The band has released six studio albums: Appetite For Destruction in 1987, G N' R Lies in 1988, Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II in 1991, "The Spaghetti Incident?" in 1993 and, after 15 years and with frontman Axl Rose and keyboardist Dizzy Reed being the only members left from the previous lineup, Chinese Democracy in 2008. They also released three EP's in 1986, 1988, and 1993 and two live albums, in 1999 and 2014.
The group was formed in early 1985 by Hollywood Rose members Axl Rose (vocals) and Izzy Stradlin (rhythm guitar) and L.A. Guns members Tracii Guns (lead guitar), Ole Beich (bass) and Rob Gardner (drums). The band created its name by combining two of the members' names. Rejected names were "Heads of Amazon" and "AIDS." A short time later, Beich was fired and replaced by Duff McKagan, and Guns was replaced by Slash after not showing up to rehearsal. Slash had played with McKagan in Road Crew and with Stradlin during a short stint in Hollywood Rose. On their first tour (from Sacramento, California to Duff's home town of Seattle), Gardner quit and was replaced by Slash's friend, Steven Adler.
Stemming from the LA rock underground, the ugly lyrics matched the sleaze of the music--driven by heavy blues licks--covering misogyny, violence, city life, sex, liquor, and hard drugs. They also, however, tended to show sensitivity and a desire to break free from the city. Subsequent albums revealed influence from bands in the vein of The Rolling Stones and Queen.
Their 1987 breakthrough, Appetite for Destruction, (18-times platinum and the highest-selling debut album of all-time), coupled with the success of the hit single "Sweet Child O' Mine" in 1988, took the world by storm. "Appetite" was full of raunchy hard rock with blistering, anthemic guitar riffs and snarling vocals.
The followup EP, "G N' R Lies", contained four songs from their debut EP, three new acoustic songs, and an acoustic version of "You're Crazy". The album sold well and got into the top 10 alongside Appetite. By the end of the 1980s, they were one of the most popular bands in the world.
Steven Adler (original drummer) was kicked out of the band due to his drug abuse and replaced by Matt Sorum.
Following the release of G N' R Lies, Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II made history by making the number 1 and 2 spots on the American Billboard Album chart. The albums were filled with songs that pushed Guns into a different direction, far from the Appetite era. They surprised critics who expected hard rock songs but found more "epic" tracks featuring a wider range of instruments (pianos, brass instruments, various effects, etc). The main response was that instead of releasing two albums that included "filler tracks", they could have released one CD.
The band then started a world tour to support the albums. During this tour, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin quit the band due to differences with Slash, Sorum and McKagan due to his newfound sobriety and Stradlin's anger at Rose's management of the band.
They played 192 shows in the 28-month tour, which set attendance records and concluded with a show in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on July 17, 1993. This show marked the last time original members Slash and McKagan and newcomers Clarke and Sorum would play a live show with Rose.
Axl began work on a new album of original material in 1993. In 1994, Gilby Clarke left the band, and was replaced with Paul Tobias. That same year, the band recorded a cover version of The Rolling Stones' "Sympathy for the Devil" for the movie Interview with the Vampire. According to Slash's 2007 autobiography, the first version of guitar track was rejected by Axl, who wanted Slash to copy Keith Richards' playing on the original. Reluctantly, Slash agreed and recorded another version closer to the original. Slash was further infuriated when he discovered Tobias' guitar copying his own solo note by note layered in the final mix of the song. This would be the last recording by the original version of the band, and five years would go by before any new material came out under the Guns N' Roses name.
Slash drifted in and out of the band for the next couple of years, beginning a side project called Slash's Snakepit. In August 1996, GN'R returned to the studio, even though McKagan and Sorum were simultaneously touring with their side project, Neurotic Outsiders. Eventually, only Slash and Rose were left to continue working. During this period, Slash commented in an interview, "My relationship with Axl right now is sort of at a standstill." Additionally, Axl had approached guitarist Zakk Wylde (Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society) about jamming and possibly joining Guns N' Roses.
In 1996 and 1997, Slash, Sorum and McKagan all left the band, leaving Rose as the only remaining charter member of the band. The three later formed rock supergroup Velvet Revolver with former Stone Temple Pilots frontman Scott Weiland and guitarist Dave Kushner.
