Welcome to the Jungle - wikipedia Welcome to the Jungle This article is about the Guns N ' Roses song. For other uses, see Welcome to the Jungle ( disambiguation ). `` Welcome to the Jungle '' U.S. single picure sleeve Single by Guns N ' Roses from the album Appetite for Destruction B - side `` Whole Lotta Rosie ( live ) / Mr. Brownstone '' ( US ) `` Nightrain '' ( UK ) Released September 28, 1987 October 24, 1988 ( 2nd release ) Format 7 - inch single 12 - inch single 12 - inch picture disc CD single Recorded June 19, 1987 Genre Heavy metal Length 4 : 31 Label Geffen Songwriter ( s ) Axl Rose Slash Producer ( s ) Mike Clink Guns N ' Roses singles chronology `` It 's So Easy '' / `` Mr. Brownstone '' ( 1987 ) `` Welcome to the Jungle '' ( 1987 ) `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' ( 1988 ) Appetite for Destruction track listing `` Welcome to the Jungle '' ( 1 ) `` It 's So Easy '' ( 2 ) Audio sample file help `` Welcome to the Jungle '' is a song by American rock band Guns N ' Roses, featured on their debut album, Appetite for Destruction ( 1987 ). It was released as the album 's second single initially in the UK in September 1987 then again in October 1988 this time including the US, where it reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 24 on the UK Singles Chart. On the 1987 release, the Maxi Single format was backed with a live version of AC / DC 's `` Whole Lotta Rosie '', the band 's debut single `` It 's So Easy '' and Bob Dylan 's `` Knockin ' On Heaven 's Door ''. In 2009 `` Welcome to the Jungle '' was named the greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1. Contents 1 Background and composition 2 Reception 3 Music video 4 Live performances 5 Use in media 6 Track listings 7 Personnel 8 Charts 9 Notes 10 External links Background and composition Axl Rose wrote the lyrics while visiting a friend in Seattle. `` It 's a big city, but at the same time, it 's still a small city compared to L.A. and the things that you 're gon na learn. It seemed a lot more rural up there. I just wrote how it looked to me. If someone comes to town and they want to find something, they can find whatever they want. '' Rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin summarises the song as `` about Hollywood streets ; true to life. '' Slash describes the development of the music of `` Welcome to the Jungle '' in his self - titled autobiography. As the band was trying to write new material, Axl remembered a riff Slash had played while he was living in the basement of Slash 's mother 's house. He played it and the band quickly laid down the foundations for the song, as Slash continued coming up with new guitar parts for it. He credits Duff McKagan as coming up with the breakdown. Duff contradicts this in his autobiography, It 's So Easy ( and other Lies ), saying it was from a song called `` The Fake '' that he wrote in 1978 for the Vains, a punk band he was in. He also said it was the first song he ever wrote, and that it was later released as a single by the band. According to Slash, the song was written in approximately three hours. Rose claimed 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 ! '' Reception Martin Popoff included the song at number nineteen in his book The Top 500 Heavy Metal Songs of All Time ; it was ranked the second `` greatest metal song '' by VH1 ; it appeared at # 467 on Rolling Stone ' `` 500 Greatest Songs of All Time '' list, it appeared as number seven hundred and sixty - four on Q 's `` 1001 Best Songs Ever '' chart ; and the song was named the `` greatest song about Los Angeles '' in a poll in Blender. In 2009 it was named the greatest hard rock song of all time by VH1. In 2009 the readers of Rolling Stone Magazine rated it the greatest sports anthem. Music video Geffen Records was having a hard time selling the video to MTV. David Geffen made a deal with the network, and the video was aired only one time around 5 : 00AM on a Sunday morning. As soon as the video was aired, the networks received numerous calls from people wanting to see the video again. In spite of the early morning airtime, the song 's music video caught viewers ' attention and quickly became MTV 's most requested video. The video in question begins with a shot of Axl Rose disembarking a bus in Los Angeles and a drug dealer ( portrayed by Izzy ) is seen trying to sell his merchandise while Rose rejects it. As Rose stops to watch a television through a store window, clips of the band playing live can be seen and Slash can also be seen briefly, sitting against the store 's wall and drinking from a clear glass bottle in a brown paper bag. By the end of the video Rose has transformed into a city punk, wearing the appropriate clothing, after going through a process similar to the Ludovico technique. During