1993.11.23 - Press Release from Geffen - Release of "The Spaghetti Incident?"

Many thanks to @troccoli for sharing this with us, and for the amazing collection of GN'R memorabilia he has made available on his site. The original images of the press release can be found here:
http://www.troccolitm.com/pressspag.html?1166785367015
 
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GEFFEN RECORDS
 
GUNS N’ ROSES
 
W. Axl Rose (lead vocals)
Slash (lead guitar)
Gilby Clarke (rhythm guitar)
Duff McKagan (bass)
Matt Sorum (drums)
Dizzy Reed (keyboards)
 
“A great song can be found anywhere. Do yourself a favor and go find the originals.” (G N’ R)
 
 THE ALBUM
 
“It’s not so serious but it’s real honest,” says Guns N’ Roses lead guitarist Slash about “The Spaghetti Incident?” (Geffen Records), the band’s new album. “It’s live and haphazard, just us hanging out. It’s not making any particular statement; it’s just about passion and spontaneity.”
 
Whenever the members of Guns N’ Roses settle into a studio to write or rehearse, a loose-around-the-edges impromptu jam breaks out, usually centered on the raucous rock songs from the Seventies to turn-of-the-Eighties that influenced them. So when it came to recording the pair of Use Your Illusion albums, it seemed natural to want to include a handful of those tracks. “We thought we’d do three or four really cool punk tunes we don’t hear enough of,” says Slash. But the project slowly evolved from maybe putting those songs on the Use Your Illusion albums to releasing a possible EP to what, in fact, has finally resulted: a full-length album of cover material.
 
“The Spaghetti Incident?” (produced by Mike Clink and Guns N’ Roses) is a rediscovery of some of the classic, groundbreaking groups of the punk era, from the New York Dolls and Iggy Pop to the Dead Boys and The Sex Pistols, from Fear and The Damned to The Misfits and UK Subs, as well as hard rockers such as T. Rex and Nazareth (with chronological bookends of The Skyliners from the Fifties and the current Soundgarden).
 
“But this isn’t a punk record,” Slash continues. “These are G N’ R’s version of songs from when punk was happening, a tribute to songs and bands that had a lot to do with where we come from. There were some great bands back then but they aren’t being recognized as newer generations get into music. We want to help make them known again. We were originally fans – I remember seeing Fear and The Misfits. Part of our fantasy was also playing songs from bands we would’ve loved to have seen but never had the chance.”
 
The songs on “The Spaghetti Incident?” are not slavish imitations. Though the band only had to learn a couple of them, all reflect more how Guns N’ Roses remember them than accurate copies – if for no other reason than they were unable to find many of the original recordings. In the studio, they performed seven songs one day, one other while on the road in Boston, and five more when the two-year-long Use Your Illusion world tour was finished.
 
Some have been played in public by Guns N’ Roses before: “Down On The Farm” at Farm Aid IV in 1990, “Hair Of The Dog” in a medley during the early days, and “Attitude” on the Use Your Illusion tour. Still others were significant to individual bandmembers: Axl used to sing the Fifties standard “Since I Don’t Have You” and Duff’s influence was such that three tracks feature his solo vocals (including an almost one-man band on “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory”). Slash considers Fear’s “I Don’t Care About You” his anthem and T. Rex is one of his favorite bands, with “Buick Makane” his favorite song. Slash sings lead and Axl added vocals on “Buick Makane (Big Dump Sex),” making it the first vocal duet Slash N’ Axl had done together. “But beyond that, I’m not singing type,” says the guitarist.
 
Another duet is “Ain’t It Fun,” a sarcastic tongue-in-cheek ballad that’s the initial track to radio. Singing with Axl is Michael Monroe, formerly of the legendary band Hanoi Rocks. (Guns N’ Roses gave the initial four Hanoi Rocks albums their first-ever U.S. release in 1989 on G N’ R’s Uzi Suicide label.)
 
Fun and attitude are the main ingredient in “The Spaghetti Incident?” Even the album title is an inside joke among the bandmembers – one they refuse to elaborate on. Says Slash, “It has nothing to do with the record. But then there’s no point to the album either. It’s something for fans to listen to and tide them over until we complete the next original one – God knows when that’ll be.” He smiles: “The only thing that’s for Guns sure is that the future doesn’t look any less exciting than the past.”
 
