Query: Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band.

Relevant passages:
Chinese Democracy <=SEP=> Chinese Democracy is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Guns N ' Roses . It was released on November 23 , 2008 , by Geffen Records . The album was the band 's first studio album since `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' in November 1993 , and their first album of original studio material since the simultaneous releases of Use Your Illusion I and II in September 1991 . Although it debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America ( RIAA ) , Chinese Democracy domestically undersold expectations . It received generally favorable reviews from music critics . The album achieved international chart success and has sold over one million copies in Europe .   In 1994 , Guns N ' Roses ' progress on a follow-up to `` The Spaghetti Incident ? '' was halted due to creative differences between members of the band . Slash , Duff McKagan , Matt Sorum , and Gilby Clarke all resigned or were fired from the band in the mid-1990s . Lead singer Axl Rose and keyboardist Dizzy Reed were the only members from the previous lineup remaining by the time production had started . A new lineup , consisting of Rose , Reed , guitarists Robin Finck and Paul Tobias , bassist Tommy Stinson , drummer Josh Freese , and keyboardist Chris Pitman began working on the album in 1997 . Initially intended to be released in 1999 or 2000 , the album was re-recorded completely in 2000 . The album was worked on by multiple lineups of the band , including later members Bryan Mantia , Buckethead , Richard Fortus , Ron `` Bumblefoot '' Thal , and Frank Ferrer . Personnel and legal reasons , as well as Rose 's alleged perfectionism , caused the album to be delayed multiple times . The album missed an announced March 2007 release date , before being released in November 2008 . With production costs reportedly eclipsing $ 13 million , the album is the most expensive rock album ever produced .

Guns N' Roses <=SEP=> Guns N ' Roses , often abbreviated as GnR , is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles 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 have released six studio albums , accumulating sales of more than 100 million records worldwide , including shipments of 45 million in the United States , making them one of the world 's best-selling bands 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 .   Guns N ' Roses has been credited with reviving the mainstream popularity of rock 'n' roll , at a time when popular music was dominated by dance music and glam metal . Its 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 in its first year of eligibility .   The band 's membership has changed many times since the early 1990 's , with Rose and keyboardist Dizzy 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 .

Slash (musician) <=SEP=> Saul Hudson ( born July 23 , 1965 ) , better known by his stage name Slash , is a British-American musician and songwriter . He is best known as the lead guitarist of the American rock band Guns N ' Roses , with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s . During his later years with Guns N ' Roses , Slash formed the side project Slash 's Snakepit . After leaving Guns N ' Roses in 1996 , he co-founded the supergroup Velvet Revolver , which re-established him as a mainstream performer in the mid to late 2000s . Slash has since released three solo albums : Slash ( 2010 ) , featuring an array of famous guest musicians , and Apocalyptic Love ( 2012 ) and World on Fire ( 2014 ) , recorded with his band , Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators . He returned to Guns N ' Roses in 2016 , nearly 20 years after he had left .   Slash has received critical acclaim and is considered as one of the greatest rock guitarists . Time Magazine named him runner-up on their list of `` The 10 Best Electric Guitar Players '' in 2009 , while Rolling Stone Magazine placed him at No. 65 on their list of `` The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time '' in 2011 . Guitar World ranked his guitar solo in `` November Rain '' No. 6 on their list of `` The 100 Greatest Guitar Solos '' in 2008 , and Total Guitar placed his riff in `` Sweet Child o ' Mine '' at No. 1 on their list of `` The 100 Greatest Riffs '' in 2004 . During 2010 Gibson Guitar Corporation ranked Slash as No. 34 on their `` Top 50 Guitarists of All Time '' , while their readers landed him No. 9 on Gibson 's `` Top 25 Guitarists of All Time '' . In 2012 , he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Guns N ' Roses ' classic line-up .

Appetite for Destruction <=SEP=> Appetite for Destruction is the debut studio album by American hard rock band Guns N ' Roses . It was released on July 21 , 1987 , by Geffen Records to massive commercial success . It topped the Billboard 200 and became the best-selling debut album as well as the 11th best-selling album in the United States . With about 30 million copies sold worldwide , it is also one of the best-selling records ever . Although critics were ambivalent toward the album when it was first released , Appetite for Destruction has since received retrospective acclaim and been viewed as one of the greatest albums of all time .

Use Your Illusion I <=SEP=> Use Your Illusion I is the third studio album by American rock band Guns N ' Roses . It was released on September 17 , 1991 , the same day as its counterpart album Use Your Illusion II . Both albums were released in conjunction with the Use Your Illusion Tour . The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard charts , selling 685,000 copies in its first week , behind Use Your Illusion II '' 's first week sales of 770,000 . Use Your Illusion I has sold 5,502,000 units in the U.S. as of 2010 , according to Nielsen SoundScan . Each of the Use Your Illusion '' albums have been certified 7 × Platinum by the RIAA . It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1992 .