 26, 2008, Dr Pepper announced a plan to give everyone in America -- except the band 's former guitarists Slash and Buckethead -- a free can of Dr Pepper if the band released Chinese Democracy before the end of 2008. Rose stated he was `` surprised and very happy '' about the announcement, adding, `` As some of Buckethead 's performances are on our album, I 'll share my Dr Pepper with him. '' With the announcement from Guns N ' Roses regarding a release date in November, Tony Jacobs, Dr Pepper 's Vice President of Marketing for Dr. Pepper, announced a free soda coupon campaign for 24 hours on Sunday, November 23, 2008. However, due to `` heavy volume '' on the server throughout the entire day, it was impossible to submit for a free coupon. Guns N ' Roses `` Chinese Democracy '' ( 2008 ) Sample of `` Chinese Democracy '' from Chinese Democracy, the first single released by Guns N ' Roses since 1999. Problems playing this file ? See media help. On March 27, 2008, the day after Dr Pepper 's announcement, the band members announced that they had hired a new management team, headed by Irving Azoff and Andy Gould. The band later condemned Dr. Pepper for the failed promotion. In a letter to Dr Pepper, Rose 's lawyer Alan Gutman said `` The redemption scheme your company clumsily implemented for this offer was an unmitigated disaster which defrauded consumers and, in the eyes of vocal fans, ruined Chinese Democracy 's release. '' Rose 's lawyer also demanded that the company make a full - page apology that would appear in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. In a 2009 interview, Rose stated he specifically told his lawyers it was a non-issue and was taken off - guard by their actions, believing they should be focused on the record release. Amidst industry rumors in April 2008 that a release was coming soon, nine tracks purported to be from Chinese Democracy were leaked to a website on June 19, 2008, but were quickly removed due to a cease - and - desist letter from the band 's label. Six of the leaked tracks had surfaced previously in some form, while three were new. The leaked songs were more fleshed out than previously heard tracks. On July 14, 2008, Harmonix, in conjunction with MTV Games, officially announced the release of a new song from the upcoming Chinese Democracy album, called `` Shackler 's Revenge '', through the new game Rock Band 2. The entire album was eventually added to the game as DLC in April 2009. The song `` If the World '' debuted October 10, 2008, playing in the end credits of the Ridley Scott film Body of Lies. Wikinews has related news : Guns N ' Roses ' ' Chinese Democracy ' released after 15 years In late August, speculation about the impending release of the album resurfaced, further fueled by separate reports from both Rolling Stone and Billboard about a November 25 release date as a Best Buy exclusive. This was finally confirmed October 22 when band management, Best Buy, and Interscope Geffen A&M Records officially issued a joint press release confirming the much anticipated release of the album in the US on November 23 as a Best Buy exclusive. Several days before its official release, the band streamed the entire Chinese Democracy album on the group 's Myspace page. The album was streamed over 3 million times, breaking the Myspace record for most streamed album ever. Chinese Democracy, the band 's sixth studio album and its first since 1993 's `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '', was released on November 22, 2008, in Europe and Australia, in North America on November 23, 2008, and in the United Kingdom on November 24, 2008. The album had an estimated $14 million in production costs, making it the most expensive rock album to ever be produced in music history. It debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 but undersold industry expectations, despite generally positive critical reception. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, touring and Appetite for Democracy ( 2009 -- 2014 ) DJ Ashba was the band 's lead guitarist from 2009 to 2015, and Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal was the band 's lead guitarist from 2006 to 2014. In an MTV phone interview with Kurt Loder in 1999, Rose said he and the then - new band had recorded enough material for a double album. In an informal chat with Rolling Stone magazine in February 2006, Rose stated the band had 32 songs in the works. While appearing on various fan message boards in December 2008, Rose stated several working titles of songs for a possible future album. Among the working titles were : `` Elvis Presley and the Monster of Soul '' ( `` Soul Monster '', formerly known as `` Leave Me Alone '' ), `` Atlas Shrugged '', `` Seven '', `` The General '', `` Thyme '', `` Ides of March '', `` Berlin '' ( formerly `` Oklahoma '' ), `` Zodiac '', `` Quick Song '', and `` Down by the Ocean '' ( co-written by original member Izzy Stradlin ). During the chat, he mentioned the bridge of `` Soul Monster '' as the band 's `` most Black Sabbath '' moment, and referred to it as `` the meanest section of anything I 've sung to date. '' In a 2007 interview, Rose 's close friend Sebastian Bach stated `` The General '' had a `` heavy '' sound with `` screaming vocals '' and also said it was the sequel to the 1991 classic ballad `` Estranged '' from the album Use Your Illusion II. Bach also remarked that Chinese Democracy would be the first installment in a trilogy of new albums, and that Rose had told him the third, as yet untitled, album had been slated for 2012, although the year ended without seeing a release past Chinese Democracy. The initial plan for Chinese Democracy in 2001 was to record two albums, release Chinese Democracy, tour for a year or two, then release the second album without having to return to the studio. Former drummer Bryan Mantia mentioned working on a ' club remix ' of Shackler 's Revenge, stating that Rose planned to put out a remix album of songs from Chinese Democracy. Guitarist DJ Ashba has said that the next album is being discussed, stating that the band `` has been throwing around a bunch of ideas '' and joked that the next album `` wo n't take as long '' to release. On April 20, 2011, Ashba said in an interview at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards that Guns N ' Roses have been `` working on new songs every day ''. In an interview with reporter Nui Te Koha on Triple M Melbourne 's The Hot Breakfast, Ashba talked about songs Rose has written, stating : `` Axl has a lot of great songs up his sleeve. He probably has three albums worth of stuff recorded. The stuff I 've heard... I 've been up in his hotel room many nights and he just sits down at the piano and plays. I 'm like ' this is amazing, people have to hear this song ' and he 's like `` ah, this is something I 'm tinkering on '. '' Guns N ' Roses playing the Sofia Rocks Fest 2012 in Bulgaria. On February 6, 2009, Rose gave his first interview in nine years when he sat down with Billboard 's Jonathan Cohen. Rose said that there was no chance that he would ever agree with a reunion with Slash : What 's clear is that one of the two of us will die before a reunion and however sad, ugly or unfortunate anyone views it, it is how it is. Those decisions were made a long time ago and reiterated year after year by one man. Rose was, however, open to working again with Stradlin and McKagan ( both of whom he has worked with since the interview took place ) : I could see doing a song or so on the side with Izzy or having him out ( on tour ) again. I 'm not so comfortable with doing anything having more than one of the alumni. Maybe something with Duff, but that 's it, and not something I 'd have to really get down into, as I 'd get left with sorting it out and then blamed on top of it. So, no, not me. In early March 2009, industry insiders speculated Guns N ' Roses would launch a summer stadium tour, which eventually would become the Chinese Democracy World Tour 2009 / 2010. Later that month, the band announced that DJ Ashba would be the new lead guitarist, replacing a departing Robin Finck, who rejoined Nine Inch Nails. Ashba had previously played with former drummer Steven Adler in BulletBoys in 1998. In June 2009, it was reported that manager Irving Azoff had been ' fired, then re-hired, then fired '. A year later, Azoff 's company Front Line Management sued Rose, claiming he `` violated an oral agreement to pay 15 % of earnings, or nearly $2 million, from a lucrative concert tour '', seeking 1.87 million in unpaid fees. Rose filed a $5 million counter-lawsuit against Azoff, saying that Azoff sabotaged sales of Guns N ' Roses ' comeback album and lied about a potential `` super tour '' with Van Halen, a band managed by Azoff, as part of a plan to force Rose to reunite with his estranged former band members. Rose said in his suit that Azoff failed to promote his 2008 album, Chinese Democracy, and deliberately mishandled concert dates, `` forcing Rose into a position where he would have no choice but to reunite with the original members of Guns N ' Roses for a reunion tour. '' Rose claimed that Azoff `` violated the consent decree by coercing and bullying artists to do what he wants '' and that `` Upon realizing that he could n't bully Rose and accomplish his scheme, Azoff resigned and abandoned Guns N ' Roses on the eve of a major tour, filing suit for commissions he did n't earn and had no right to receive. The lawsuit was settled `` to the mutual satisfaction of the parties '' in 2011. Several years later, Guns N ' Roses ' management, led by Rose 's former personal assistant Beta Lebeis and her family, stated that previous tensions led to an ultimatum of `` no more managers. '' Guns N ' Roses in Bangalore in 2012. From left to right, Richard Fortus, Axl Rose, Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal, DJ Ashba & Tommy Stinson Guns N ' Roses headlined the Friday night at Reading Festival 2010 and closed Leeds Festival two days later. Guns N ' Roses was 58 minutes late coming on to the stage, and because of a curfew issued by Reading Council the band 's set ended at midnight. The band was therefore not able to complete its set, but nevertheless attempted to play `` Paradise City '' without amplification while the audience sang along. Rose orchestrated fan frustration toward the organizers, telling fans that the group would not play at the Leeds Festival. However, two days later the band played the final night of the Leeds Festival, coming onto stage 30 minutes late, and cutting part of the encore, with Rose stating to the crowd, `` We come here to play for you but the cops and the promoters wan na fuck us in the ass. We would like to play a few more songs for you but we 'll just play one. '' During a concert on September 1, in Dublin, the band was over an hour late arriving on stage. Rose stopped the band in the middle of the second song, `` Welcome to the Jungle '' after multiple bottles were thrown on stage, warning the crowd `` One more bottle and we go home. It 's up to you. We would like to stay. We want to stay. We want to have some fun. '' After another bottle was thrown, the band left the stage during the fourth