Guns N’ Roses stand as the bridge separating the 1980s and 1990s hard rock era. After their incredible debut album “Appetite for Destruction,” captivated the world with iconic songs like “Sweet Child O’ Mine” and “Welcome to the Jungle.” fans waited 4 years for GNR’s next release, It would come on September 17th, 1991, when they would drop a massive release of two full albums on the same day, the first of its kind. With 30 total songs and about 2 and a half hours of music, not everyone was able to consume all of this music that was made, but I decided to give it a shot.
I was introduced to Guns N’ Roses as a kid, as my Mom is the biggest GNR fan on earth. I have Appetite For Destruction on vinyl and think that it is a borderline 10 album. However, I have never listened to Use Your Illusion 1 and 2 all the way through because of how long they are, so I figured now would be a good time. This article will be split into two sections with 1, being the first half and 2 being the second half. I will review each album by themselves, and then review all 30 songs together at the end.
Use Your Illusion I
Right Next Door To Hell- 7/10 Starts off with a really cool bass line and Slash doing his thing; Axl’s performance on this song was alright but a great guitar solo in the middle uplifts it. Overall, a solid fast paced song to start it off.
Dust N’ Bones- 8.5/10 The rhythm guitarist, Izzy Stradlin is on lead vocals on this song, and I really liked his performance. the flow of the song is really cool, and Slash again uplifted this song with his guitar, but he does that on every Guns N’ Roses song.
Live And Let Die- 9.5/10 this song is a cover of Paul McCartney and the wings’ original song, however GNR did it SO much better. Absolute banger.
Don’t Cry (Original)- 10/10 Beautiful song that gives me the chills when I listen to it, Axl’s showing off his versatility with his performance, plus Slash again blowing me away with his guitar solos.
Perfect Crime- 6.5/10 They transition back into the fast pace hard rock sound, Axl letting everyone know that if people want to mess around, they can find out. Just an alright change of pace song.
You Ain’t The First- 9.2/10 this song is super cool, a really nice chill song you can sway to; The rhythm guitar almost giving Hawaiian vacation vibes. Also, a great performance from Axl and Izzy, once again on vocals.
Bad Obsession- 8.5/10 starts off with someone absolutely cooking on the harmonica, upbeat piano in the background paired with the guitars and drums make it a great unique song, I also like the way Axl sings on this one.
Back Off B****- 8.0/10 One of the best intros I’ve heard in a rock song maybe ever. the rest of the song doesn’t live up to that as much though, Still a good song with great guitar and drums throughout.
Double Talkin’ Jive- 8.0/10 another cool intro, with the drums starting it off, then one guitar, then the bass, then the other guitar, before Izzy takes over lead vocals on a pretty short song. I really liked the acoustic guitar part at the end as well.
November Rain- 11/10 This song breaks my scale. It’s one of those songs where you might not listen to it all the time, but when you do you have the chills and tears welling up in your eyes. One of the 100 greatest songs of all time.
The Garden- 7.0/10 this a pretty out there song, there are some pretty interesting vocals in the middle that kind of sound like the joker. Still a solid song.
Garden Of Eden- 7.0/10 another fast-paced song, similar to perfect crime but a bit better.
Don’t Damn Me- 8.0/10 a really good song the rhythm and lead guitars were on point all song, didn’t love the performance from Axl on his one; but multiple breakdowns and changes in the music make it very cool. If you’re a heavy rock fan, you’ll like this one a ton.
Bad Apples- 9.0/10 this one almost sounds like a mix of hard rock and country at the beginning, with the piano cooking in the background and the guitar. Axl also came with an A+ performance. Really good song
Dead Horse- 8.5/10 sounds like a Green Day song or something at the beginning, Sad boy lyrics and acoustic guitar. The rest of the band kicks in and it gets back to hard rock though. Great performance and lyrics from Axl. Again, if you’re a big fan of heavier stuff it’s a perfect song for you.
Coma- 9.0/10 really trippy 10-minute song with great storytelling. I would say everyone should listen to this song with headphones on at one point. Not a song that I will drive around and listen to casually, or a masterpiece I would listen to occasionally, for the feeling like November rain; but still a cool song.
Final Score- Light to mid 8
This album is very good, and I would recommend people listen to it, it’s a good mix of beautiful songs and hard rock headbangers. The high points on this album are VERY high with songs like November Rain, Don’t Cry, and Live and Let Die. However, there are some weak stretches with some just alright songs; As an overall album I don’t think it’s at that all time classic mark, although there are definitely songs and moments that stack up.