an interview with Rolling Stone magazine about the music video, Guns N ' Roses ' manager at the time, Alan Niven, said that he `` came up with the idea of stealing from three movies : Midnight Cowboy, The Man Who Fell to Earth and A Clockwork Orange. '' Live performances `` Welcome to the Jungle '' is often used as the opener at Guns N ' Roses concerts, being played at almost every show on the Appetite for Destruction Tour and Use Your Illusion Tour. From 2001 - 2007, on the Chinese Democracy Tour, `` Welcome to the Jungle '' was used exclusively as the show opener, until 2009, when it was replaced by `` Chinese Democracy ''. It now occupies the second spot on the setlist. When performed live, the song often begins with the line : `` Do you know where the fuck you are ? You 're in the jungle baby ! Wake up ! Time to Die ! '', in reference to the song 's bridge. The song was used as the concert introduction during Shakira 's world tour, the Tour of the Mongoose. Australian rock band Mammal frequently cover `` Welcome to the Jungle '' live, incorporating the first verse and chorus of the song as part of their own song, `` Inciting ''. Pink performed the song at her 2003 Try This Tour. Use in media The song was featured in the music video game Guitar Hero III : Legends of Rock, along with an in - game representation of Slash, who becomes unlocked as a playable character after defeating him in a guitar battle. The song was also featured in the video game Grand Theft Auto : San Andreas on the fictional radio station `` Radio X '' ( singer Axl Rose voices a radio DJ in the game on a separate station ). Track listings All songs credited to Guns N ' Roses except where noted UK 1987 7 '' vinyl ( GEF 30 ) No. Title Writer ( s ) Length 1. `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 4 : 30 2. `` Whole Lotta Rosie '' ( Live AC / DC cover ) Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Bon Scott 5 : 29 Total length : 9 : 59 UK 1987 12 '' vinyl ( GEF 30T ) ; 12 '' picture disc ( GEF 30TP ) No. Title Writer ( s ) Length 1. `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 4 : 30 2. `` Whole Lotta Rosie '' ( Live AC / DC cover ) Young, Young, Scott 3. `` It 's So Easy '' ( live ) Guns N ' Roses, West Arkeen 4. `` Knockin ' on Heaven 's Door '' ( Live Bob Dylan cover ) Bob Dylan US 1988 7 '' vinyl ( 927 759 - 7 ) No. Title Writer ( s ) Length 1. `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 4 : 30 2. `` Mr. Brownstone '' Izzy Stradlin 3 : 46 Total length : 8 : 17 UK 1988 7 '' vinyl ( GEF 47 ) No. Title Length 1. `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 4 : 30 2. `` Nightrain '' 4 : 29 Total length : 9 : 00 UK 1988 12 '' vinyl ( GEF 47T ) ; 12 '' poster bag ( GEF 47TW ) ; 12 '' picture disc ( GEF 47TP ) ; 12 '' patch ( GEF47TV ) ; 3 '' CD ( GEF 47CD ) No. Title Length 1. `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 4 : 30 2. `` Nightrain '' 4 : 29 3. `` You 're Crazy '' ( Acoustic Version ) 4 : 10 Total length : 13 : 10 Personnel W. Axl Rose -- lead vocals Slash -- lead guitar Izzy Stradlin -- rhythm guitar, backing vocals Duff McKagan -- bass guitar, backing vocals Steven Adler -- drums, percussion Charts Chart ( 1987 -- 1988 ) Peak position Australia ( ARIA ) 41 Finland ( The Official Finnish Charts ) 13 Ireland ( IRMA ) 14 Netherlands ( Single Top 100 ) 84 New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ ) 6 UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) 24 US Billboard Hot 100 7 US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) 37 Notes Jump up ^ `` 6 Glam - Metal Albums You Need to Own ''. October 3, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Artist Chart History - Guns N ' Roses ''. Billboard. Retrieved 2008 - 12 - 17. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses ''. Chart Stats. Retrieved 2008 - 12 - 17. ^ Jump up to : `` spreadit.org music ''. Retrieved February 7, 2009. Jump up ^ `` AXL ROSE & GNR Articles : Hit Parader March 1988 ''. Jump up ^ `` The Spaghetti Incident ''. hem.passagen.se. Retrieved 2008 - 12 - 17. ^ Jump up to : `` Welcome To The Jungle ''. Here Today... Gone To Hell !. Retrieved 2008 - 12 - 17. ^ Jump up to : McKagan, Duff ; Mohr, Tim ( 2010 ). It 's So Easy ( and other Lies ). New York : Simon & Schuster. pp. 42 -- 43, 97. Jump up ^ Bozza, Anthony ; Slash ( 2007 ). Slash. New York : Harper Entertainment. pp. 108 -- 109. ^ Jump up to : `` Just a Little Patience ''. Spin. July 1999. Retrieved December 19, 2011. Jump up ^ Brown, Lane ( August 26, 2008 ). `` Exclusive Excerpt : Stephen Davis 's ' Watch You Bleed : The Saga of Guns N ' Roses ' ''. Vulture.com. Retrieved May 4, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Top500_Heavy_Metal_Songs. html ''. Jump up ^ `` 40 greatest metal songs ( 40 - 31 ) ''. VH1. Retrieved 2008 - 12 - 18. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Archived June 30, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. Jump up ^ `` Welcome To The Jungle Tops Los Angeles Songs Poll ''. December 11, 2006. Jump up ^ `` Music - New Music News, Reviews, Pictures, and Videos ''. Jump up ^ Tom King, The Operator : David Geffen Builds, Buys, and Sells the New Hollywood, p. 430, Broadway Books ( New York 2001 ). Jump up ^ `` News ''. Jump up ^ `` Guitar Hero 3 Setlist Revealed ''. PC World. 2007. Retrieved 2008 - 07 - 28. Jump up ^ Tor Thorsen ( 2004 - 10 - 26 ). `` Full San Andreas soundtrack details ''. Game Spot. Archived from the original on 2007 - 09 - 30. Retrieved 2009 - 12 - 17. Jump up ^ `` Australian-charts.com -- Guns N ' Roses -- Welcome to the Jungle ''. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ Pennanen, Timo. Sisältää hitin : levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972. Otava Publishing Company Ltd, 2003. ISBN 951 - 1 - 21053 - X Jump up ^ `` The Irish Charts -- Search Results -- Guns N ' Roses ''. Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Dutchcharts.nl -- Guns N ' Roses -- Welcome to the Jungle '' ( in Dutch ). Single Top 100. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Charts.org.nz -- Guns N ' Roses -- Welcome to the Jungle ''. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses : Artist Chart History ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses -- Chart history '' Billboard Hot 100 for Guns N ' Roses. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Guns N ' Roses -- Chart history '' Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs for Guns N ' Roses. Retrieved March 25, 2017. Davis, Stephen ( 2008 ). Watch You Bleed : The Saga of Guns N ' Roses. Gotham Books. ISBN 978 - 1 - 59240 - 377 - 6. External links `` Welcome to the Jungle '' music video at VH1 Classic Complete Guide to GN'R ' Welcome to the Jungle ' at Ultimate-Guitar.com Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics 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 BulletBoys The Dead Daisies Hollywood Rose Johnny Crash Kings of Chaos L.A. 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'' Kate Smith Lauren Hart Legion of Doom Lou Nolan `` Mac 's Big Break '' ( It 's Always Sunny in Philadelphia episode ) Mike `` Doc '' Emrick The Night the Spectrum Shook Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame `` Welcome to the Jungle '' 1976 Flyers -- Red Army game 2010 NHL Winter Classic 2012 NHL Winter Classic 2017 NHL Stadium Series Cincinnati Bengals Founded in 1968 Based and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio Franchise Franchise History Seasons Coaches Players First - round draft picks Draft history Starting quarterbacks Stadiums Nippert Stadium Riverfront Stadium Paul Brown Stadium Rivalries Cleveland Browns Pittsburgh Steelers Culture and lore Freezer Bowl Ickey Shuffle Ben -- Gals Bengalized Laura Vikmanis Division championships ( 9 ) 1970 1973 1981 1988 1990 2005 2009 2013 2015 Conference championships ( 2 ) 1981 1988 Retired numbers 54 Media Broadcasters Radio network Flagships : WCKY WEBN WLW Television : WKRC - TV Current league affiliations League : National Football League ( 1970 -- present ) Conference : American Football Conference Division : North Division Former league affiliation League : American Football League ( 1968 -- 1969 ) Seasons ( 50 ) 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1984 1985 1986 1988 1990 1991 2017 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Welcome_to_the_Jungle&oldid=807607148 '' Categories : Guns N ' Roses songs 1987 singles Music videos directed by Nigel Dick Songs written by Axl Rose Songs written by Slash ( musician ) Songs about drugs Songs about Los Angeles Songs about prostitutes Geffen Records singles Songs written by Izzy Stradlin Songs written by Duff McKagan 1987 songs Cincinnati Bengals Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use mdy dates from April 2016 Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from October 2016 Track listings with deprecated parameters Singlechart usages for Australia Singlechart usages for Ireland2 Singlechart called without song Singlechart usages for Dutch100 Singlechart usages for New Zealand Singlechart usages for UKsinglesbyname Singlechart usages for Billboardhot100 Singlechart usages for Billboardmainstreamrock Talk Contents About Wikipedia Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Ελληνικά Español Euskara فارسی Français Italiano Nederlands 日本 語 Polski Português Русский Slovenčina Suomi Svenska 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 29 October 2017, at 01 : 12. 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Question: when did welcome to the jungle come out
Answer: 1987