In 1998, a "clean" (i.e., profanity removed) version of Use Your Illusion was released (in the USA only), mainly so the album could be sold in Wal-Mart and K-Mart stores. The album, titled "Use Your Illusion" was a 1 CD compilation of the 2 albums.
Also in 1998, Axl put a new version of the band together and returned to the studio. This version of the band has been touring and recording sporadically ever since. The new band's membership has changed frequently, but its core members have included guitarist Robin Finck, effects man Chris Pitman, bassist Tommy Stinson (formerly of The Replacements)— as well as Paul Tobias, drummer Josh Freese and longtime GN'R keyboardist Dizzy Reed.
In 1999, the band released one new song, "Oh My God", on the soundtrack of the film End of Days. The track featured additional guitar work by [arist]Dave Navarro and Gary Sunshine, Rose's personal guitar teacher. The song's release was intended to be a prelude to their new album, now officially entitled Chinese Democracy. Geffen also released Live Era '87-'93, a collection of live performances from various concerts during the Appetite for Destruction and Use Your Illusion tours. Also in 1999, during an interview with Kurt Loder for MTV, Axl said that he had re-recorded Appetite for Destruction with the new band, replacing two songs with "Patience" and "You Could Be Mine".
In 1999, guitarist Robin Finck departed the band in order to rejoin his former band, Nine Inch Nails, on tour. In 2000, virtuoso guitarist Buckethead joined Guns N' Roses as a replacement for Finck. Josh Freese was replaced with Bryan "Brain" Mantia (formerly of Primus). Robin Finck returned to Guns N' Roses in late 2000 to complement Buckethead on lead guitar.
The revised lineup finally 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 a mixture of old hits and new songs from their forthcoming album.
The new lineup played a further two shows in Las Vegas at the end of 2001. In 2002, rhythm guitarist Paul Tobias left the band because of his frustrations with life on the road. He was replaced by Richard Fortus (formerly of The Psychedelic Furs and Love Spit Love). The band then played several shows in August 2002, headlining festivals and concerts throughout Asia and Europe. They made their way to New York for a surprise appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards in September.
In 2002, the band's first North American tour since 1993 was organized to support Chinese Democracy. However, the opening show in Vancouver was canceled by the venue when Rose arrived late due to his plane being held up by bad weather conditions at Los Angeles airport. 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 sold out in minutes. Due to a second riot by fans in Philadelphia, tour promoter Clear Channel canceled the remainder of the tour.
The band went on hiatus until they were scheduled to play at Rock in Rio IV in May 2004. However, Buckethead left the band in March of that year, causing them to cancel. Also in March 2004, Geffen released Guns N' Roses' Greatest Hits, since Rose had failed to deliver a new studio album in more than 10 years. Rose expressed displeasure with this album as its track listing was established without his consent and went as far as trying to block its release by suing Geffen. This failed, however, and the album went triple platinum in the USA.
In February 2006, demos of the songs "Better", "Catcher in the Rye", "I.R.S." and "There Was a Time" were leaked through a 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 web sites. Despite this, radio stations began adding "I.R.S." to playlists, and the song reached #49 on the Radio & Records Active Rock National Airplay chart in the final week of February - the first time an internet leak had done so.
On May 5, 2006, Axl appeared on the Friday Night Rocks with Eddie Trunk radio show (during an interview with ex-Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach) and said the new Guns N' Roses album would be released before the end of the year. Later in May, the band launched a European tour, headlining both the Download Festival and Rock In Rio - Lisbon. Four warm-up shows preceded the tour at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City and became the band's first live concert dates since the aborted 2002 tour. The shows also marked the debut of virtuoso guitarist and composer Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, replacing Buckethead. During the tour, Bach and Izzy Stradlin made frequent guest appearances. By the tour's end in 2007, the band had played to over 750 000 people in over 23 countries.
On April 5, 2008, a picture of Finck appeared on Nine Inch Nails web page under the title "Welcome Back!" starting the rumor of his possible reunion with Trent Reznor. On April 11, Finck expressed his happiness on playing again with NIN. On April 20, on Guns N' Roses' web site, Axl expressed surprise about the news.
Chinese Democracy had been given the tentative release date of March 6, then reported September 17, 2007. However, both dates passed with no sign of the album. After further release dates were discussed, the album finally came out on November 23, 2008, to mostly positive critical reviews & underselling industry expectations.