song of the set. The band returned to the stage an hour later to finish the show. Former bassist Duff McKagan joined the band on stage for the first time since leaving the band on October 14, 2010 at The O2 Arena, in London, England. He performed four songs with the group : `` You Could Be Mine '', `` Nice Boys '', `` Knockin ' on Heaven 's Door '', and `` Patience ''. The appearance was said to be a spur - of - the - moment decision, as he and Rose happened to be staying in the same hotel. Rose told the audience, `` There was this guy at the end of my hallway playing all this loud music and shit. What the fuck ? Oh -- it 's Duff ! ''. McKagan later joined Guns N ' Roses on part of its tour for two Seattle shows in December 2011, as well as having his band Loaded open for Guns N ' Roses. Guns N ' Roses performed at Rock in Rio 4 on October 2, 2011 during heavy rain, playing `` Estranged '' for the first time since 1993. Guitarist Bumblefoot stated that due to the conditions, it was the ' worst concert he 's ever been a part of '. Two months later, during a performance in Nashville, TN `` Civil War '' also made a return after an eighteen - year absence. On November 10, 2011, Rose gave his first TV interview in years to Eddie Trunk, Don Jamieson and Jim Florentine of That Metal Show, discussing his whole career and the band 's future. On December 7, 2011, it was announced that the classic Guns N ' Roses lineup was to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with several other acts, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers and The Faces. Commenting on his Twitter, Rose stated `` I 'd like to thank the Rock N ' Roll Hall of Fame and our fans. This is your victory ''. Commenting on the induction during his That Metal Show interview he said `` I do n't know what it means in terms of me with the old band and the old lineup, ''... `` If we were to be invited, I do n't know what they would ask of me. It 's up in the air. '' Slash also commented, saying, `` Thanks for all the R&RHF mentions, It 's quite an honor to be inducted. Cheers ! Iii ; ) '' He went on to say, `` I have no idea how that 's supposed to go. If Axl, Duff, Izzy and myself start communicating, it could go one way. If we do n't, God knows. '' Guns N ' Roses performing at Nottingham Arena, Nottingham, UK, in May 2012. From left to right, Richard Fortus, Axl Rose, DJ Ashba. In early 2012, the band announced shows in the United States and Europe, titled the Up Close and Personal Tour. The shows themselves varied considerably in comparison to the previous Chinese Democracy Tour. All of the North American shows took place in smaller - scale clubs, rather than a large arena or stadium. All pyrotechnics were removed from the shows. The European leg of the tour began approximately one month after the band 's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Guitarist DJ Ashba discussed a potential follow up to Chinese Democracy in a 2012 interview, stating `` I 've written and demoed up probably about 12 songs, I think. And some of them ( Axl ) has heard, some of them he has n't yet. But I think when we get a little bit of time off, we 're gon na hopefully all get together and piece together what we think is gon na be the next best thing. '' In an interview, Dizzy Reed supported the hypothesis of the classic lineup reunited in the Hall of Fame, saying, `` I know that all the original band is going to be there. I do n't know exactly what 's going to go down. It 's one of those things I 'm sure will all come together and be really cool. Honestly, we have n't spoken about it. I do n't know when or why or how to bring it up. '' On April 11, 2012, Rose released an open letter to `` The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Guns N ' Roses Fans and Whom It May Concern '', saying he would not be attending the induction. Rose stated, `` I respectfully decline my induction as a member of Guns N ' Roses to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame '' and called it a `` complicated and awkward situation. '' After the ceremony, Rose released a statement on the band 's Facebook page apologizing to the city of Cleveland ( where the ceremony took place ) and detailing reasons why he did not attend, stating `` I still do n't exactly know or understand what the Hall is or how or why it makes money, where the money goes, who chooses the voters and why anyone ( on ) this board decides who, out of all the artists in the world that have contributed to this genre, ( is ) officially `` rock '' enough to be in the Hall ? '' The members of Guns N ' Roses inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Top row : Axl Rose, Duff McKagan, Dizzy Reed. Bottom Row : Slash, Matt Sorum, Steven Adler, Izzy Stradlin. On April 14, 2012, former Guns N ' Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan, Gilby Clarke, Steven Adler and Matt Sorum all reunited at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The group performed `` Mr. Brownstone '', `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '', and `` Paradise City '' with Alter Bridge and Slash 's band vocalist Myles Kennedy in Rose 's absence. Slash mentioned in an interview that `` All things considered, I do n't think any of us wanted to be a part of it initially, did n't think any of us were going to go. It was a thorn in everybody 's -- well, at least a thorn in my side -- because I was busy doing other stuff. When it finally came down to the wire at the very, very, very last - minute -- I 'm talking about the 11 hours and 30 seconds mark -- Axl had pulled out. '' In the same interview, Slash mentioned the prospects of a reunion, stating `` It 's not even something I like to dwell on. I do n't even like to make comments because you end up with quotes that sometimes exacerbate the issue. I 've got other things going on. I 'm very, very proud -- endlessly proud -- of everything the band stood for and everything that 's gone on with it. '' Slash then stated in a July 2012 interview that `` ( the classic lineup ) will ' never reunite ' ''. In a later interview, former drummer Steven Adler stated that Matt Sorum would not take part in a potential reunion unless Adler was involved. Duff McKagan said in 2015, `` ( A reunion ) could happen, and it could not. And I think it would be wonderful, one day, if we reconciled, first and foremost. That alone would be cool. '' Richard Fortus, being interviewed by the French music website Rock N ' Live in June 2012, revealed that the band would not play any more dates for the `` Up Close and Personal Tour '', as the band members hoped to spend more time in the studio, hoping to complete the next album by the end of the year. Fortus said, `` I 'm pretty much focused on GnR right now. We 're getting ready to go back in the studio, so that 's where my head 's at right now, that 's all I want to think about until the end of the year, pretty much. '' Izzy Stradlin once again joined the band for a surprise performance at a wedding in Saint - Tropez, France in July 2012. Also in July 2012, the band toured Israel for the first time since 1992. NME reported that year that the band 's tour security said they had been instructed by Guns N ' Roses management that anyone wearing a Slash T - shirt not be allowed into the tour venue. On August 13, 2012, the band announced a residency at The Joint in Las Vegas entitled `` Appetite for Democracy '', celebrating the 25th anniversary of the band 's debut album, Appetite for Destruction, and the fourth anniversary of the album Chinese Democracy. On November 21, 2012, the band 's performance in Vegas was taped in 3D, and was screened across theaters in 2014 before being released as Appetite for Democracy 3D on July 1, 2014. In October 2012, Rose mentioned that the follow - up to Chinese Democracy would not take as long to be released, stating, `` All the guys are writing, and we recorded a lot of songs over the years. We 'll figure out what we feel best about. Chinese was done in piecemeal with one person here and one there at different times. '' In October 2012, Guns N ' Roses performed an acoustic set at Neil Young 's Bridge School Benefit show. The performance was widely panned by critics, and Rose claimed an onset of strep throat hampered his vocals. Guns N ' Roses in 2010. From left to right : Dizzy Reed, Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal, Richard Fortus, Axl Rose, DJ Ashba, Chris Pitman, & Tommy Stinson. Drummer Frank Ferrer is not pictured. In August 2013, a new song titled `` Going Down '' was leaked online. The track features bassist Tommy Stinson on lead vocals, with Rose providing back up vocals. Bumblefoot confirmed the song to be legitimate on his Twitter. Spin described it as `` a country - tinged, mid-tempo lighter - raiser with lyrics about how `` you 've got nothin ' good to say / Keep your mouth shut. '' The band launched a South American tour in early 2014, including playing in Brazil and Portugal. For several shows, former bassist Duff McKagan rejoined the band to fill in for Stinson, who had previous commitments to touring with The Replacements. The group headlined the Revolver Golden Gods awards show, with McKagan on bass, on April 24, 2014. During the ceremony, Rose was awarded the Ronnie James Dio lifetime achievement award. After the show, Fortus reiterated the band was working on material and mentioned the possibility of releasing new music within the next year. From 21 May to June 7, 2014, the band returned to Las Vegas for its second residency at The Joint, titled No Trickery ! An Evening of Destruction. '' In an interview in June 2014, Rose commented on upcoming plans : We recorded a lot of things before Chinese was out. We 've worked more on some of those things and we 've written a few new things. But basically, we have what I call kind of the second half of Chinese. That 's already recorded. And then we have a remix album made of the songs from Chinese. That 's been done for a while, too. But after Vegas, we 're going to start looking very seriously at what we 're doing in that regard. Reed mentioned that the next album was ' close to being done ' in July 2014, adding it was `` just a matter of picking out which songs will be on it '' and that the band had a `` shitload of songs, enough to make up another record or two ''. Later that month, Fortus discussed the band working on new material and taking a break from touring. A year later, Fortus discussed a potential 2016 tour and mentioned that the next album `` should be out '' by then. Reed responded by saying `` When will it come out ? We just do n't know yet. Only Axl knows, and he 's very secretive. Be patient. '' Regrouping, not in this Lifetime... Tour and future ( 2015 -- present ) Main article : Not in This Lifetime... Tour Keyboardist Melissa Reese joined the band in 2016. On July 27, 2015, guitarist DJ Ashba left the band, citing his commitments to his family and other band, Sixx : A.M. Ashba released a statement saying `` I have reached a point in my life where I feel it 's time to dedicate myself to my band Sixx : A.M., my adoring wife and family, and to the many new adventures that the future holds for me. '' Several days later, music journalist