Use Your Illusion II
Civil War- 9/10 a 7-minute song with some great lyrics, paired with some great guitar solos, a great chorus. It is a very moving song.
14 Years- 8/10 this song has again the rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin on lead vocals with Axl coming in on the chorus. Some really cool piano in the background, so far all of the Izzy led songs on both the albums are super solid.
Yesterdays- 8/10 another super solid song with cool lyrics. Talking about moving on from the past and living for today, again the piano in the background uplifts this song.
Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door-10/10 an all-time classic of a song, in GNR’s top 5 most popular songs, love the change of pace 3 and a half minutes in after a guitar solo with the dialing of the phone and Axl talking, the choir kicks in and starts singing the chorus with him. Takes the song to another level.
Get In The Ring- 10/10 the intro is great with the crowd chanting GUNS N ROSES, the guitarists on this song killed it and the deep singing in the middle, followed with Axl calling out a ton of people is really badass. The song just keeps getting better and better as you progress through it.
Shotgun Blues- 8/10 a super fast paced hard rock song, solid lyrics but again Izzy and slash stand out on guitar in this one. So far there have been no misses, and I am liking this album more than UYI1.
Breakdown-8.5/10 another great song, maybe goes on a bit too long but Axl’s performance is great and this album is really showing why slash is the GOAT; he’s just casually shredding in the background on this song for 3 minutes straight, also the piano at the end is great, some rapper needs to sample that ASAP.
Pretty Tied Up (The Perils Of Rock N’ Roll Decadence)-7.5/10 definitely a good song but its similar to some of the other songs on this album, great piano and chorus.
Locomotive (Complicity)- 8.5/10 definitely a banger, a great performance from every member of the band, the only knock is it’s a bit too long but its able to recapture your attention many times late in the song. The switch up from guitar focus to piano works well. Also, another insane solo from slash.
So Fine-9.5/10 this song has Duff McKagan, the Bass player, as the lead vocalist on this one. It’s a really good song and I think Duff does a great job. My mom actually complains that this song got worse once it was released on streaming platforms, because Axl sings in tandem with Duff in the chorus on her OG CDs, but on Spotify it’s just Duff. Maybe this song would be a 10 with the original version, but for now, with how it’s presented on Spotify it isn’t at that 10 mark.
Estranged- 11/10 Another song that breaks my scale, This song may be even better than November Rain, a beautiful song about a relationship ending and how to move on by yourself. It’s a rollercoaster of a song and emotions in a 9:25 masterpiece. It deserves a lot more recognition than it has now. Please listen to it if you haven’t already, it’s worth it. One of the 100 greatest songs of all time without a doubt.
You Could Be Mine- 9/10 I almost forgot I was still listening to this album after Estranged was over, but this song followed it up well; they transition back into the traditional hard rock style. Some pretty funny lyrics but overall, a very enjoyable song.
Don’t Cry- 9/10 Axl wrote both versions of Don’t Cry at the exact same time, an absolute music genius for sure; Personally, I prefer the Original lyrics, but both are great. The only reason I bump it down to a 9 is because we have already heard virtually the same song on the first album.
My World- 6/10 this songs only a minute and a half long and is barely even a song. Overall, pretty weird, but the background music is cool and something I didn’t think I would hear from GNR. Should have had Estranged be the closing song instead of this.
Final score- Mid To Strong 9
This album is definitely better than Use Your Illusion 1. All of the hidden gems and non-mainstream songs are better on 2 than 1, with 1 having more skippable tracks. If you compare both albums’s masterpiece songs with November Rain and Estranged, they are both on par, with Estranged being maybe better, with in my opinion better singing from Axl and better guitar solos. There are a lot more hidden gems on this one like So Fine, Get In The Ring and You Could be Mine standing out. I would recommend everyone should listen to this album as it is an instant classic. I may even like it as much as Appetite For Destruction.
Cumulative Score- Light 9
Considering both of the albums together, it is an all-time classic release of music. 2 of the greatest songs I’ve ever heard are on both of them, They both have their fair share of hard rock bangers; One minute you’ll be crying, the next you will be rocking out. Use Your Illusion 2 definitely raised the score to be in the All-Time classic category; I think anybody can listen to these albums and get at least some level of enjoyment out of them. Please email me suggestions for more albums I can review at [email protected]
ALBUM Review Scale
10= “GOAT’S”
9= All Time Classic
8=Amazing
7= Great
6=Good
5=Mid
4 and under=bad