Slash, McKagan and Sorum still played together in Velvet Revolver. However, Izzy Stradlin, original GN'R rhythm guitarist and co-composer of many of the band's most successful songs, has not joined them. He did, however, play a few dates as a guest with GN'R in the summer of 2006. Keyboard player Dizzy Reed, while not a founding member of the band (joining in 1990 in the Use Your Illusion period), remained in the previous lineup. in 2014, Bassist Tommy Stinson had previous commitments to The Replacements, leading former bassist Duff McKagan to fill in. After the 2014 tour, bassist Tommy Stinson, guitarists DJ Ashba & Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, and keyboardist Chris Pitman all left the band.
Slash and McKagan rejoined in 2016, as did keyboardist Melissa Reese, as the group embarked on the "Not in This Lifetime..." stadium tour. The tour also featured several guest appearances, including from former drummer Steven Adler, AC/DC guitarist Angus Young, former Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach, and Rose Tattoo singer Angry Anderson. The tour was a massive success, becoming the third highest grossing concert tour of all-time by its end in 2019.
The band continued with the Guns N’ Roses 2020 Tour and in 2021 released two new singles “Absurd” and “Hard Skool”, both reworkings of ‘’Chinese Democracy’’ era tracks. The singles are the first songs released featuring Slash and Duff McKagan since 1994.
GN'R's current lineup includes Rose (lead vocals), McKagan (bass), Fortus (rhythm guitar), Slash (lead guitar), Melissa Reese[/bandember] (synth & programming), Frank Ferrer (drums) and Reed (keyboard and percussion).
Discography
Appetite for Destruction (1987) #1 US Billboard, 18x Platinum
G N' R Lies (1988) #2 US Billboard, 5x Platinum
Use Your Illusion I (1991) #2 US Billboard, 7x Platinum
Use Your Illusion II (1991) #1 US Billboard, 7x Platinum
The Spaghetti Incident? (1993) #4 US Billboard, Platinum
Live Era '87-'93 (1999) #45 US Billboard, Gold
Greatest Hits (2004) #3 US Billboard, 3x Platinum
Chinese Democracy (2008) #3 US Billboard, Platinum
The above figures represent US sales only and do not constitute worldwide figures, which are much higher.
O My God
Guns N' Roses Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like you've been right
You've been living a trade-off
Believe your own version
Believe your enslavery and drain out your soul
What can I do when there's so many liars
That crawl through your veins
Like millions of spiders
And ruin the wiser
Watch out
Gotcha
Oh my god
I can't deny this
I've been taught just to kill and fight this
To bury it deeper where nobody can find it
Like nobody wanted to know
So give it away
Like they're not gonna fuck you
How long can you bear him
To come back and haunt you
To burn past your feelings
And cause you to suffer
You're starting to bleed
They don't give you up
Before its too late
What will you offer
In way of a healing
I'm so confused, abused, misused
Oh my god
I can't deny this
I've been taught just to kill and fight this
To bury it deeper where nobody can find it
Like nobody wouldn't know
Oh, if it opens your eyes
This is better than a strong compromise
I was willing to be lost in the shuffle
If only you had let me know
Ooh, if it opens your eyes
This is better than the last compromise
I was willing to be lost in the shadows
If only you had let me know
And they won't give in
Cause they know what they're after
A kick in the face
Like its all that would matter
Oh
Oh my god
I can't deny this
I've been taught just to murder and fight this
To bury it deeper where no one can find it
'cause nobody wouldn't know
Oh, if it opens your eyes
This is better than a good compromise
I was willing to be lost in the shuffle
If only you had let me know
Oh, well its on with the show
Like the tide down on the ocean
The waves already set in motion
The only one in the game that's lost is you
The lyrics of Guns N' Roses's song "Oh My God" explore the theme of inner turmoil and the contradictory thoughts and feelings that can plague a person. The opening lines, "It's not how you're thinking / Like you've been right," suggest that the singer's thoughts and beliefs may be misguided or distorted. They then describe the feeling of being a victim and being exploited by others, who drain them of their soul like spiders hunting their prey. There is a sense of desperation and hopelessness in their voice, as they wonder how they can escape the web of deceit and lies that people use to control them.
