New Illusion - Revisiting Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion Releases

After setting the world of music on fire with their infectious debut, Appetite For Destruction, in 1987, Guns N' Roses released of the most ambitious collections ever in the form of Use Your Illusion I & II in 1991. The collections, which were two separate releases as opposed to a double album, had a combined 30 songs clocking in at 2 hours, 31 minutes, and 48 seconds. With these albums, as one collective appeared to this listener to be missing a common theme and sounded disjointed. As the band was trying to sonically grow, some songs sounded self-indulgent, while others seemed to be "phoning it in" to appease those who wanted more of the Appetite-era fare. This is where I come in.

Upon listening, I took it upon myself to attempt to make the Illusion a single cohesive release, one that may be more fitting to following up their debut and their EP, GNR Lies. I did not think the single release of this album, done to get some of these songs into chain department store afraid to carrying the two albums due to language, was a fitting barometer of the music that represented the band. Another issue with these releases were there were songs in added to fill space. Many bands have done this over time, but with GNR having such credibility of musical quality, I have decided to remove these.

The lineup in the band had changed over the course of four years as well. While adding keyboard player, Dizzy Reed, the band replaced drummer Steven Adler with Matt Sorum, formerly of The Cult, due to Alder's excessive substance abuse (which must've been substantial considering this band was known for their excesses). While Matt is technically a fantastic drummer, Steven had a pulse that drove AFD, and Sorum's contributions often came off as "typical". As a hired member of the band, I can surmise he was probably not given much leeway to make suggestions, so this isn't to besmirch his additions.

This is what many of the grooves sounded like to me.

While researching my previous GNR post, I found a few songs that made it to this collection that were written before AFD. I decided in doing this, I had to set some ground rules to help with making this a comprehensive set.

• Studio recording of the GNR Lies live songs would be allowed here due to never being released in that form.
• Any cover, including anything on The Spaghetti Incident?, would be permitted, as I believe we can safely assume the band played many of these in rehearsals even during this time, and were recorded during these studio sessions.
• Since both albums clocked in at 75 minutes, I set that as my hard time limit for how long this could be so that I stay in the parameters of the physical releases. 
• The track order was done with the idea of "two sides", as these albums have been released on cassette and LP.
• Just because a song was released as a single did not mean it had to be included as it just didn't fit my vision for this.
• I did not pick songs to placate any egos, but only pick the best material available. If it fits, it sticks.

In making this, I also planned on marketing an EP to be released a short time after containing a few songs missing in the collection, as many bands at the time (including GNR) would hold out certain tracks for future releases and soundtrack releases (which I did not hold songs for, but there were enough leftover for such).

Here is the track-by-track rundown, and you can listen along while you read:

1. "Back Off Bitch" (Rose, Tobias) - The leadoff track was written leading up to AFD, and sets the tone for this ensemble, picking up where AFD left off. Equipped with a signature Slash lead, killer riff, and the "take no prisoners" style GNR fans expect, this was an easy choice.
2. "Pretty Tied Up" (Stradlin) - Loaded with a Rolling Stones-esque swagger, this tune allows for the expansion of taste later in the assembly. The lyrics are reak of Hollywood streets, and Duff's great running bass lines, it also shows the band didn't venture too far from what fans would expect.
3. "You Could Be Mine" (Rose, Stradlin) - Also written during the AFD demo sessions, the original lead off single featured for the release of the movie "Terminator 2". I would also pick it as the lead off single, as it is the first taste for fans to know what to expect.
4. "Don't Damn Me" (Rose, Slash, Lank) - This often forgotten tune from UYI I keeps the ball rolling along with an infusion of unadulterated rock.
5. "Perfect Crime" (Rose, Slash, Stradlin) - This high speed rocker sets up as an apex on the first side that allows the next two songs to bring you down leading into side two.
6. "Hair Of The Dog" (McCafferty, Agnew, Charlton, Sweet) - GNR released their take on this Nazereth classic on TSI?, and I have always found this to be the perfect cover song for the band, as the musical style and vocals were as if the band wrote it themselves.
7. "Civil War" (Rose, Slash, McKagan) - As the only song including drums by Steven Adler, this song slides into the "Paradise City" position that was set on AFD. This mature song shows the band in branching out and is a needed change of pace for the songs before it on side one, closing out the side.
8. "November Rain" (Rose) - The first ballad on this release, this song was also originally a single and I see no reason why it shouldn't be here as well. Eloquent piano, soaring guitar leads, and poignant lyrics show a softer side first displayed by "Sweet Child O' Mine" from AFD and "Patience" from GNR Lies. 
9. "Double Talkin' Jive" (Stradlin) - Strapped with an undeniable groove, this song, sung by Izzy, gives a take back into reality into the GNR world. The only issue I would point out is to trim out the extended spanish-flavored acoustic lead by Slash in the end. Albeit tasteful, it is unnecessary here, as the gist of the song covers what needs to be done.
10. "The Garden" (Rose, Arkeen, James) - Equipped with a guest vocal from the legendary Alice Cooper, I also chose this song as another step in allowing the band to spread their wings.
11. "Dust N' Bones" (Slash, Stradlin. McKagan) - While Izzy takes lead on this song, this song is steeped in a very classic rock variety. 
12. "Don't Cry (Alt. Lyrics)" (Rose, Stradlin) - Originally a single, this song features Shannon Hoon of the band Blind Melon on backing vocals. I chose the "alternate lyric" version found on UYI II, as I have plans for the other version later in the blog.
13. "Locomotive" (Rose, Slash) - To me, this is the hidden gem on the album, with a relentless guitar riff played by Slash. Clocking in at 8:42, this is the perfect ending to the compilation.

The singles:

• "You Could Be Mine"
• "Don't Cry"
• "November Rain"
• "Hair Of The Dog"
• "Pretty Tied Up"

This collection has 13 songs and comes in at around 71 minutes.

There have been websites that have written about doing the same as I have (1, 2, & 3)but other than searching them out, I tried to not study them so so that they don't influence my decision. 

As I stated before, some songs were reserved for later, and during the cycle for this album, there was a trilogy of videos that fans loved as the stories intertwined while allowing the band a great deal of artistic freedom. I will use these three and another track as a video EP to be sold between releases for the next album. The track listing is:

1. "Don't Cry (Original)" (Rose, Stradlin)
2. "November Rain" (Rose)
3. "Estranged" (Rose)
4. "My World" (Rose)

There are other personal or fan favorites I left off of this collection such as "Coma", "Yesterdays", the cover songs, among others. These songs can be used for soundtracks or future CD releases.

So there you have it. This is how I would rework the Use Your Illusion albums into what I deem as a strong follow up to the mammoth Appetite For Destruction, which is a daunting task. I have always heard "you have your whole life to write your first album, and six months to write your second", which very true here.

If you get a chance, and have Spotify (it's free), give this a listen and let me know what you think.

I have added a demo here as a bonus song that I found during my research. Note that it has strong language, but I found it to be a riot.

Until we meet again...