Guns N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction

Getting into "debut albums that made history", 1987 was the year of one of the biggest, Appetite for Destruction, by Guns N' Roses. Having taken its time for it to become big, Appetite ended up staying in the Billboard 200 for about a million years. Ok, so maybe not that much, but it did stay there for many years. I can say this because, about 10 years ago, I still saw it in the top 200 on Billboard. So, in that sense, it joins the ranks of albums such as Dark Side of the Moon, by Pink Floyd (in that sense).

If anybody still has any questions about whether or not attitude is one of the main ingredients in the making of a great album, Appetite for Destruction should pretty much shut their mouths. Without a single weak song, G'N'R's debut album is a foray into what makes the world of rock music so exciting and so dangerous. The only reason why this record was only certified 15x platinum in the United States was due to the very nature of the songs and lyrics. Having a plethora of four-letter words, drug references gallore and pretty much the rest being every parent's nightmare, Appetite ended up being the most sold, yet least consumer-friendly album in history. But BOY, was it honest and in-your-face!

Welcome to the Jungle, the debut single, was a trip into the netherworld of going to Hollywood. Paradise City is a look into how unfriendly the city of your dreams can actually become. Mr. Brownstone, due to its references to crack cocaine, was pretty much a miracle that it were included in the album. I would love to see the reference book that record label executives take a look in whenever they have to think about letting a band put or not a track on an album.

Out of all this rock-and-roll-seedy-side-of-the-streets collection of songs, W. Axl Rose and company still had the balls to give us a ballad! Sweet Child O' Mine was the song that made little teenage girls in 1988 want to hear what this band was about. I bet their parents were more than happy to buy them the album... only to be utterly shocked as soon as the second song, It's So Easy, came on their little angels' stereos.

Lead guitarist Slash became a hero for his great taste in soloing. Because that was one of the main reasons why Guns became such a monster. Putting together the raw edge of punk with the melodies of the blues was a formula that many later tried to recreate, only to fail miserably.

Reasons to walk through dangerous streets in order to acquire this album:

1) Axl's lead vocals and ever-changing voice
2) Slash's edible licks
3) Anybody with this album in their record collection gets extra points in the "I'm a dangerous MF" section.

Appetite for Destruction is one of those albums that you never get tired of. And if you ever do, the album might just kick your ass. Yes, it's that hard.