The chorus of "Oh My God" repeats the lines "I can't deny this / I've been taught just to kill and fight this / To bury it deeper where nobody can find it / Like nobody wanted to know", emphasizing the theme of suppression and denial. The singer seems to have been conditioned to ignore their own feelings and experiences, to push them down where they can't be seen or heard. The verses continue to explore this sense of being trapped and unable to break free, describing the pain and suffering that comes with trying to hold in these emotions. The final lines, "The only one in the game that's lost is you," suggest that the singer is aware of their own self-destructive tendencies but feels powerless to change them.
Overall, "Oh My God" is a powerful and introspective exploration of the struggles that can come with trying to navigate the complexities of one's own emotions and experiences. The lyrics are evocative and poetic, painting a vivid picture of a person caught in a cycle of anxiety, despair, and disillusionment.
Line by Line Meaning
It's not how you're thinking
Your assumptions are wrong.
Like you've been right
You've been living in a way that's just not true.
You've been living a trade-off
You've been giving up what matters for something that doesn't.
Believe your own version
Stay true to your own interpretation of life.
Believe your enslavery and drain out your soul
If you don’t, everything and everyone will take advantage of you and exhaust you.
What can I do when there's so many liars
We’re surrounded by so many people who are not truthful.
That crawl through your veins
Lies that become part of your life, in your thoughts and in your blood.
Like millions of spiders
Lies fill our minds and spread their roots to the point of overwhelming us and taking hold of our lives.
That seek out their victims
Lies often lay in wait until they have found something to cling to.
And ruin the wiser
Lies have a way of tearing apart even the smartest people, making them feel small and powerless.
Watch out
Be aware of what's happening around you.
Gotcha
You’ve been caught by the lies and what they’ve done to you.
Oh my god
An expression of shock and amazement.
I can't deny this
There's no way to pretend this isn't happening.
I've been taught just to kill and fight this
We have been raised to react violently to problems rather than solve them peacefully.
To bury it deeper where nobody can find it
Ignore the issues and hope they go away.
Like nobody wanted to know
Like no one cared enough to uncover the truth.
So give it away
Let go of the pain and the lies.
Like they're not gonna fuck you
Do not let the lies continue to hurt you.
How long can you bear him
How long can you tolerate living under false pretenses.
To come back and haunt you
The issues will not just disappear, but will come back to cause more harm.
To burn past your feelings
The problems will continue to hurt you on a deep level.
And cause you to suffer
The issues will create great emotional pain.
You're starting to bleed
You've been hurt and are now feeling the pain.
They don't give you up
The lies will not release their hold on you easily.
Before its too late
Before the pain becomes unbearable.
What will you offer
What can you do to fix the situation?
In way of a healing
What can you do to heal the damage?
I'm so confused, abused, misused
I am deeply hurt and struggling to make sense of it all.
Oh, if it opens your eyes
If you can see the truth.
This is better than a strong compromise
Discovering the truth is better than lying to yourself in order to get along with others.
I was willing to be lost in the shuffle
I was ready to give up on myself to appease others.
If only you had let me know
If only you had told me the truth, things would have been different.
This is better than the last compromise
Discovering the truth is better than telling a lie and pretending everything is okay.
I was willing to be lost in the shadows
I was ready to be ignored by others to avoid confrontation and preserve a false sense of peace.
And they won't give in
The lies won't relinquish control.
Cause they know what they're after
The lies have an agenda, and it's not a good one.
A kick in the face
The truth will be hurtful, like a painful blow to the face.
Like its all that would matter
The truth is the only thing that truly matters.
The waves already set in motion
The truth will come, whether we're ready for it or not.
The only one in the game that's lost is you
If you continue to live a lie, you are the only one who will truly suffer.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: W. AXL ROSE, DARREN A. REED, JOSHUA RYAN FREESE, PAUL H. TOBIAS, TOMMY STINSON, SID RIGGS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Monicx
on Sweet Child o' Mine
Guns N' Roses sind eine großartige Band. Ich frage mich, wie Sweet Child o' Mine live klingen wird. Ich habe gerade Tickets für ihr Konzert in Deutschland auf https://www.timeforgig.com/de/guns-n-roses/artists/0mjrv gekauft.