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GEFFEN RECORDS
 
GUNS N’ ROSES
 
THE SONGS AND THEIR ORIGINAL ARTISTS
 
“Since I Don’t Have You”
The Skyliners (1958)
 
The Skyliners broke new ground with “Since I Don’t Have You.” Released on Calico Records, it marked the first time a so-called “rock songs” was backed by a full complement of strings and brass. As it turned out, the single was the vocal quintet’s biggest seller, reaching #12 on the pop charts and #3 R&B. The Pittsburgh teenagers who comprised The Skyliners were soulful lead Jimmy Beaumont, first tenor Janet Vogel, second tenor Wally Lester, baritone Joe Verscharen and bass Jack Taylor. The original “Since I Don’t Have You” is still available as a single and on The Skyliners Greatest Hits (Original Sound, 1986).
 
“New Rose”
The Damned (1976)
 
The Damned were the first British punk band to record, to chart, and to tour America. “New Rose,” its initial single, premiered in July 1976, before The Sex Pistols released their first vinyl. The song also appeared on the band’s debut album, Damned, Damned, Damned (Stiff), produced by Nick Lowe, and is available on the 1993 compilation D.I.Y., Volume I: UK Punk I – Anarchy In The UK (1976-77) on Rhino. The band’s lineup was guitarist Brian James, vocalist Dave Vanian, bassist Captain Sensible and drummer Rat Scabies, before breaking up in 1978. James later joined Stiv Bators to form Lords Of The New Church.
 
“Down On The Farm”
The UK Subs (1980)
 
The UK Subs were one of England’s most popular speedrock bands. Featuring singer Charlie Harper (dubbed “the Peter Pan of Punk” for his agelessness) and an ever-changing lineup of musicians, the band was formed in 1977 and became a main cog in the punk wave that followed the demise of the Sex Pistols, scoring hits in the U.K. with songs such as “CID” and “Strangehold.”  “Down On The Farm” was originally heard on the band’s UK import album, Endangered Species (Nems, 1982). One of the most enduring of punk outfits, The UK Subs were still performing and recording in the 1990s.
 
“Human Being”
The New York Dolls (1974)
 
Flaunting platform shoes, heavy makeup, and wildly confused sexuality, The New York Dolls epitomized the glitter era and set the stage for the punk movement. “Human Being,” whose arrogant riff was a prelude to “Anarchy In The U.K.,” was the final track on their final album, In Too Much Too Soon (Mercury): “One of the more interesting rock releases of the first half of the 1970s, but the band’s punk rock flavor was not yet in vogue” (Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul). The Dolls (singer David Johansen, guitarists Johnny Thunders and Sylvain Sylvain, bassist Arthur “Killer” Kane and drummer Jerry Nolan) broke up in 1975.
 
“Raw Power”
Iggy And The Stooges (1973)
 
Iggy Pop is widely acknowledged as the Father of Punk. Emerging from the American Midwest in the late Sixties, he cranked up the volume and stoked the rebellion, not to mention stage-dived, before anyone else had the guts to step up to the edge of the precipice. “Raw Power” is the title cut from the Stooges album musicians love the best. Raw Power (Columbia) was “a high point of the careers of both Iggy and the band and ranked as one of the seminal albums of the decade” (Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock And Soul). Iggy continues to rock today: His 1990 album Brick By Brick included appearances by Slash and Duff McKagan.
 
“Ain’t It Fun”
The Dead Boys (1978)
 
The Dead Boys are considered the American counterpart to England’s The Damned with both bands surfacing in 1976. Formed in Cleveland, The Dead Boys ventured to New York, where they were managed by Hilly Kristal, owner of the punk palace CBGB’s (much as The Damned was managed by entrepreneur Malcolm McLaren). The Dead Boys were Stiv Bators on vocals, Cheetah Chrome and Jimmy Zero on guitar, Jeff Magnum on bass and Johnny Blitz on drums. “Ain’t It Fun” appeared on the album We Have Come For Your Children, produced by Felix Pappalardi, and was their final album. Like The Damned, The Dead Boys split up in 1978.
 
“Buick Makane”/”Big Dumb Sex”
 
“Buick Makane”
T. Rex (1972)
 
Marc Bolan was one of the legendary hard rock guitarists and songwriters, and with Mickey Finn on vocals, Steve Currie bass and Bill Legend drums, T. Rex (shortened from Tyrannosaurus Rex) was a carnivorous monster of a band. “Buick Makane” originally appeared on The Slider (now Relativity) during the same year the London band enjoyed its greatest hit, the Top 10 “Bang A Gong.” (The song can also be heard on Relativity’s T. Rex: The Essential Collection, 1991.) Tragically, Bolan died in a car crash on September 16, 1977 – yet a fan club still flourishes (P.O. Box 122, Belton nr. Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN9 1QE, England).
 
