Oh sweet child of mine!
After a small pause, I'm back with my weekly #MusicMonday post! This week I picked up a very classic band from the 80's so I hope you enjoy it!
I must admit I have a little trouble picturing what is the general opinion of people on the mighty Guns N' Roses! On one hand, I feel that many people understand and respect their legacy and their importance to rock music but I also can't help but think that a few people (a minority, I hope) don't take them too seriously.
Either way, I believe they are a very important band in the history of rock and that's what this series is all about, so buckle up and enjoy the ride!
The band was formed in 1985, in Los Angeles, California. It's still alive and kicking and, while it has had many different formations over the years, with people coming and going, the so-called classic formation consisted of vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKagan, and drummer Steven Adler.
Throughout nearly 40 years of history, the band released 6 studio albums, and the most recent one, "Chinese Democracy" took almost 10 years to be released since it was announced by Axl Roses and cost 14 million dollars, being the most expensive rock album ever produced.
In those 6 albums, there are many, many absolute hits and also a few hidden gems in my opinion and, since I always try to limit these posts to 4 or 5 songs, it's definitely impossible to feature them all here, but I'll try my best!
I hope you enjoy my shortlist!
Sweet Child O' Mine
Yup, let's get this out of the way. I know that some hardcore fans usually don't like songs that go insanely mainstream (which I find very odd, but what you're gonna do?) but Sweet Child O' Mine really got it all. Well, maybe not it all, I mean, the lyrics are kinda cute but nothing great. Everything else is there, however: an iconic intro that anyone can recognize in less than a millisecond, a catchy chorus, and a couple of face-melting solos. Can't really ask for more. Instant classic!
You Could Be Mine
This is another great one! As usual, great guitar work and a powerful intro. This song became even more popular because it was featured in the movie Terminator 2. Try to pay attention to the bass line of this song. It's not something that a lot of people, especially when the dude playing guitar is freaking Slash, but the bass is in my opinion, one of the keys to the success of this song.
Patience
To be honest, I didn't want to include this song in the list. I really wanted to say it's a very lame song and it didn't have an impact on my teenage years, but that would be a huge pile of bullshit! I spent many moments of my teenage years trying to learn how to play this song and even more moments playing it to friends at parties. Probably not their best work, but it's still a classic nevertheless!
Mr Brownstone
Now we're approaching gem territory. I wouldn't say that this song didn't go mainstream, because I think it did, but it's definitely not nearly as known as the likes of Sweet Child O' Mine, November Rain, Welcome to the Jungle, and others. This is surprising, since this song is better than many of those that got a lot more attention. I mean, check out that cool main riff! Who would imagine a song about heroin could become such a great hit?!
Dead Horse
As usual, I always try to include at least one song that I really like but that wouldn't really be in any "best of" list. In this case, this song is Dead Horse as I don't think it has ever gotten the attention it deserved. I really like how they play with the dynamics of the song. Axl really puts his vocal amplitude to work here, much like what he does in Patience. I suggest everyone who ever overlooked this hidden gem give it another try!
And that's a wrap, guys! I hope you have enjoyed my return to the #MusicMonday series. I know there is a lot more to talk about this great band and there will be a sequel to this post one day so let me know in the comments what are your favorite Guns N Roses tunes!