Gary Graff reported that a ' confirmed source within the band ' had told him that Ron Thal was no longer in Guns N ' Roses and had left after the 2014 tour. No official announcement from Thal or the band has been made regarding his status. Tommy Stinson then left the band, citing personal reasons keeping him unable to tour. Frank Ferrer clarified the status of the band in mid-2015, saying `` Guns still exist... ( They have ) a lot of moving parts, and there 's a lot of things in the works... everything is moving forward. '' On December 29, 2015, several days after a Guns N ' Roses related teaser was released to movie theaters, Billboard reported that Slash was set to rejoin the band and a `` reunited '' lineup will headline Coachella 2016. Rose was set to appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live ! the following week to talk about the future of the band, but his appearance was cancelled due to `` unforeseen circumstances ''. Guns N ' Roses was officially announced as the headliner of Coachella on January 4, 2016, with KROQ reporting Slash and Duff McKagan are rejoining the band. The Coachella festival confirmed via press release that McKagan and Slash were rejoining. The band 's first scheduled concerts with Slash and McKagan took place at the newly opened T - Mobile Arena on April 8 and 9, 2016. On March 25, 2016, the band announced 21 cities as part of a North American tour, dubbed the Not in This Lifetime... Tour. Additional legs of the tour were added for Latin America, Asia and Oceania through 2017. Later on, a second North American Leg was added for 2017. A 2018 European leg was added in November 2017. A previously unannounced warmup gig at the Troubadour in Los Angeles took place on April 1, 2016. Melissa Reese, who has previously worked with former drummer Bryan Mantia on several projects, replaced Chris Pitman as the second keyboardist. During the show at the Troubadour, Rose fell off a monitor and broke his foot. Rose was given Dave Grohl 's customized throne that Grohl had used to perform when he broke his leg at a concert. At the performance at the first weekend of Coachella, AC / DC guitarist Angus Young joined the band on stage ( Rose was set to join AC / DC as a touring vocalist ). Young 's guest appearance was only the third time he had jammed with another band since 1977. Rose discussed the regrouping in a June 2016 interview, stating `` It was always looked at as a possibility, but it never seemed right or felt right ''. During the interview, Rose also reiterated his intention to release new Guns N ' Roses music in the future. Slash later commented on the tour, telling Aerosmith 's Joey Kramer in an interview with WZLX that `` We all were pretty positive ( the reunion ) would never happen, so it 's still sort of blowing our minds... But everybody 's really getting along great and I think everybody 's come a long way, and it 's all cool. '' Guns N ' Roses playing in London in 2017. From left to right, Richard Fortus, Duff McKagan, Slash, Axl Rose, Dizzy Reed, Frank Ferrer, Melissa Reese During the band 's show of July 6, 2016, in Cincinnati, former drummer Steven Adler joined the band on drums for `` Out ta Get Me '' and `` My Michelle ''. It was the first time since 1990 that Adler performed with the group. Adler was originally going to take part in the show at April 1 show at the Troubadour, but had to pull out after having back surgery. Adler would later join the band at shows in Nashville, Los Angeles, and Buenos Aires. The tour featured additional guest performers, including Sebastian Bach, more appearances by Angus Young, Angry Anderson, P ! nk, Billy Gibbons and Dave Grohl. In November 2017, Guns N ' Roses was announced as the headline act at the UK Download Festival in June 2018. In addition, they won Top Tour / Top Draw at the 2017 Billboard Touring Awards. The tour so far has been a financial success, grossing over $480,000,000 by December 2017 and currently listed as the fourth highest - grossing concert tour of all - time. Guitarist Richard Fortus discussed the band 's plan to make new music in a July 2017 interview, stating that members had been recording individual and collaborative ideas but have yet to head to the studio as a band. Legacy, style, influence and criticism Guns N ' Roses signed with a major record label within eight months of the band 's inception, and topped national sales charts weeks after garnering late hours airplay on MTV. Appetite for Destruction is the highest - selling debut album of all time in the United States. Peers of the band in the music industry often spoke highly of the band. Joe Perry stated that the band was the first group to remind him of Led Zeppelin. Ozzy Osbourne stated that Guns N ' Roses could have been `` the next Rolling Stones '' if the classic lineup stayed together. Country musician Steve Earle stated in 1989 that `` Guns n ' Roses are what every L.A. band pretends to be ''. Guns N ' Roses 's early look and sound was heavily influenced by Finnish band Hanoi Rocks. The music of Guns N ' Roses is a fusion of punk rock, blues rock, heavy metal, hard rock, and hair metal. The Illusions albums saw the band branching out into art rock, while `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' saw the group blend hard rock with punk rock. Since the group 's 1999 revival, the band has retained hard rock features while also experimenting with industrial rock and electronic rock. In the 1990s, the band integrated keyed instruments ( played by either Rose or Reed, and accompanied on tour by Teddy Andreadis ) into the band, and for roughly half of the Use Your Illusion tour, added a horn section to the stage. A heavy influence on both the image and sound of Guns N ' Roses was the Finnish band Hanoi Rocks ( singer Michael Monroe and Rose have collaborated on various occasions ). Rose has stated that the band was massively inspired by groups like Queen, AC / DC, The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, and Rose Tattoo, and that the sound of Appetite for Destruction was influenced by AC / DC, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Cheap Trick, Aerosmith, Van Halen, the New York Dolls, and Hanoi Rocks. The band was also influenced by the likes of T. Rex and the Sex Pistols. Rose 's orchestral - style songwriting on the Illusion albums were influenced by Queen, Electric Light Orchestra, and Elton John, particularly the album Queen II. Rose cited the influence of Nirvana 's `` Smells Like Teen Spirit '' in recording the title track of Chinese Democracy. Critics noted influences of Queen, Wings and Andrew Lloyd Webber on some songs on Chinese Democracy. Guns N ' Roses has influenced many modern rock bands such as Fall Out Boy, Avenged Sevenfold, Mother Love Bone, Buckcherry, Hinder, Manic Street Preachers, Nickelback, Bullet for My Valentine, and Black Label Society. `` Guns n ' Roses are still an example of how a band can move rock forward. Sometimes you think, `` How can you top anything by The Yardbirds, or Zeppelin, or the Stones ? '' And then you hear Guns n ' Roses, and it 's inspiring. You can think that it 's all been written, but it has n't. '' -- Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry. In 2002, Q magazine named Guns N ' Roses in its list of the `` 50 Bands to See Before You Die ''. The television network VH1 ranked Guns N ' Roses ninth in its `` 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock '' special, and also 32nd on its `` 100 Greatest Artists of All Time ''. Appetite for Destruction was ranked 62nd greatest album of all time in Rolling Stone magazine 's special issue `` The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time ''. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Guns N ' Roses No. 92 on its list of the `` 100 Greatest Artists of All Time ''. `` Paradise City '' has also been voted 9th - best `` Best Hard Rock Song '' out of 100 candidates by VH1. Guns N ' Roses was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on April 14, 2012 in its first year of eligibility. The group is one of the world 's best - selling bands of all time, having sold more than 100 million records worldwide, including shipments of 45 million in the United States. The U.S. release of the PlayStation game Mega Man X5 had the names of the game 's bosses changed in honor of the band. Guns N ' Roses has also received significant criticism throughout the years. The band received criticism for drug and alcohol use in the 80 's & early 90 's. The long periods of time between albums are another source of criticism. Songs such as `` One in a Million '' and the cover of Charles Manson 's `` Look at Your Game, Girl '' were considerably controversial upon release. In addition, some lyrics have been regarded as sexist. The band has also been criticized for tardiness and starting shows later than advertised. The band 's late appearances and `` war '' with Reading and Leeds Festivals have been criticized by artists and peers of the group in the industry. In October 2009, Ulrich Schnauss 's record labels Independiente and Domino sued Guns N ' Roses, alleging that the band had committed copyright infringement by using portions of Schnauss ' compositions in the track `` Riad N ' the Bedouins '' on the album Chinese Democracy. The band claimed the samples `` were provided by a member of the album 's production team who has assured us that these few seconds of sound were obtained legitimately. '' Chinese Democracy was banned in the People 's Republic of China, due to perceived criticism in its title track of the Government of the People 's Republic of China and reference to the Falun Gong. The Chinese government said through the media that it `` turns its spear point on China ''. Band members Main article : List of Guns N ' Roses members Current members Axl Rose -- lead vocals, piano, percussion ( 1985 -- present ) Duff McKagan -- bass, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals ( 1985 -- 1997, 2016 -- present ) Slash -- lead and rhythm guitars, backing vocals ( 1985 -- 1996, 2016 -- present ) Dizzy Reed -- keyboards, piano, backing vocals, percussion ( 1990 -- present ) Richard Fortus -- rhythm and lead guitars, backing vocals ( 2002 -- present ) Frank Ferrer -- drums, percussion ( 2006 -- present ) Melissa Reese -- synthesizers, keyboards, backing vocals, sub-bass, programming ( 2016 -- present ) Former members See List of Guns N ' Roses members # Former Awards For a more comprehensive list, see List of awards and nominations received by Guns N ' Roses. American Music Awards 1989 : Favorite Pop / Rock single -- `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' 1990 : Favorite Heavy Metal / Hard Rock Artist 1990 : Favorite Heavy Metal / Hard Rock Album -- Appetite for Destruction 1992 : Favorite Heavy Metal / Hard Rock Artist Billboard Touring Awards 2017 : Top Tour / Top Draw - `` Not In This Lifetime... Tour '' MTV Video Music Awards 1988 : Best New Artist in a Video -- `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 1989 : Best Heavy Metal Video -- `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' 1992 : Video Vanguard Award 1992 : Best Cinematography in a Video -- `` November Rain '' Revolver Golden Gods 2014 : Ronnie James Dio Lifetime Achievement Award -- Axl Rose World Music Awards 1993 : World 's Best - Selling Hard Rock Artist of the Year 1993 : World 's Best Group Discography Main article : Guns N ' Roses discography See also : List of songs recorded by Guns N ' Roses Appetite for Destruction ( 1987 ) G N ' R Lies ( 1988 ) Use Your Illusion I ( 1991 ) Use Your Illusion II ( 1991 ) `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' ( 1993 ) Chinese Democracy ( 2008 ) Tours The Early Days of Guns N ' Roses ( 1985 -- 87 ) Appetite for Destruction Tour ( 1987 -- 88 ) Use Your Illusion Tour ( 1991 -- 93 ) Chinese Democracy Tour ( 2001 -- 11 ) Up Close and Personal Tour ( 2012 ) Appetite for Democracy ( 2012 -- 14 ) Not in This Lifetime... 