Review Summary: What began as a good idea became the most incredible Hard Rock album of all time. Inspired by sex and drugs and a group of guys just acting like themselves and unleashing unintended consequences both good and bad.
What is a classic album? What defines the most sought after award given to a band by the fans, the award that makes a Grammy look merely like an impulsive reaction of the times? I think it's an award given by those who lived within the albums creation. An album that they can toss into the stereo and melt away mentally to a sound that recreates the feelings of what helped make them who they are today and what can unleash a flood of memory's storming back into their very soul, regardless of whether "today" is 10, 20, or 50 years later.
Unless you happened to be alive in the small gap of the "prime" of GNR you cannot have a complete and absolute understanding of what exactly is, Appetite For Destruction. Appetite for Destruction, the ground breaking album. Ground breaking because it defined a generation that had no real identity, one day you would roll up your pant legs fold them over and pin them as tight as you could, the next day you were a freak if you did. Then the next day you either wore a mullet,"teased" your hair or followed some other trend, like, had your barber cut a lightning bolt into your side burns. The only thing the generation had in common was the whirl wind of chaos and the eagerness to find an identity. GNR on fate alone, rose it's drug induced, chaotic head from a pile of trash to identify a lost and almost desperate generation. Axl, Slash and company unleashed filthy lyrics, driving riffs and crashing, gritty melody's that dripped rebellion and drug influenced tunes unlike anything ever created. On to the Album:
The opener "Welcome to the Jungle" is about coming to the big city and looking for everything you thought you wanted but getting a whole lot more. 5/5
"It's So Easy" is about a time Duff McKagan and West Arkeen (credited to co-writer), and the rest of the band, went through. things were just "too easy", girls,money,drugs etc... 4.5/5
"Night Train" Is dedicated to "Night Train Express" a brand of California cheap wine, which the band apparently enjoyed in the early days because it was cheap and strong. A song that sums up a large part of what a "lost" generation did to get through the day. Despite it's seemingly weak lyrics its extremely tight rhythm and strong drums by Steven Adler make this a 4.5/5
"Out ta Get Me" Releases a rage about to the bumping of heads with your enemies and trying to keep from exploding. Musically, the frustration is expressed with one of the heaviest songs on the album from the band and the most arrogant of vocals from Axl. 4.5/5
"Mr. Brownstone" Brings you from your frustration of the previous song and drops you from reality into a heroin influenced frenzy with incredible guitars from Slash and Izzy Stradlin and a washed over heavy cymbal onslaught from Steven Adler and if "Stuck it in the bindle and I shot it in the middle/ And it, it drove outta my mind/ I should've known better, said I wish I never met her/Said I, I leave it all behind Yowsa" doesn't sum it up for you.... 5/5
"Paradise City" Was born on a bus in a back and forth with Slash humming a melody and Axl chiming in singing "Take me down to the Paradise City." and Slash singing "Where the girls are fat and they've got big titties." The song is a reminder of a time when Americas youth yearned for the big city and what dreams lay within. The song is back boned by a heavy riff from Slash that drives the song. 5/5
"My Michelle" A true story of Slash's x-girlfriend. Redefines the recipe for a rock n' roll love song. Its not about a man loving a perfect girl. Its about a girl who is a complete mess "Your daddy works in porno/Now that mommy's not around/She used to love her heroin/But now she's underground " And about a man who isn't sure of how he feels. "Well, well, well, you just can't tell /Well, well, well, my Michelle." An emotional song but still heavy and deserving of one of the bright spots on one of the greatest Heavy Metal albums of all time and a perfect example of the times. 5/5
"Think About You" Izzy Stradlin takes credit for this song. He plays the solo in place of Slash and keeps the beat strong till the last 30 seconds. Axl shows some of his best vocals in this song and makes it a stand out track. 5/5
"Sweet Child O Mine" Ended up being a surprise as it was written with next to no effort and is held together with 3 cords and an extraordinary vocal performance by Axl. Accidentally, this song became an instant classic and a staggering success. 5/5
"You're Crazy" A straight forward track about a girl. It's complimented with great guitars and just an all around solid performance as a band. 4/5
"Anything Goes" Out of the "Sex.Drugs,and Rock and Roll" this is the "sex" part. The lyrics, vocals and music all blend together seamlessly and Slash throws in a touch of blues in his solos. 4.5/5
"Rocket Queen" This is a great example of the best for last. A song about Steven Adlers x-fling. During the break you can hear an actual recording of Axl having sex with her (Hmmm why did they not get along?.) The song starts with a simple but effective rift with an almost echoey vocal effect in the chorus and the song more or less keeps the same beat until the break/sex scene. Then the song becomes an absolutely beautiful ballad offering friendship and hope to those close to him or you or anyone listening. 5/5
Overall this album is truly a classic. It defines a generation that had no major wars to speak of, no great tragedy's, or accomplishments. Just a time when America's youth tried to get by in an ever changing culture desperately trying to avoid the label of mediocrity or monotony. A time when there was nothing to do but get trashed and fall in and out of love.
Final rating: 5/5
