GUNS N' ROSES, GN'R LIES. TABLATURE
GUNS N' ROSES
Introdudion
Hard rock hasn't been the same since Guns N' Roses made their impact last year. In a
decade dominated by over-produced power pop, extremely stylized glam metal and synthesizerladen
new wave, the Gunners have broken every rule-returning to the essence and core of rock
'n' roll itself. With their well-turned blues riffs or their solid rhythm grooves or the inescapable
emotion lurking in every track, they are irreverent, inconsistent and uncompromising, but
irresistible, incalculable and unavoidable. However, like their predecessors-The Stones, The
Who, Aerosmith and AC/DC, they have transcended the role of music-maker/trend setter to
become the most visible and most compelling voice of youth, rebellion and counterculture
lifestyle. They have become a phenomenon to be experienced, not just sounds to be heard--a
necessary prerequisite for rock 'n' roll greatness.
Hard rock hasn't been the same in Los Angeles since Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction
attained multi-platinum status. Their blues-based compactness, simplicity and riff-oriented nononsense
songwriting approach have spearheaded a movement towards the rock of the 90's.
The signings of Faster Pussycat, L.A. Guns (at one time, half of Guns N' Roses), Jet Boy and
even Jane's Addiction indicate a perceptible industry response to the phenomena. Like the
attention accorded to post-Van Halen bands (Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, Ratt and Dokken) in the
early 80's or the fascination with everything English following the Beatles' arrival in the 60's, the
focus these days is on the music pouring out of the underground street scene in Hollywood.
Hard rock won't be the same now that Guns N' Roses have released Lies in 1988. The LP
combines the early independent set Live Like a Suicide (1986) with newer tracks recorded in
1988. The contrast of the high-energy punk-cum-metal mood of the Live ... cuts with the gentler
informal acoustic moments is typical of Guns N' Roses: surprising, unusual, striking ... and never
boring. In their unmistakable iconoclastic fashion, they have echoed the individualistic intentions
of their forebears-The Beatles, The Stones, The Kinks, The Who. Led Zeppelin. They operate
without the restraint imposed by cliche formulas, and succeed in presenting an authentic glimpse
of their musical world ... they are real. The true aficionado of rock will appreciate, indeed relish,
every subtle nuance of their performance-which hasn't been punched in, cleaned up, tweaked or
edited out.
The Live ... tracks, "Reckless Life," "Nice Boys," "Move to the City" and "Mama Kin," capture
the sort of excitement Guns N' Roses produce on stage. These are sounds which got the band
noticed in the competitive and overcrowded L.A. club circuit. The eclectic blues/rock-metal-punk
element runs through each song as a unifying thread-an element clearly recognized now as
Guns N' Roses' style. Check out the heavy riff of "Reckless Life" (Rhy. Fig. 1) which rivals the
output of AC/DC, or the blazing intensity of the song's guitar solo with its odd modal mixtures (B
Mixolydian and B major penatonic versus B blues and B Dorian). The notes blur the major/minor
relationship and defy categorization. Another point of musical interest in the Live ... tunes is the
singular chemistry between Slash and Izzy resulting in that elusive, loose-but-tight, two-guitar
interaction. This type of interaction is what also distinguishes some of the best work of The
Stones and Aerosmith. Evident throughout Guns N' Roses repertoire, a definitive example of this
rapport can be heard in "Move to the City." Here, the two guitars are foils for each otherconverging
and diverging with overlapped and contrasting riff figures of double stops, diad bends,
single-note phrases (as in the verse figures) and muted lines. The use of wah-wah pedal in the
solo is characteristic of the sparse but effective processing of Guns N' Roses' guitar sound. Note
also the gutsy slide guitar employed in "Nice Boys" and the tremolo bar phrasing in "Reckless
Life" (Solo) and "Move to the City" (Solo). The slide guitar has remained a staple in Slash's style
("Welcome to the Jungle" and "Rocket Queen," for example) but the tremolo bar is gone-Slash
swears by stock Gibson Les Pauls.
The remaining four numbers, "Patience," "Used To Love Her," "You're Crazy" and "One in a
Million," might be described as Guns N' Roses' answer to Rubber Soul (The Beatles) or Beggar's
Banquet (The Stones). The setting is distinguished by a shift to an acoustic guitar-based texture
and the mood is almost folksy country-rock. This is in stark opposition to the relentless hard rock
of the Live ... tracks. There is overt acknowledgement of the acoustic guitar motor-drive rhythm
playing of Pete Townshend and Keith Richards, as well as coy references to the music of The
Eagles, Crosby, Stills and Nash, and Creedence Clearwater Revival. The guitar orchestration of
"You're Crazy" (compare this version to the faster punk-inflected rendition on Appetite for
Destruction) and "One in a Million" combines electric- and acoustic- guitar timbres skillfully. In the
former, a clean twangy electric tone is blended with the brisk acoustic strumming (largely a
propulsive sixteenth-note groove) of the rhythm guitar, and in the latter, a distorted electric guitar
provides the driving rock 'n' roll background part, with the acoustic guitar taking the solo spot.
"Patience" (a genuine rock ballad) explores the signature two-guitar interaction with purely
acoustic colors and offers a melodic country-blues flavored acoustic solo (a la Joe Walsh). "Used
To Love Her" (a tongue-in-cheek sardonic "modern folk song") tastefully joins electric (clean tone)
and acoustic rhythm-guitar work with a gutsy "chicken pick in'" approach in the overdubbed
acoustic solo lines. This solo seems to have more in common with Albert Lee, Roy Flacke or
Jerry Reed than Angus Young, Joe Perry or Jimmy Page.
Hard rock hasn't been the same since Guns N' Roses ... but it has been alive and well.
Series: Guitar Personality
Matching folio to their second smash album, 56 pages
Mama Kin
Move To The City (Stradlin'/D.J.
Nice Boys
One In A Million
Patience
Reckless Life (Mckagan/Slash/Str
Used To Love Her
You're Crazy
Italiano
English