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Retrieved September 7, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Reader 's Poll : The 10 best opening acts in rock history : 8. Aerosmith / Guns N ' Roses ( 1988 ) ''. Rolling Stone. July 11, 2012. Retrieved September 7, 2015. Jump up ^ Wall, Mick ( February 5, 2008 ). W.A.R. : The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose. St. Martin 's Press. p. 135. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4299 - 2884 - 7. Retrieved September 7, 2015. In May, Guns N ' Roses began opening the show for Iron Maiden. Jump up ^ Wall, Mick ( February 5, 2008 ). W.A.R. : The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose. St. Martin 's Press. p. 137. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4299 - 2884 - 7. Retrieved June 21, 2015. Jump up ^ `` The History of GN'R : The Shocking Truth 1988 ''. HereTodayGoneToHell.com. Retrieved December 19, 2011. Jump up ^ `` 29 Years Ago : Guns N ' Roses Release ' GN'R Lies ' ''. Loudwire. Retrieved December 17, 2017. Jump up ^ `` G N ' R Lies ''. Retrieved December 17, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Patience Chart History ''. 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Jump up ^ ( Neely, Kim ( April 2, 1992 ). `` Axl Rose : The Rolling Stone Interview ''. Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 27, 2012. Retrieved December 17, 2017. RS : Does it bother you that so many people think you 're misogynous, homophobic and racist Rose : `` It can bother me. But the racist thing is just bullshit. I used a word that was taboo. And I used that word because it was taboo. I was pissed off about some black people that were trying to rob me. I wanted to insult those particular black people. I did n't want to support racism. When I used the word faggots, I was n't coming down on gays. I was coming down on an element of gays ''. Jump up ^ `` I, Axl '' Del James, RIP Magazine -- 1992 Jump up ^ `` Atlanta declines to beat drums for fiery singer ''. deseretnews.com. March 3, 1993. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2015. Last time he was there in 1987 he brawled with security guards, punched an Atlanta cop and got arrested. 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On the 28.8. 1988. two young men died and a third was seriously injured in a fatal crowd related incident during an open air rock concert billed as the ` Monsters of Rock ` at the Donington Park motor race circuit NorthWest Leicestershire ^ Jump up to : Hilburn, Robert ( October 20, 1989 ). `` Still the Greatest ''. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013. Retrieved December 19, 2011. Jump up ^ `` Meet ' The Most Dangerous Band in the World '' ``. Kerrang !. London : Wasted Talent Ltd. April 10, 2004. Retrieved December 17, 2017. Jump up ^ Wall, Mick ( April 21, 1990 ). `` Stick to Your Guns ''. Kerrang. Retrieved June 1, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Ling, Dave ( April 2005 ). `` Steven Adler interview ''. Classic Rock ; HTGTH.com. Retrieved November 18, 2006. Steven Adler : `` Slash called me to say we had to record Civil War. I was so sick, I just could n't do it. I went in there and tried to play the song 20, maybe 30 times. But I was so weak, my timing was like a rollercoaster. Every time we played it back they 'd all shout at me, ' You 're fucked up '. '' Jump up ^ DiMartino, Dave ( August 9, 1991 ). `` Guns N ' Roses : Out of Control ''. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved June 1, 2011. Jump up ^ Stenning, Paul ( 2005 ). Guns N ' Roses : The Band That Time Forgot : The Complete Unauthorised Biography. Chrome Dreams. p. 92. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84240 - 314 - 3. After considering both Adam Maples and Martin Chambers for the drum seat, the band settled on The Cult drummer Matt Sorum ^ Jump up to : `` Guns N ' Roses Recording Sessions ''. Here Today, Gone To Hell. 2001. Retrieved March 9, 2013. Jump up ^ Aznar, Thierry. CAMION BLANC : HARD ROCK & HEAVY METAL 40 années de purgatoire -- Tome 1 ( TRUCK WHITE : HARD ROCK & HEAVY METAL 40 years of purgatory - Volume 1 ) ( in French ). pp. 553 --. ISBN 978 - 2 - 35779 - 539 - 6. Retrieved April 19, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Jussi Tegelman Bio ''. 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Jump up ^ Philips, Chuck ( December 5, 1991 ). `` Michael Jackson 's ' Dangerous ' Is No ' Thriller ' : * Pop music : Sales of 326,500 copies are well below first - week figures for Guns N ' Roses and Metallica ''. latimes. Retrieved July 3, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Which albums had the highest number of worldwide sales ? ''. TSORT. December 15, 2007. Retrieved March 14, 2012. Jump up ^ `` 1992 MTV Video Music Awards ''. Mtv.com. Retrieved December 12, 2014. ^ Jump up to : `` Here Today... Gone To Hell ! -- Guns N ' Roses History ''. heretodaygonetohell.com. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Live Era ' 87 -- ' 93 ''. Gnrsource.com. Archived from the original on December 4, 2007. Retrieved December 14, 2007. Jump up ^ `` There 's A Riot Going On ! ''. heretodaygonetohell.com. September 1991. Jump up ^ Harper, Jordan ( June 30, 2004 ). `` A Little Patience ''. riverfronttimes.com. Voice Media Group. Retrieved May 8, 2015. Jump up ^ Luukkonen, Jarmo. `` The History of GN'R : The Shocking Truth ''. HereTodayGoneToHell.com. Retrieved May 25, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Slash ; Anthony Bozza ( October 30, 2007 ). Slash. HarperCollins. p. 344. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 135142 - 6. Jump up ^ `` Izzy Stradlin interview with Musician Magazine ''. Musician. Billboard Publications Inc. 1992. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2011. Jump up ^ Slash ; Anthony Bozza ( October 30, 2007 ). Slash. HarperCollins. p. 337. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 135142 - 6. Jump up ^ `` Interview with Rolling Stone ''. Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. 1998. Archived from the original on December 25, 2010. Retrieved May 26, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Tolinski, Brad ( November 1992 ). `` Trial by fire ''. Guitar World. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ McDermott, Mark ( May 26, 2010 ). `` Gilby Clarke rides again ''. Easy Reader News. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ Davis, Stephen ( 2008 ). Watch You Bleed : The Saga of Guns N ' Roses. Penguin Group. pp. 358 -- 360. ISBN 978 - 1 - 59240 - 377 - 6. Jump up ^ Craig Duswalt ( May 13, 2014 ). Welcome to My Jungle : An Unauthorized Account of How a Regular Guy Like Me Survived Years of Touring with Guns N ' Roses, Pet Wallabies, Crazed Groupies, Axl Rose 's Moth Extermination System, and Other Perils on the Road with One of the Greatest Rock Bands of All Time. BenBella Books. pp. 147 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 939529 - 81 - 7. ^ Jump up to : `` Queen Interviews -- Queen -- 06 - 25 - 1992 -- Rolling Stone -- Freddie Mercury Tribute -- Queen Archives : Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, John Deacon, Interviews, Articles, Reviews ''. queenarchives.com ; Rolling Stone. June 25, 1992. Retrieved July 3, 2015. Jump up ^ Kelley, Ken ( April 2013 ). `` Top 10 Queen Performances From The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 3, 2015. Jump up ^ Patrick Lemieux ; Adam Unger ( September 2013 ). The Queen Chronology : The Recording & Release History of the Band. Lulu.com. pp. 99 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 9919840 - 4 - 6. Retrieved July 1, 2015. Jump up ^ Azerrad, Michael ( 1993 ). Come as You are : The Story of Nirvana. Doubleday. p. 239. ISBN 978 - 0 - 385 - 47199 - 2. Jump up ^ New York Times staff ( August 11, 1992 ). `` Riot Erupts at Concert Starring Guns ' n ' Roses ''. nytimes.com. Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Retrieved April 30, 2015. Jump up ^ amit. `` Top 10 On Stage Rock Meltdowns ''. Archived from the original on October 29, 2007. Retrieved July 19, 2007. Jump up ^ Times Staff : Times News Services ( August 10, 1992 ). `` Roses / Metallica Cancel Denver ; Hetfield Burned, Out For 10 Days ''. The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 30, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Paul Brannigan ; Ian Winwood ( November 4, 2014 ). Into the Black : The Inside Story of Metallica ( 1991 -- 2014 ). Da Capo Press, Incorporated. pp. 29 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 306 - 82189 - 9. Jump up ^ Los Angeles Times ( April 11, 2012 ). `` Axl Rose vs. James Hetfield ''. latimes.com. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Part II : Steven Adler Ex-Guns N ' Roses Drummer ''. Metal Sludge. January 22, 2006. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved June 1, 2011. Jump up ^ Kent, Nick ( January 3, 2003 ). `` Meltdown ''. The Guardian. London. Retrieved June 1, 2011. Jump up ^ Kreps, Daniel ( April 2, 2016 ). `` Guns N ' Roses : See Video, First Photos of Axl Rose, Slash Reunited ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 10, 2016. Jump up ^ Gold, Jonathan ( December 9, 1993 ). `` Rolling Stone The Spaghetti Incident ? review ''. Rollingstone.com. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Tegnér, Anders ( November 1993 ). `` Guns N ' Roses : Okej interview ''. Okej ; Here Today, Gone to Hell. Retrieved May 7, 2015. Jump up ^ `` The Spaghetti Incident ? ''. GnRsource. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved October 21, 2008. ^ Jump up to : Hochman, Steve ( November 21, 1993 ). `` It 's No Illusion : Guns N ' Roses Does Charles Manson ''. LAtimes.com. Austin Beutner. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Philips, Chuck ( December 8, 1993 ). `` Guns N ' Roses to Stick With Manson Song on Album : Convict 's royalties from ' Girl ' will be paid to the son of one of those killed in a spree masterminded by the cult leader ''. LAtimes.com. Austin Beutner, Tribune Publishing. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Considine, J.D. ( December 3, 1993 ). `` Guns N ' Roses under fire for Manson ' bonus ' song ''. Baltimoresun.com. Timothy E. Ryan, Tribune Publishing. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Philips, Chuck ( December 1, 1993 ). `` Guns N ' Roses May Remove Manson Song From Album ''. LAtimes.com. Austin Beutner. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Bring Out The Manson ''. Q Magazine. March 1994. Retrieved May 7, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Victim 's Son Gets Manson Royalties ''. NYtimes.com. December 26, 1993. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Wild, David ( February 3, 2000 ). `` Rolling Stone 833 : Axl Speaks ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 23, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Slash - October 16, 1996 ''. October 16, 1996. Retrieved November 11, 2010. At this point in time we have only been collaborating together. But we have been doing mostly Axl 's material. Jump up ^ Rose, W. Axl ( December 16, 2008 ). `` OPEN LETTER FROM AXL ''. Guns N ' Roses. Archived from the original on February 7, 2009. Retrieved November 11, 2010. There 's nothing but Slash based blues rock and he stopped it to both go solo and try to completely take over Guns... I was specifically told no lyrics, no melodies, no changes to anything and to sing what I was told or fuck off. ^ Jump up to : `` Matt Sorum -- 1996 ''. 1996. Archived from the original on July 28, 2002. Retrieved May 4, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` GN'R press release with Axl interview ''. GNRonline.com. August 14, 2002. Retrieved May 16, 2015. Jump up ^ `` War Of The Roses ! ( Gilby Clarke interview ) ''. Kerrang ! Issue 494. May 24, 1994. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Enter Studio To Record New Album ''. Addicted to Noise. September 11, 1996. Retrieved November 16, 2015. Jump up ^ Sefany, Jones ( August 15, 2002 ). `` Axl Rose Speaks Out On Guns N ' Roses, Old and New ''. KNAC.com. Retrieved November 16, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Gundersen, Edna ( October 30, 2012 ). `` Exclusive : Axl Rose on GNR, truce and writer 's block ''. USAtoday.com. Gannett Company. Retrieved May 4, 2015. ( Rose stated ) `` Stephanie Seymour, Slash and Duff McKagan did more damage to my ability as a writer. To those three, it was all crap. It beat me down so much. Slash and Duff said, ' You 're an idiot, you 're a loser. ' I did n't write for years. ^ Jump up to : `` ' Come Together ' With Axl Rose ''. Rolling Stone. January 24, 2011. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Allmusic : Gilby Clarke 's Pawnshop Guitars ''. Allmusic.com. All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved May 7, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Four Bust - ups And A Single ! ''. RAW magazine. November 1994. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Browne, David ( 1994 ). `` EW takes a look at 1994 's movie soundtracks ''. Entertainment Weekly 's EW.com. Retrieved April 25, 2015. Jump up ^ `` The Guns ' N Roses Report ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; addict.com. January 13, 1997. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Huge 's presence did n't sit well with Slash, who reportedly has `` creative and personal '' differences with the latest Rose writing collaborator, which played a part in his decision to leave the band. ^ Jump up to : `` Did n't You Used To Be Axl Rose ? ''. Q Magazine. May 2001. Retrieved July 2, 2015. Jump up ^ Hotten, Jon ( January 2002 ). `` Mad bad and dangerous to know ? ''. Classic Rock # 36. p. 80. Jump up ^ Slash ; Anthony Bozza ( October 30, 2007 ). Slash. HarperCollins. p. 576. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 135142 - 6. ^ Jump up to : Giles, Jeff ( October 11, 2014 ). `` Gilby Clarke Opens Up About His Final Guns N ' Roses Gig ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved April 25, 2015. My official end was actually at the last show of the last tour, '' he continued. `` Axl was jokingly saying ' bye ' to everybody, but he was really saying ' bye ' to everybody. He even came up to me and said, ' Hey, enjoy your last show. ' Jump up ^ L.A. Weekly staff ( May 11, 2015 ). `` Book Excerpt : Duff McKagan Recalls the Bitter Dispute Over the Guns N ' Roses Pinball Machine ''. LAweekly.com. Beth Sestanovich ; Voice Media Group. Retrieved May 16, 2015... it was a forgone conclusion that Gilby would be in the band... his picture was included on the big mural on the game... suddenly ( he ) was n't in the band anymore. Gilby sued us for using his likeness on the machine Jump up ^ `` G n ' R Songwriter West Arkeen Dies ''. MTV.com. Viacom. June 2, 1997. Retrieved July 2, 2015. The album boast strong G n ' R connections : Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan appear as guests ( Rose sings backup on the title track ), and former G n ' R member Izzy Stradlin co-wrote one of the songs Jump up ^ Graft, Gary ( January 1997 ). `` Total Guitar - Slash, Rock and Roses 1997 ''. oocities.org ; Total Guitar. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ MTV News Staff ( November 8, 1996 ). `` G n ' R 's Blizzard Of Acrimony ''. MTV News. Retrieved April 24, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Brown, Mark ( January 30, 1997 ). `` Axl Rose Buys `` Guns N ' Roses '' Name ``. MTV News. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Guns N ' Roses leader Axl Rose has bought the rights to the name `` Guns N ' Roses, '' and can put out any music he wants under that moniker, played by anyone he chooses ^ Jump up to : MTV News Staff ( May 22, 1997 ). `` Guns Go Clink ''. MTV News. Retrieved April 24, 2015. sources say former Nine Inch Nails guitarist Robin Finck will be the new primary axe - slinger. Finck is said to be replacing Slash who left the band last year over creative differences Jump up ^ Harkness, Geoff ( June 28, 2001 ). `` SEVEN QUESTIONS with Matt Sorum of The Cult ''. Lawrence Journal - World. Archived from the original on September 14, 2008. Retrieved July 3, 2015. Axl were having some differences in the musical direction. In ' 97 I got into an argument with Axl about the state of the band. He 'd brought in another guitar player, Paul Huge, and none of us really wanted to play with him. Axl really wanted him in the band and we did n't really want to play with the guy. Me and Duff were showing up, trying to be professional and get the work done but it just did n't seem to be going anywhere, and obviously it still has n't ^ Jump up to : McKagan, Duff ( 2011 ). Stacy Creamer, eds. It 's so Easy ( and other lies ). Collaboration by Tim Mohr. Touchstone. p. 123. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4516 - 0664 - 5. CS1 maint : Uses editors parameter ( link ) Jump up ^ `` The History of GN'R : The Shocking Truth 1996 -- 99 ''. HereTodayGoneToHell.com. Retrieved July 2, 2015. Jump up ^ Brown, Mark ( January 30, 1997 ). `` Axl Rose Buys `` Guns N ' Roses '' Name ``. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Addicted To Noise. Retrieved April 24, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Greene, Andy ( December 15, 2008 ). `` Axl Rose on stealing Slash 's song and other online rants -- Rolling Stone ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ SPIN Media LLC ( July 1999 ). SPIN. SPIN Media LLC. pp. 93 --. ISSN 0886 - 3032. Over the course of 1996 and 1997, Rose briefly adds guitarist Zakk Wylde, drum programmer Chris Vrenna, and former Pearl Jam drummer Dave Abruzzese. Jump up ^ Hodgson, Peter ( January 5, 2012 ). `` What Could Have Been : Zakk Wylde Talks Guns N ' Roses ''. gibson.com. Retrieved May 19, 2014. It could have been one of the most interesting heavy music collaborations in rock history : Zakk Wylde as a member of Guns N ' Roses... And it very nearly happened in the mid-1990s Jump up ^ `` '' I Spent A Week Jammin ' With Guns N ' Roses ``. Zakk Wylde to join GN'R ? ! ''. Kerrang ! issue 530. January 28, 1995. Retrieved May 4, 2015. Jump up ^ Hart, Josh ( January 5, 2012 ). `` Zakk Wylde on What Guns N ' Roses Would Have Sounded Like If He Had Joined ''. guitarworld.com. New Bay media. Archived from the original on January 8, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2015. Jump up ^ Amendola, Billy ( August 1, 2006 ). `` Michael Bland ''. Modern Drummer Magazine. Retrieved August 18, 2015. Jump up ^ Rolling Stone Staff ( April 4, 1997 ). `` APPETITE FOR DECONSTRUCTION ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Rolling Stone magazine. Retrieved April 24, 2015. `` Rolling Stone 's Random Notes Daily News reports that this is the current GN'R line - up : Vocals : Axl Rose, Bass : Duff McKagan, Rhythm Guitar : Paul Huge, Lead Guitar : Robin Finck ( ex Nine Inch Nails ), Drums : Chris Vrenna ( ex Nine Inch Nails. '' ) Jump up ^ ELIAS, PAUL ( July 18, 1995 ). `` Drunk - Driving Case Puts Rocker on Trial '' -- via LA Times. Jump up ^ KLEID, BETH ( July 24, 1995 ). `` Movies '' -- via LA Times. Jump up ^ `` Here Today... Gone To Hell ! Guns N ' Roses `` Use Your Illusion '' ``. heretodaygonetohell.com. Retrieved September 22, 2015. Jump up ^ Kaufman, Gil ( October 16, 1999 ). `` Guns N ' Roses To Release Two - CD Live Set ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Music News Of The World. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Skanse, Richard ( October 29, 1999 ). `` Track List Revealed for Live G n ' R Set ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Rolling Stone magazine. Retrieved April 24, 2015. `` Believe it or not, it 's still a very mutual effort, '' Slash said of the long process of selecting material. `` All things considered, it 's as close as we ever got. Jump up ^ Guitar World Presents : Guitar Legends -- Slash # 76 pg. 17 ^ Jump up to : Leeds, Jeff ( March 6, 2005 ). `` The Most Expensive Album Never Made ''. NYtimes.com. Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Retrieved April 30, 2015. Jump up ^ Bitzer, John ( March 18, 1997 ). `` Moby To Produce Guns N ' Roses ? ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Allstarmag.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses To Go Techno ? ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; addict.com. March 19, 1997. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ MTV News Staff ( April 22, 1998 ). `` Axl Rose Finds A Producer... Yet Again ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; MTV.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Youth and the band are still months away from recording. Rose and cohorts are reportedly still in writing mode with no completed songs at this time. Jump up ^ Strauss, Neil ( July 23, 1998 ). `` THE POP LIFE ; Failure 's Hard But Success Can Be Worse ''. NYtimes.com. Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. Retrieved April 30, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Saidman, Sorelle ( September 20, 1998 ). `` Guns n ' Roses Eye Producer ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Sources at Geffen say the company is hoping for a mid-1999 release of the new album Jump up ^ Everley, Dave ( August 21, 1999 ). `` Guns N ' Roses 2 - part article ''. Kerrang !. Retrieved April 24, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Loder, Kurt ( November 3, 1999 ). `` Axl Rose -- A conversation with Kurt Loder ''. MTV US. heretodaygonetohell.com ; MTV. Jump up ^ Kaufman, Gil ( November 10, 1999 ). `` Axl Rose Describes Upcoming Album ''. Music News Of The World. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Saidman, Sorelle ( September 8, 1999 ). `` '' Oh My God, '' Guns N ' Roses Finally Has A New Song ``. MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved May 4, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Skanse, Richard ( September 22, 1999 ). `` Axl Speaks Out ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 23, 2015. Jump up ^ Borzillo, Carrie ( August 4, 1999 ). `` Robin Finck Leaves Guns N ' Roses, Rejoins Nine Inch Nails ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; allstarnews.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Loder, Kurt ( November 21, 2002 ). `` Beneath The Bucket, Behind The Mask : Kurt Loder Meets GN'R's Buckethead ''. MTV.com. Retrieved May 16, 2015. But what sets ( Brian ) Carroll decisively apart from the pack is the outré `` Buckethead '' persona he 's so painstakingly created. ^ Jump up to : Saidman, Sorelle ( March 15, 2000 ). `` Buckethead In, Freese Out ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; MTV.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Raub, Kevin ( March 14, 2000 ). `` Josh Freese Leaves Guns N ' Roses ''. heretodaygonetohell.com ; Allstarmag.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. 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Axl : Sure but the actions taken so far had nothing to do with me and I was taken off guard as I had specifically told our team who fucking cares now that we have a record to deal with. Jump up ^ Malkin, Marc ( April 3, 2008 ). `` New Music from Guns N ' Roses ''. E ! Online. E ! Entertainment Television, LLC. Archived from the original on April 6, 2008. Retrieved June 29, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Cohen, Jonathan ( June 19, 2008 ). `` Purported New Guns N ' Roses Tracks Hit The Web ''. Billboard.com. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved May 4, 2015. Jump up ^ `` New Guns N ' Roses tracks leaked ''. theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media. June 20, 2008. Retrieved May 4, 2015. Jump up ^ Lapatine, Scott ( July 13, 2008 ). `` Guns N ' Roses ' `` Shackler 's Revenge '' Set For Rock Band 2 ``. Stereogum. Retrieved April 23, 2015. Jump up ^ Kreps, Daniel ( April 10, 2009 ). `` Guns n ' Roses ' `` Chinese Democracy '' Coming To `` Rock Band '' -- Rolling Stone ``. Rolling Stone. 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Loudwire. Retrieved July 9, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Exclusive interwiew with Richard Fortus of Guns N ' Roses and The Compulsions ''. Rock N ' Live. June 23, 2012. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved June 25, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Izzy Stradlin Performs With Guns N ' Roses In Saint Tropez - Blabbermouth.net ''. BLABBERMOUTH.NET. July 22, 2012. Retrieved July 9, 2015. Jump up ^ Frydberg, Tracy ( July 3, 2012 ). `` Guitar solo ' Hatikva ' a highlight as Guns N ' Roses returns to TA -- The Times of Israel ''. The Times of Israel. Retrieved July 9, 2015. Jump up ^ Wilkins, Henry ( June 1, 2012 ). `` Guns N ' Roses ban fans from wearing Slash t - shirts to their UK gigs ''. NME. Retrieved June 6, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses to Take Over Las Vegas With ' Appetite for Democracy ' Residency ''. RollingStone.com. Wenner Media LLC. August 13, 2012. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved August 17, 2012. Jump up ^ WENN.com ( August 13, 2012 ). `` Guns N ' Roses heading to Vegas ''. London Free Press. Archived from the original on January 13, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2012. Jump up ^ Ouellette, Mary. `` Guns N ' Roses Film Vegas ' Appetite for Democracy ' Residency Show in 3D ''. Loudwire. Retrieved October 24, 2014. Jump up ^ `` GUNS N ' ROSES : ' Appetite For Democracy ' 3D Film Coming To Theaters, DVD, Blu - Ray ''. BLABBERMOUTH.NET. Retrieved October 24, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses to release 3D concert film ' Appetite For Democracy ' ''. NME.COM. May 30, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Rock Acoustically for 2012 Bridge School Benefit ''. Loudwire. October 21, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses performed at the Bridge School Benefit, and time continued to visit its cruelties upon Axl Rose ''. avclub.com. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses really did play Neil Young 's Bridge School Benefit -- Consequence of Sound ''. Consequence of Sound. Jump up ^ A.J. Daulerio. `` Axl Rose Performed at Bridge School But Guns N ' Roses Is Still a Fresh Corpse This Morning ''. Gawker. Gawker Media. Archived from the original on May 5, 2015. Jump up ^ Bram Teitelman ( October 23, 2012 ). `` Axl Rose Embarrasses Himself At Bridge School Benefit ''. Metal Insider. Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Hogan, Marc ( August 20, 2013 ). `` Alleged Guns N ' Roses Leak Is ' Going Down ' Less Than Smoothly ''. Spin.com. Spin Media. Archived from the original on August 23, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ Rosen, Dana ( August 19, 2013 ). `` HAS A NEW GUNS N ' ROSES SONG LEAKED ONLINE ? ''. eddietrunk.com. Eddie Trunk. Archived from the original on August 22, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ Bowar, Chad ( January 7, 2014 ). `` Guns N ' Roses Book 2014 South American Tour ''. Loudwire. Retrieved July 9, 2015. Jump up ^ Graff, Gary ( April 1, 2014 ). `` Duff McKagan Reuniting With Guns N ' Roses to ' Help Axl Out, ' Says Tommy Stinson ''. Billboard. Retrieved October 24, 2014. ^ Jump up to : Fanelli, Damian ( April 21, 2014 ). `` Duff McKagan to Join Guns N ' Roses at Revolver Golden Gods ''. revolvermag.com. Archived from the original on July 2, 2017. Retrieved July 9, 2015. Jump up ^ Hartmann, Graham ( April 24, 2014 ). `` Guns N ' Roses play one - hour set at 2014 Revolver Golden Gods ''. Loudwire. Retrieved July 9, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses could have new music out in next year, says guitarist Richard Fortus ''. Blabbermouth.net ; Associated Press. April 24, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2014. Fortus : `` We are working on stuff and hopefully very soon we 're going to have new stuff out. Well, in the next year. '' Jump up ^ Gundersen, Edna ( February 18, 2014 ). `` Guns N ' Roses return to Vegas with ' No Trickery ! ' ''. Usatoday.com. Retrieved February 25, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Axl Rose Says Guns N ' Roses Have Two New Albums Completed ''. Revolver Magazine. NewBay Media. June 4, 2014. Archived from the original on July 17, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ Grow, Kory ( July 11, 2014 ). `` Guns N ' Roses ' Next Record Is ' Close to Being Done, ' Dizzy Reed Says ''. Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ Lafon, Mitch ( February 16, 2015 ). `` Richard Fortus interviewed on One On One with Mitch Lafon ''. Talking Metal Digital podcast. Archived from the original on March 15, 2015. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Giles, Jeff ( June 17, 2015 ). `` Bumblefoot hints at Guns N ' Roses hazing, while Richard Fortus promises new music ''. UltimateClassicRock.com. Diffuser Network. Retrieved June 18, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed : Only Axl Rose knows when next album will come out ''. Blabbermouth.net. June 28, 2015. Archived from the original on June 29, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Kreps, Daniel ( July 27, 2015 ). `` DJ Ashba leaving Guns N ' Roses after six years ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 27, 2015. Jump up ^ Childers, Chad ( July 27, 2015 ). `` Guitarist DJ Ashba exits Guns N ' Roses ''. Loudwire. Retrieved July 27, 2015. Jump up ^ Lifton, Dave ( July 27, 2015 ). `` DJ Ashba quits Guns N ' Roses ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved July 27, 2015. Jump up ^ Gary Graff ( July 31, 2015 ). `` Source confirms Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal has left GN'R ``. 93.3 WMMR. Retrieved August 2, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Tommy Stinson Speaks About Leaving Guns N ' Roses ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. January 23, 2016. Retrieved January 24, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses drummer Frank Ferrer : Axl Rose is ' One Of The Greatest Living Rock Stars In The History Of Music ' ''. Blabbermouth.net. July 31, 2015. Retrieved August 2, 2015. Jump up ^ Waddel, Ray ( December 29, 2015 ). `` Guns N ' Roses to Reunite for Coachella, Possible Stadium Tour : Sources ''. Billboard.com. Retrieved December 30, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Axl Rose, Slash to Reunite Guns N ' Roses at Coachella ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 5, 2016. Jump up ^ Kreps, Daniel ( December 30, 2015 ). `` Axl Rose to Talk Guns N ' Roses on ' Jimmy Kimmel Live ' ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 30, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Rose 's appearance on ' Jimmy Kimmel ' canceled due to ' unforeseen circumstances ' ''. Latimes.com. January 4, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Coachella 2016 Lineup Announced : Guns N ' Roses, LCD Soundsystem, Calvin Harris KROQ Jump up ^ `` Coachella announces 2016 lineup : Guns N ' Roses, LCD Soundsystem to headline -- Consequence of Sound ''. Consequence of Sound. Retrieved January 5, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Coachella : Guns N ' Roses, LCD Soundsystem, Calvin Harris Lead Lineup ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 5, 2016. Jump up ^ NME.COM. `` Guns N ' Roses confirm return of Slash and Duff McKagan for Coachella reunion ''. NME.COM. Retrieved January 24, 2016. Jump up ^ chadchilders ( January 19, 2016 ). `` Guns N ' Roses Announce Two Concerts in Las Vegas ''. Loudwire. Retrieved May 11, 2016. Jump up ^ Ricardo Torres. `` First seats go in at T - Mobile Arena -- only 19,997 to go ''. LasVegasSun.com. Retrieved May 11, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Confirm North American Tour ''. Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 26, 2016. Jump up ^ `` GNR australian dates ''. Blabbermouth.net. August 16, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Young, Alex ( July 13, 2016 ). `` GNR announce south american reunion tour ''. Consequenceofsound.net. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Set 2017 U.S. Tour Dates, St. Louis Return ''. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses Announce Summer 2018 Tour Dates ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved December 5, 2017. 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Jump up ^ `` 20 Things We Learned During Axl Rose 's New Q&A Session ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. June 8, 2016. Retrieved June 10, 2016. Jump up ^ Michael Gallucci ( July 1, 2016 ). `` Slash in First Interview Since Guns N ' Roses Reunion : ' It 's All Cool ' ''. Ultimateclassicrock.com. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Kaye, Ben ( July 6, 2016 ). `` Adler reuintes with GNR in Cincy ''. Consequenceofsound.net. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Legaspi, Althea ( July 7, 2016 ). `` Adler joines GNR onstage ''. Rollingstone.com. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Tavana, Art. `` Here 's What It Felt Like Seeing Guns N ' Roses at the Troubadour ''. LA Weekly. Retrieved July 7, 2016. Jump up ^ `` STEVEN ADLER Back On Stage With GUNS N ' ROSES In Nashville ; Video, Photos ''. Blabbermouth.net. July 10, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Joe DiVita. `` Steven Adler Joins Guns N ' Roses Onstage in Los Angeles ''. Loudwire.com. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ `` STEVEN ADLER Rejoins GUNS N ' ROSES On Stage In Buenos Aires ( Video ) ''. Blabbermouth.net. November 5, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ `` STEVEN ADLER Performs ' My Michelle ' With GUNS N ' ROSES At Second Buenos Aires Concert ( Video ) ''. Blabbermouth.net. November 6, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017. Jump up ^ Daniel Kreps. `` See Guns N ' Roses, Sebastian Bach Perform ' My Michelle ' in Las Vegas ''. RollingStone.com. Retrieved May 4, 2016. Jump up ^ Giles, Jeff. `` Angus Young Joins Guns N ' Roses Onstage in Sydney ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved March 15, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Watch Angus Young join Guns N ' Roses for AC / DC cover ''. June 23, 2017. Retrieved July 2, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses het best in samenspel met Angus Young ''. July 13, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017. Jump up ^ Lifton, Dave. `` Guns N ' Roses Play Rose Tattoo 's ' Nice Boys ' Live With Angry Anderson ''. Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved March 15, 2017. 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Jump up ^ `` RICHARD FORTUS Says ' Everyone Is Excited ' About Possibility Of New Album From Reunited GUNS N ' ROSES ''. July 23, 2017. Jump up ^ Runtagh, Jordan ( September 27, 2013 ). `` Beginner 's Luck : The 50 best - selling debut records in music history ''. VH1. Viacom Media Networks. Archived from the original on October 1, 2013. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ Davis, Stephen ( 2008 ). Watch You Bleed : The Saga of Guns N ' Roses. Penguin Group. p. 84. ISBN 978 - 1 - 59240 - 377 - 6. quote = Guns N ' Roses looked and sounded like the Next Big Thing... Joe Perry later said that Guns N ' Roses was the first band since Led Zeppelin that made him think of Led Zeppelin ) Jump up ^ `` Ozzy says ' Crucify The Dead ' lyrics are what he would say to Axl Rose if he were Slash ''. Blabbermouth.net. May 28, 2010. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Robb, John ( December 1, 2012 ). Punk Rock : An Oral History. PM Press. pp. 538 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 60486 - 005 - 4. 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Hard rock seemed so dumb until Guns N ' Roses attacked it with smarts, snot, and vitrol, cutting through a decade of hair spray with one nasty punch Jump up ^ Slash ; Anthony Bozza ( October 30, 2007 ). Slash. HarperCollins. pp. 110 -- 111. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 135142 - 6. Jump up ^ Steven Adler ; Lawrence J. Spagnola ( July 27, 2010 ). My Appetite for Destruction : Sex, and Drugs, and Guns N ' Roses. HarperCollins. pp. 94 -- 95. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 191711 - 0. Jump up ^ DK Music : Heavy Rock : Guitar Heroes. DK Publishing. October 1, 2013. pp. 331 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4654 - 2126 - 5. Retrieved August 12, 2015. Jump up ^ Eddy, Chuck ( July 2008 ). Spin : Hair Metal Essentials. SPIN Media LLC. pp. 105 --. ISSN 0886 - 3032. Retrieved August 12, 2015. Jump up ^ Amy Wallace ; Dick Manitoba ( January 2007 ). The Official Punk Rock Book of Lists. Backbeat Books. pp. 201 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 87930 - 919 - 0. Jump up ^ Abbott, Jim ( November 26, 1993 ). `` Here 's what 's new in the record racks : Guns N ' Roses ''. Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 21, 2013. ^ Jump up to : Patterson, Dayal ( December 23, 2008 ). `` The Quietus -- Opinion -- In Defence Of... -- Guns N'Roses and Chinese Democracy ''. The Quietus. Retrieved August 12, 2015. Jump up ^ Empire, Kitty ( November 22, 2008 ). `` CD of the week : Guns N ' Roses : Chinese Democracy ''. The Observer. London. Observer Review section, p. 19. Retrieved March 25, 2013. Jump up ^ Ressner, Jeffrey ( January 9, 1992 ). `` Queen singer is rock 's first major AIDS casualty ''. Rolling Stone ( 621 ). p. 13. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Jump up ^ Fink, Jesse ( August 5, 2014 ). The Youngs : The Brothers Who Built AC / DC. St. Martin 's Press. p. 21. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4668 - 6520 - 4. Matt Sorum : `` Guns N ' Roses always looked to all the great bands as influences, AC / DC at the top of that list '' Jump up ^ Wall 2008, p. unknown ^ Jump up to : Stenning, Paul ( 2005 ). Guns N ' Roses : The Band That Time Forgot : The Complete Unauthorised Biography. Chrome Dreams. p. 95. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84240 - 314 - 3. `` Our basic root is hard rock, a bit heavier than the Stones, more in a vein like Aerosmith Jump up ^ Stenning 2005, p. 30 Jump up ^ `` Rose Tattoo 's Pete Wells Dies ''. Billboard.com. March 28, 2006. Retrieved May 19, 2015. `` Rose Tattoo 's influence later became apparent on U.S. rock combos like Guns N ' Roses, who covered its track `` Nice Boys ( Do n't Play Rock'n'Roll ) ''. Jump up ^ `` AllMusic -- Appetite For Destruction ''. All Media Guide. Retrieved July 19, 2007. Jump up ^ `` The glam wizardry of Marc Bolan, from solo to T. Rex ''. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Jump up ^ Greer, Jim ( April 1992 ). 7 Greatest Bands of All Time : Sex Pistols. SPIN Media LLC. pp. 4 --. ISSN 0886 - 3032. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Jump up ^ Stenning, Paul ( 2005 ). Guns N ' Roses : The Band That Time Forgot : The Complete Unauthorised Biography. Chrome Dreams. p. 96. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84240 - 314 - 3. Axl was also succinct in admitting his other influences... Along with ELO and Queen, Elton John was responsible for Guns N ' Roses progression. Jump up ^ Zutaut, Tom ( March 2008 ). `` GN'R Exclusive ! Psychic Tests ! Pet Wolves ! Chicken Coops ! CHINESE DEMOCRACY. The Unbelievable true story -- told for the first time ''. Classic Rock Magazine. TeamRock ( 116 ). The first task set to ( Zutaut ) by ( Axl ) was to help with the drum sound for the album 's title track. Axl had told the studio guys that he wanted the same drum sound as Dave Grohl on Nirvana 's Smells Like Teen Spirit access - date = requires url = ( help ) Jump up ^ Macgregor, Jody ( February 28, 2013 ). `` In Defence Of : Guns N ' Roses ' Chinese Democracy ' ''. FasterLouder. Retrieved August 12, 2015. Jump up ^ Paphides, Pete ( May 25, 2008 ). `` Hidden Tracks -- record - review ''. Hidden Tracks. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved August 12, 2015. Jump up ^ Powers, Ann, Review : Chinese Democracy, Los Angeles Times, Retrieved on April 9, 2010 Jump up ^ `` Fall Out Boy 's Pete Wentz : ' Why are we the only band willing to save rock'n'roll ? ' ''. Nme.com. April 20, 2013. Retrieved February 25, 2014. Jump up ^ Moss, Corey ( January 3, 2006 ). `` MTVNews.com : Avenged Sevenfold : Appetite For Destruction ''. mtv.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2015. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Lynch, Joe ( August 20, 2013 ). `` Track - By - Track Breakdown : Avenged Sevenfold 's ' Hail to the King ' ''. Fuse. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Prato, Greg ( April 1, 2009 ). Grunge Is Dead : The Oral History of Seattle Rock Music. ECW Press. pp. 94 --. ISBN 978 - 1 - 55490 - 347 - 4. Jump up ^ Erickson, Anne ( November 30, 2011 ). `` Buckcherry 's Keith Nelson on New Album, Axl Rose and Gibson Guitars ''. gibson.com. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Levine, Nick ( May 8, 2007 ). `` Hinder ''. Digital Spy. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Hinder Pays Tribute To Its Influences In ' Put That Record On ' Video ''. Blabbermouth.net. November 18, 2010. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Power, Martin ( June 1, 2012 ). Nailed to History : The Story of the Manic Street Preachers. Music Sales Group. pp. 50 --. ISBN 978 - 0 - 85712 - 776 - 1. Jump up ^ Zaleski, Annie ( April 12, 2012 ). `` Stop teasing Axl Rose ''. salon.com. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Dave Acosta ( August 30, 2015 ). `` Q&A : Bullet For My Valentine frontman Mathew Tuck ''. The Beat. Archived from the original on August 31, 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Jump up ^ `` ZAKK WYLDE On GUNS N ' ROSES Appetite For Destruction -- `` It 's Beyond Iconic ; Every Song Is Just Phenomenal '' ``. bravewords.com. February 15, 2014. Retrieved September 5, 2015. ^ Jump up to : Rolling Stone staff ; Joe Perry ( March 24, 2004 ). `` 100 Greatest Artists : Number 92 : Guns n ' Roses ''. Rolling Stone Issue 946. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Q Magazine Staff ( September 2002 ). `` 50 Bands to See Before You Die ''. Q MAGAZINE ISSUE 194. Bauer Media Group. access - date = requires url = ( help ) Jump up ^ `` AmIAnnoying.com -- Q Magazine 's 50 Bands You Must See Before You Die ''. amiannoying.com. 2001. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ `` VH1 : ' 100 Greatest Hard Rock Artists ' : 1 -- 50 ''. 2000. Retrieved June 4, 2015. Jump up ^ `` VH1 100 Greatest Artists Of All Time ''. Stereogum.com. September 3, 2010. Retrieved June 4, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses, ' Appetite for Destruction ' ''. Rolling Stone. May 31, 2012. Retrieved April 29, 2015. Jump up ^ Smith, Ben ( November 7, 2012 ). `` VH1 Classic America 's Hard 100 ( 25 Through 1 ) -- VH1 ''. VH1.com. Viacom. Retrieved June 4, 2015. Jump up ^ McKinley, James C. ( December 7, 2011 ). `` Rock Hall Welcomes Guns N ' Roses, Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Beastie Boys ''. The New York Times. Jump up ^ Sherwin, Adam ( November 11, 2012 ). `` Duff McKagan : The man who went from Guns N ' Roses to accountancy ''. London : The Independent. Retrieved February 19, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Top Selling Artists ''. Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 18, 2011. Jump up ^ Ryckert, Dan ( April 30, 2011 ). `` Explanation Revealed For Guns N ' Roses Being Mega Man X5 Bosses ''. GameInformer.com. Retrieved April 24, 2015. Jump up ^ Wall, Mick ( February 5, 2008 ). W.A.R. : The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose. St. Martin 's Press. p. 127. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4299 - 2884 - 7. Controversy was more than just part of the act, it seemed. ^ Jump up to : Phillips, William ; Cogan, Brian ( 2009 ). Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal Music. Greenwood Press. p. 19. ISBN 978 - 0 - 313 - 34800 - 6. Retrieved July 10, 2015. Drugs were also certainly a major factory, especially in bands such as Guns N ' Roses and Motley Crue, whose members notoriously struggled with both problems for year Jump up ^ Williams, Juan ( October 15, 1989 ). `` Essay : Fighting Words ''. Washington Post. Retrieved September 5, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Thank Heaven for Nirvana ''. Big O. February 13, 1992. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Guns N ' Roses are promoting wrong values like sexism and the way they do drugs Jump up ^ DeGroot, Joey ( July 10, 2014 ). `` 12 Artists With Huge Gaps Between Albums : Guns N ' Roses, The Eagles, And More ''. Music Times. Retrieved July 3, 2015. Jump up ^ Goldstein, Patrick ( October 15, 1989 ). `` Behind the Guns N ' Roses Racism Furor : The continuing debate over whether the band 's song, ' One in a Million, ' promotes bigotry ''. latimes. Retrieved July 10, 2015. Jump up ^ Pareles, Jon ( September 15, 1991 ). `` Guns ' n ' Roses Against the ( Expletive ) World ''. New York Times. Retrieved June 20, 2011. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses in Manson flap -- Entertainment News, Music News, Media -- Variety ''. Variety. December 2, 1993. Archived from the original on May 4, 2009. Retrieved May 1, 2009. Jump up ^ Queenan, Joe ( September 30, 1991 ). `` Misfit Metalheads ''. TIME.com. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Jump up ^ Jae - Ha Kim ( May 19, 1991 ). `` Guns N ' Roses ' lyrics become secondary to incendiary sound ''. Chicago Sun - Times. Retrieved September 5, 2015. Jump up ^ Blatt, Ruth. `` How Being Late And Volatile Was Axl Rose 's Contribution To The Guns N ' Roses Brand ''. Forbes. Retrieved July 10, 2015. 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China : Next Media. November 24, 2008. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved June 26, 2015. Jump up ^ `` China Bans Democracy, Declares War on Guns N ' Roses -- David Flumenbaum ''. The Huffington Post. November 24, 2008. Retrieved July 10, 2015. Jump up ^ `` ' Venomous ' Guns N ' Roses album slammed in China ''. CNN.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2009. Retrieved November 24, 2008. Jump up ^ Bodeen, Christopher ( November 25, 2008 ). `` Rock album ' an attack on China ' ''. London : The Independent. Retrieved November 25, 2008. ^ Jump up to : `` Guns N ' Roses ''. Rock on the Net. Jump up ^ `` 16th American Music Awards ''. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 17th American Music Awards ''. Rock on the Net. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 19th American Music Awards ''. Rock on the Net. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 1988 Video Music Awards ''. MTV. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 1989 Video Music Awards ''. MTV. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 1991 Video Music Awards ''. MTV. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` 1992 Video Music Awards ''. MTV. Retrieved October 16, 2008. Jump up ^ `` World Music Awards -- 1993 -- Winners & Nominees ''. Archived from the original on June 28, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2015. Bibliography Adler, Steven ; Spagnola, Lawrence J. ( 2010 ). My Appetite for Destruction : Sex, and Drugs, and Guns N ' Roses. It Books. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 191711 - 0. Berelian, Essi ( 2005 ). The Rough Guide to Heavy Metal. Rough Guides. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84353 - 415 - 0. Canter, Marc ( 2007 ). Reckless Road : Guns N ' Roses and the Making of Appetite for Destruction. RecklessRoad.com. ISBN 978 - 0 - 9793418 - 7 - 8. John, Robert ( 1993 ). Guns N ' Roses : The Photographic History. Bulfinch Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 316 - 46695 - 0. McKagan, Duff ( 2011 ). It 's So Easy ( And Other Lies ). Touchstone. ISBN 978 - 1 - 4516 - 0663 - 8. McKagan, Duff ; Kornelis, Chris ( 2015 ). How to Be a Man : ( and other illusions ). Da Capo Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 306 - 82387 - 9. Phillips, William ; Cogan, Brian ( 2009 ). Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal Music. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 313 - 34800 - 6. Popoff, Martin ( 2000 ). 20th Century Rock and Roll : Heavy Metal. Collectors Guide Publishing Inc. ISBN 978 - 1 - 896522 - 47 - 0. Slash ; Bozza, Anthony ( 2007 ). Slash. HarperEntertainment. ISBN 978 - 0 - 06 - 135142 - 6. Stenning, Paul ( 2005 ). The Band That Time Forgot : The Complete Unauthorised Biography of Guns N ' Roses. Chrome Dreams. ISBN 978 - 1 - 84240 - 314 - 3. Sugerman, Danny ( 1991 ). Appetite for Destruction : The Days of Guns N ' Roses. St. Martin 's Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 312 - 07634 - 4. Wall, Mick ( 1992 ). Guns N ' Roses : The Most Dangerous Band in the World. Hyperion Press. ISBN 978 - 1 - 56282 - 951 - 3. Wall, Mick ( 2008 ). W.A.R. : The Unauthorized Biography of William Axl Rose. St. Martin 's Press. ISBN 978 - 0 - 312 - 37767 - 0. External links Find more aboutGuns N ' Rosesat Wikipedia 's sister projects Media from Wikimedia Commons Quotations from Wikiquote Data from Wikidata Book : Guns N ' Roses Official website Guns N ' Roses at Curlie ( based on DMOZ ) Guns N ' Roses discography at Discogs Guns N ' Roses discography at MusicBrainz Guns N ' Roses Axl Rose Slash Duff McKagan Dizzy Reed Richard Fortus Frank Ferrer Melissa Reese Izzy Stradlin Tracii Guns Ole Beich Rob Gardner Steven Adler Matt Sorum Gilby Clarke Paul Tobias Robin Finck Josh Freese Tommy Stinson Chris Pitman Buckethead Bryan `` Brain '' Mantia Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal DJ Ashba Studio albums Appetite for Destruction G N ' R Lies Use Your Illusion I Use Your Illusion II `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' Chinese Democracy Live albums Live Era ' 87 -- ' 93 Extended plays Live ? ! * @ Like a Suicide Guns N ' Roses The `` Civil War '' EP Compilation albums Use Your Illusion Greatest Hits Singles `` It 's So Easy '' `` Welcome to the Jungle '' `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' `` Paradise City '' `` Patience '' `` Nightrain '' `` You Could Be Mine '' `` Do n't Cry '' `` Live and Let Die '' `` Knockin ' on Heaven 's Door '' `` November Rain '' `` Yesterdays '' `` Civil War '' `` Ai n't It Fun '' `` Estranged '' `` Since I Do n't Have You '' `` Sympathy for the Devil '' `` Chinese Democracy '' Promo singles `` Mr. Brownstone '' `` My Michelle '' `` 14 Years '' `` Pretty Tied Up '' `` Dead Horse '' `` Hair of the Dog '' `` Oh My God '' `` Better '' `` Street of Dreams '' Other songs `` Think About You '' `` Rocket Queen '' `` Used to Love Her '' `` One in a Million '' `` Coma '' `` Get in the Ring '' `` The Garden '' `` Madagascar '' `` Prostitute '' Videos and DVDs Use Your Illusion I Use Your Illusion II Garden of Eden : Strictly Limited Edition Welcome to the Videos Appetite for Democracy 3D Tours The Early Days of Guns N ' Roses Appetite for Destruction Tour Use Your Illusion Tour Guns N ' Roses / Metallica Stadium Tour Chinese Democracy Tour Up Close and Personal Tour Appetite for Democracy Not in This Lifetime... Tour Related Articles Discography Members Songs Awards and nominations Del James West Arkeen Guns N ' Roses Pinball Riverport Riot Watch You Bleed : The Saga of Guns N ' Roses The Roots of Guns N ' Roses Uzi Suicide Bands Slash 's Snakepit The Dead Daisies Hollywood Rose Kings of Chaos L.A. Guns Neurotic Outsiders Road Crew Velvet Revolver Book RIAJ 's Japan Gold Disc Award for Artist of the Year Domestic Akina Nakamori ( 1987 ) Rebecca ( 1988 ) Boøwy ( 1989 ) Southern All Stars ( 1990 ) Yumi Matsutoya ( 1991 ) Chage and Aska ( 1992 ) Chage and Aska ( 1993 ) Wands ( 1994 ) TRF ( 1995 ) TRF ( 1996 ) Namie Amuro ( 1997 ) Glay ( 1998 ) B'z ( 1999 ) Utada Hikaru ( 2000 ) Ayumi Hamasaki ( 2001 ) Ayumi Hamasaki ( 2002 ) Utada Hikaru ( 2003 ) Ayumi Hamasaki ( 2004 ) Orange Range ( 2005 ) Kumi Koda ( 2006 ) Kumi Koda ( 2007 ) Exile ( 2008 ) Exile ( 2009 ) Arashi ( 2010 ) Arashi ( 2011 ) AKB48 ( 2012 ) AKB48 ( 2013 ) AKB48 ( 2014 ) Arashi ( 2015 ) Arashi ( 2016 ) Arashi ( 2017 ) International Madonna ( 1987 ) The Beatles ( 1988 ) Bon Jovi ( 1989 ) Madonna ( 1990 ) Madonna ( 1991 ) Guns N ' Roses ( 1992 ) Madonna ( 1993 ) The Beatles ( 1994 ) Mariah Carey ( 1995 ) Mariah Carey ( 1996 ) Me & My ( 1997 ) Celine Dion ( 1998 ) Celine Dion ( 1999 ) Celine Dion ( 2000 ) The Beatles ( 2001 ) Backstreet Boys ( 2002 ) Avril Lavigne ( 2003 ) Twelve Girls Band ( 2004 ) Queen ( 2005 ) O - Zone ( 2006 ) Daniel Powter ( 2007 ) Avril Lavigne ( 2008 ) Madonna ( 2009 ) The Beatles ( 2010 ) Lady Gaga ( 2011 ) Lady Gaga ( 2012 ) Che'Nelle ( 2013 ) One Direction ( 2014 ) One Direction ( 2015 ) The Beatles ( 2016 ) Ariana Grande ( 2017 ) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2012 Performers Beastie Boys The Blue Caps The Comets The Crickets Donovan The Famous Flames Guns N ' Roses The Midnighters The Miracles Laura Nyro Red Hot Chili Peppers Small Faces / Faces Early influences Freddie King Non-performers ( Ahmet Ertegun Award ) Don Kirshner Award for Musical Excellence Cosimo Matassa Tom Dowd Glyn Johns VIAF : 131481965 LCCN : n90633346 ISNI : 0000 0001 2158 9641 GND : 5230389 - 5 SELIBR : 332566 SUDOC : 03459910X BNF : cb139038362 ( data ) MusicBrainz : eeb1195b - f213 - 4ce1 - b28c - 8565211f8e43 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Guns_N%27_Roses&oldid=826802423 '' Categories : Guns N ' Roses 1985 establishments in California Geffen Records artists Hard rock musical groups from California Heavy metal musical groups from California Musical groups established in 1985 Musical groups from Los Angeles Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Hidden categories : CS1 Danish - language sources ( da ) CS1 maint : Uses editors parameter CS1 maint : Uses authors parameter CS1 French - language sources ( fr ) Pages using citations with accessdate and no URL CS1 Chinese - language sources ( zh ) Wikipedia indefinitely semi-protected pages Use mdy dates from November 2017 Articles with hCards Articles with hAudio microformats Pages using multiple image with manual scaled images Articles with Curlie links MusicBrainz artist same as Wikidata Articles with MusicBrainz artist links Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers Talk View source Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Alemannisch Aragonés Azərbaycanca বাংলা Беларуская Български Bosanski Brezhoneg Català Čeština Cymraeg Dansk Deutsch ދިވެހިބަސް Eesti Ελληνικά Emiliàn e rumagnòl Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français Gaeilge Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Hrvatski Ido Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית Basa Jawa ქართული Latina Latviešu Lëtzebuergesch Lietuvių Magyar Македонски മലയാളം მარგალური Nederlands नेपाली 日本 語 Norsk Norsk nynorsk Occitan Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча Piemontèis Polski Português Română Русский Scots Shqip Sicilianu Simple English Slovenčina Slovenščina Српски / srpski Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Tagalog தமிழ் ไทย Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt Zazaki 中文 64 more Edit links This page was last edited on 21 February 2018, at 02 : 22. 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Question: who is in the guns and roses band
Answer: Axl Rose