“Big Dumb Sex”
Soundgarden (1989)
 
Soundgarden was the Seattle band which blew down the sonic walls and set in motion the music, fashion and lifestyle of an entire generation. After a number of indie releases, its major label debut, Louder Than Love (A&M), erupted across the country. Grammy-nominated, the album (which included “Big Dumb Sex” and was produced by Terry Date and Soundgarden) was dubbed by Rolling Stone “primitivist genius, metal reduced to its barest essential.” Soundgarden is singer Chris Cornell, drummer Matt Cameron (both also helped form the Temple Of The Dog project), guitarist Kim Thayil and new bassist Ben Shepherd.
 
“Hair Of The Dog”
Nazareth (1975)
 
Nazareth honed its raw razor-sharp rock in Scotland in the Sixties but it was in the Seventies that vocalist Dan McCafferty, guitarist Manny Charlton, bassist Pete Agnew and drummer Darrell Sweet helped define and popularize hard rock. “Hair Of The Dog” was originally heard on the band’s gold A&M album of the same name (and since on A&M’s 25^th Anniversary Classics, Volume 16). Climbing to a new plateau with its 1976 version of “Love Hurts,” the song went Top 10 and has sold more than four million copies worldwide, Nazareth was among the first few hard rock bands to also enjoy pop success – and Nazareth continues to rock today.
 
“Attitude”
The Misfits (1980)
 
The Misfits had some serious attitude. Led by singer Glenn Danzig, the band was spawned in New Jersey in 1977 and developed an underground cult following that feasted on teenage frustration, over-the-top horror rock and darky sinister drama. Albums such as Evilive, Legacy Of Brutality, Earth AD and Walk Among Us included songs with titles such as “Hollywood Babylon,” Teenagers From Mars” and “Mommy Can I Go Out And Kill Tonight.” “Attitude” was a single and appeared on the Bullet EP. The band’s last gig was, appropriately, on Halloween 1983. Danzig later formed Samhain and then the self-named band he heads today.
 
“Black Leather”
Steve Jones/The Sex Pistols (1980)
 
Rock was never the same again after The Sex Pistols. Intensely contemptuous, these working-class Londoners assaulted the music establishment with a fury from their first single, “Anarchy In The U.K.” in late 1976 to the seminal album Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols (1977). Singer Johnny Rotten, guitarist Steve Jones, bassist Sid Vicious and drummer Paul Cook insulted the Queen, said “fucker” on national TV, were banned by the BBC, dropped by record labels and finally broke up in January 1978. “Black Leather” was a single that later was also included on the compilation The Sex Pack (Virgin UK).
 
“You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory”
Johnny Thunders (1978)
 
After The New York Dolls disbanded in 1975, guitarist Johnny Thunders and drummer Jerry Nolan formed the Heartbreakers before Thunders eventually led his own self-named band. “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory” was originally heard on his debut solo album So Alone (Sire/Warner Bros.), which he co-produced with Steve Lillywhite. Thunders died of undetermined causes on April 23, 1991. Wrote Rolling Stone in his obituary: “(His) crash-and-burn style was the blueprint for legions of latter-day punks and hard rockers.” Thunders was buried in New York City with his acoustic guitar.
 
“I Don’t Care About You”
Fear (1982)
 
Fear was one of the first bands to appreciate the speed of punk. Led by fearsome singer Lee Ving, Fear was the pre-eminent Los Angeles punk band when it exploded onto the scene in 1978. With guitarist Philo Cramer, drummer/concussionist Spit Stix and bassist Derf Scratch, Fear played faster than anyone and its quick attack paved the way for the likes of Black Flag and Circle Jerks. “I Don’t Care About You” originally appeared on Fear: The Record (Slash) with a live mid-Eighties version heard on Live For The Record (Restless). Never officially disbanded, Fear continues to perfomr and recently sold-out a U.S. club tour.
 
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GEFFEN RECORDS
 
GUNS N’ ROSES
 
W. Axl Rose – lead vocals
Slash – lead guitar
Gilby Clarke – rhythm guitar
Duff McKagan – bass
Matt Sorum – drums
Dizzy Reed – keyboards
 
THE HISTORY
 
Guns N’ Roses formed in Hollywood in 1985 with singer W. Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, guitarist Izzy Stradlin’, bassist Duff “Rose” McKagan and former drummer Steven Adler. Taking the L.A. club circuit by storm, in August 1986 GN’R was signed to Geffen Records worldwide by A&R Executive Tom Zutaut and that fall the band produced and released a four-song EP, Live?!*@ Like A Suicide, on its own Uzi Suicide label.
 
Its debut full-length album, Appetite For Destruction (Geffen), appeared in July of 1987. After 10 months, during which time the band toured with The Cult, Motley Crue, Alice Cooper, Iron Maiden, and Aerosmith, the album broke into the top 100 of the record charts and then shot to #1, where it remained for five weeks.
 
