Talkin' Jive: Guns N' Roses, Part 4

   Remember that three-part series I did on Guns N' Roses last April? Remember the article I wrote on the soundtrack/bootleg/whatever called Guns Box: Attitude for Destruction? Well it turns out that there's another such collection of GNR-related music floating around known as The Many Faces of Guns N' Roses and in light of my previous GNR articles it's my duty to shed some light on it. So let's take a look.

   This is yet another multi-disc collection – made in 2014 – of Guns N' Roses music brought to us by Walmart, and for $12.88, only 88¢ more than Guns Box. Does this make it worth it? Well I didn't actually buy it but I have done some research on it so I don't really need to listen to it to know what it's like. (More on that later.) The packaging is way better this time around. For starters, it actually has the balls to use the Guns N' Roses name, unlike Guns Box. Second, the cover art looks nice, very close to some “official “versions of the classic GNR logo I've seen. Third, the set comes on three discs inside one of those folding cardboard CD cases – no multiple, cumbersome jewel cases in a loose cardboard sleeve this time. And lastly, the track listing on the back is in a neat, square, easy to read list. However, it isn't free from mistakes. For example, “Last Cigarette”, the Hollywood Roses song from Guns Box is now erroneously attributed to Hollywood Rose. At least they fixed the “Sex Action” mistake this time; on this album there really is “Sex Action” and not “Love and Hate”.

   Now let's talk about the music. The reason I don't need to buy this set to know what's on it is because much of this album is just the same songs from Guns Box. They're all there: the first two discs include most of the Hollywood Rose demos, the L.A. Guns rockers, and the Tracey Guns/Gilby Clarke collaborations. There are a few differences, though. This album has more L.A. Guns covers of songs originally done by Def Leppard, Thin Lizzy, and Bon Jovi. Thankfully that horrible rendition of “Paradise City” is now gone, but the crappy versions of “Don't Cry” and “Patience” still remain. The good news is “You're Crazy” and “Sweet Child O' Mine” – the best tracks from Guns Box – make a return. The most interesting inclusion here is a rendition of “Nice Boys” actually performed by Guns N' Roses themselves. It sounds very similar – but not exactly alike – to the version officially released on the 1985 faux-live EP Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide. The vocals sound slightly different and there's no audience track playing, so maybe this was an outtake or a demo for that album or something.

   And then there's the third disc. It's just a collection of 1980's hair/pop metal music that, aside from just one L.A. Guns song, has nothing to do with Guns N' Roses. Seriously? This is the type of music that GNR stood against. They'd be embarrassed to be lumped together with the likes of such jokers as Warrant, Poison, and even Winger. Freakin' Winger! Did anybody – even back then – ever think Winger was cool? Where's Motley Crue? Where's Whitesnake? Where's Dokken? Those guys were actually good. But no, apart from one good Ratt song (“Round and Round”) the third disc is just that cheap, disposable, superficial calibre of glam rock one can find on any old $4 no-name brand compilations rack not worthy of the GNR name.

   And there you have it: The Many Faces of Guns N' Roses. Is it any better than Guns Box: Attitude for Destruction? On the whole, not really. The only things it does better than that album is better packaging (which, let's face it, isn't that big a deal) and that one early Guns N' Roses demo of “Nice Boys”. So completionists, take note. For everyone else, the extra disc for 88¢ is simply not worth it.