July 21, 1987; the day rock was reborn
“Appetite For Destruction” wasn’t an instant chart-topper (it debuted at No. 182 on the Billboard 200 dated Aug. 29, 1987, and hit No. 1 on Aug. 6, 1988), but incessant touring and MTV airplay of now-ubiquitous hits “Sweet Child o’ Mine” and “Paradise City” furthered the buzz that GNR might actually be “the most dangerous band in the world.” And when all was said and done, they were also one of the best-selling: To date, “Appetite for Destruction” has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, and at a cost of $365,000 to make, it is now certified 18-times platinum by the RIAA. Since 1991, when Nielsen Music began tracking sales data, the album has sold 5.6 million copies in the U.S. In addition to spending five nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, it spent a full year — 52 consecutive weeks — in the top 10, from the April 23, 1988-dated list through April 15, 1989.
“In the mid-to-late ‘80s, Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip was a hotbed of big-haired pop-metal bands, many of whom were lured by delightful decadence as depicted and promised in MTV videos. But Guns N’ Roses incendiary, dirty, heavy take on glammy blues-rock was of a different stripe.” — Billboard
DUFF MCKAGAN [1987 interview]: Finally, at the end of April of 1986, we got signed. There was heavy interest by all the majors, five or six. We were personally dealing with them.
AXL ROSE [1987 interview]: We got two-firm, and a six-album deal. That’s good, because they wanted a lot more, and we didn’t want to be tied for that long. The deal is the best thing we could have fucking hoped for from any label, and we wouldn’t have gotten any more support from another label.
Appetite for Destruction was the title of a painting done in 1978 by artist/cartoonist Robert Williams. Rose brought the image to the band. After retail blowback as a result of the original artwork, the cover was replaced with a tattoo-style cross with the members’ heads rendered as skulls.
Asked about the album, rock icon Alice Cooper said; “my favorite song on Appetite for Destruction is “Mr. Brownstone,” something about that song is very, very cool. It just jumps out at me. When we took Guns N’ Roses out, we played Santa Barbara with them when they were pretty much a bar band, and they just rocked. I thought, if they can keep from either dying in jail or in the bathroom from drugs, they’re gonna be unbelievably good.”
Appetite’s initial reviews ranged from good to great, but today, the album is almost universally viewed as a game changer by critics and fans alike.
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