Three singles from the album went Top 10: “Sweet Child O’ Mine” was certified gold and reached #1 (the band became only the fourth hard rock group in history to have a chart-topping single); “Paradise City” hit #5; and “Welcome To The Jungle” earned a #7 slot. The band also won the 1988 MTV Award as Best New Artist.
 
In November 1988, Geffen released the G N’ R Lies, which included songs from the earlier EP as well as new acoustic material. When G N’ R Lies reached #2 on the charts, Guns N’ Roses became the only artist in the 1980s to have two albums chart in the Top Five simultaneously. The single “Patience” earned a #4 ranking and a gold award. The album was Grammy-nominated and GNR was lauded in Rolling Stone magazine’s Annual Reader’s Poll as Best New American Band and the Critic’s Poll for Best Heavy Metal Band and Best Male Singer. In 1989, the band appeared in concerts with the Rolling Stones, and “Sweet Child O’ Mine” won both an American Music Award and an MTV Award.
 
Worldwide to date, Appetite For Destruction has sold more than 17 million copies and G N’ R Lies more than six million. Appetite For Destruction made history as the best-selling album on the Geffen label, residing on the Billboard charts for nearly three years (147 weeks) in the first run.
 
The band contributed to two albums in 1990: the soundtrack to the film Days Of Thunder with a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Knocking On Heaven’s Door,” and Nobody’s Child, the project to benefit Romanian orphans, with the original “Civil War.” That year GNR scored two more American Music Awards and in April performed at Farm Aid IV. Individually, Slash and McKagan played on Iggy Pop’s Brick By Brick album, and Slash recorded with Bob Dylan, Michael Jackson, Lenny Kravitz, and on the tribute album for guitar pioneer Les Paul.
 
A month after Adler was fired in July, drummer Matt Sorum, who had toured with The Cult for a year, joined Guns N’ Roses. His first concert with GNR was in January 1991 before 260,000 fans at the Rock In Rio II festival in Brazil. The previous year had also seen the addition of keyboardist Dizzy Reed, a friend from GN’R’s early club days.
 
The band kicked off its first-ever world tour as headliners and first tour of any sort in three years in May 1991. That summer, GN’R was heard on the soundtrack to the blockbuster film Terminator 2: Judgement Day with the song “You Could Be Mine,” which sold more than a million and a half singles.
 
In September, the release of Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II marked the first time a major contemporary artist had released two separate albums on the same day. Use Your Illusion II debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts and Use Your Illusion I debuted at #2. The single “Don’t Cry” was certified gold. Together, combined sales of the two albums have reached 27 million copies worldwide.
 
In late November, Stradlin resigned from the band and was replaced by Gilby Clarke, who had played many of the same gritty Hollywood clubs as GN’R and most recently was in Kill For Thrills. The tour, scheduled to last two years, continued – from the U.S. to Japan to Mexico to The Freddie Mercury Tribute (Concert For AIDS Awareness) at London’s Wembley Stadium in April of 1992. That all-star show was shown live via satellite around the word and garnered the largest audience for a music concert in history.
 
The tour then swept through Europe. More than one million Use Your Illusion albums sold in Germany alone and GN’R albums, recent and past, were charting there as well as in England, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Greece, Holland, Ireland, Sweden, and Switzerland.
 
During the summer, “November Rain” was released as a single, supported by an epic concert video that was the #1 most requested video on MTV’s Top 20 Countdown. At the 1992 MTV Awards, “November Rain” not only won in the Best Cinematography category but the band received the prestigious Vanguard Award for its body or work (its videos are among the most popular ever broadcast). As the band returned to the U.S. for stadium dates, “November Rain” was certified gold.
 
Towards the end of the year, GN’R marked its entry into homevideo with Use Your Illusion World Tour – 1992 in Tokyo (Geffen Home Video), also presented in two separate packages, I and II. The band then embarked on tour legs that included South America, Japan, Australia, and other Far East venues, concerts which lasted into early 1993. In total, the Use Your Illusion world tour was the longest in rock history (28 months, 192 concerts, 28 countries, over 7 million attendance).
 
In the summer of 1993, Geffen Home Video released two more long-form music videos, Makin’ F@*!ing Videos Part I: “Don’t Cry” and Makin’ F@*!ing Videos Part II: “November Rain.” In November, Guns N’ Roses unveiled its fifth album – “The Spaghetti Incident?” – encompassing covers of favorite songs from favorite bands who had influenced GN’R over the years.
 
 
 
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FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Bryn Bridenthal
Roy Hamm
Lisa Mathis