2023.06.27 - Bellahouston Park, Glasgow, Scotland

Guns N' Roses stars spotted in Glasgow meeting fans ahead of Bellahouston Park gig

Bassist Michael Andrew 'Duff' McKagan and drummer Frank Ferrer posed for photos with fans and dished out autographs for the crowds.

Guns N' Roses musicians have been spotted meeting fans in Glasgow ahead of their gig later today.

The legendary rockers are set to perform at Bellahouston Park but beforehand spared some time for fans outside a swanky hotel in the city. Bassist Michael Andrew 'Duff' McKagan and drummer Frank Ferrer posed for photos with fans and dished out autographs.

Taking to social media, photographer Barrie Seath shared snaps with the music icons and penned: "Just had the best opportunity meeting Frank Ferrer & Duff McKagan from Guns N’ Roses."





Doors for Tuesday's gig opened at 4.30pm with the Sweet Child O Mine hitmakers set to take the stage at around 7.30pm.

Sharing their excitement for the show, the Paradise City rockers wrote on Twitter: "Glasgow, it's time. This show means a F'N' lot! See you there."

This comes after the group performed at Glastonbury and faced concerns over Axel Rose's vocals. Many Glastonbury viewers watching the BBC coverage on TV repeatedly complained that Rose's vocals appeared to keep dropping out.

However, in a statement to WalesOnline, the agency representing the band said it has "dug deep" into the problem and said there were problems with the broadcast being streamed on certain TVs, resulting in poor sound quality.

Guns N' Roses at Bellahouston Park: Axl, Slash, Duff and Co turn Glasgow into a Paradise City

The (November) rain failed to dampen the spirits of those in attendance as the legendary hard rockers followed up on their Glastonbury gig to finally play Scotland - three years after the original date

By Douglas Dickie

Good things come to those who wait - and Guns N' Roses fans have done their share of waiting over the years. Axl Rose's notorious tardiness has become the stuff of music legend, but even by his standards the three year delay for this show was excessive.

Originally cancelled due to Covid, there were only 24 hours until doors opened last July when a medical issue again saw fans disappointed. So there had been plenty of time for expectations to build up for GnR's first Scottish gig in 11 years.

Saturday's appearance at Glastonbury added an extra layer to these American hard rockers' incredible story. Yes, the largely hippie crowd in Somerset looked a bit bemused, but the show had been enough to reassure this writer who had become used to seeing video snippets of Axl's vocals being anything but stellar (and a shout-out to the guy who claimed to me last night that Glastonbury was "full of f***ing Tories". Really??).

GnR are a seven-piece outfit these days, but there is little doubt about the trio who the fans had descended on Glasgow to see. As well as Rose, guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan rightly take their place among the best in their fields, so even if the singing wasn't what it once was, the technical side would remain as tight as ever.

And yet, we shouldn't have worried. From the opening bars of It's So Easy, it was clear that Axl would be fine. Sure, he couldn't quite hit the high notes on Velvet Revolver cover Slither, but he adjusted to put on a typically snarling performance that more than helped the thousands there forget about the heavy rain.

A quick mention of three other unheralded stars. One was Bellahouston Park - despite a day of constant downpours, the ground held up brilliantly. Second is whoever came up with the incredible digital show on the screen behind the band, it was almost as hypnotic and exciting as the music it was supporting.

The third is band member Melissa Reese. While her official role is the keyboards, the biggest part she plays is supporting Axl's vocals on those occasions where it doesn't quite stack up and it is a job she carries off with aplomb.

GnR stuck close to their Glastonbury set but added a few treats and mixed up the running order. It wasn't quite three hours of non-stop energy but there is no doubt the band are at their best when they dip into the archives to debut album Appetite for Destruction and the two Use Your Illusion albums. They would make up the bulk of the set with eight songs from Appetite alone.

Welcome to the Jungle was the earliest 'hit' on the night, played sixth in a mammoth 30-song set. Mr Brownstone was a personal highlight but they showed they can still produce a rock classic with 2021's Absurd, a thumping, punk-like song that is among GnR's most aggressive.

Never afraid of a cover, the band then launched into Live and Let Die, one of the rare occasions where the original is probably inferior to the copy. You Could Be Mine is among GnR's best and kept the crowd pumped as we reached the halfway point.

The band kept in a cover of Down on the Farm by the UK Subs from Glastonbury. Rocket Queen is a bona fida classic before Duff got his turn in the spotlight for Stooges cover TV Eye.

Civil War had the backdrop of the Ukrainian flag, the band's way of showing support for the country before Slash enjoyed an extended guitar solo which eventually gave way to the anthemic Sweet Child of Mine - predictably gaining the biggest cheer of the night as well as the biggest singalong. While best known as a hard rock act, GnR also know how to bang out a ballad and Axl took his place at the piano for November Rain. Thankfully, by that point the only rain was on the giant screen behind the band as the weather finally cleared up.

A trio of covers culminated with a lengthy rendition of Knockin' on Heavens Door before the main set finished off with Nightrain. The encore had a low-key start with Street of Dreams before the tender Patience.

But there was nothing understated at the finale as Paradise City brought the evening to a fittingly dynamic ending. The band had been on stage for three hours by the time the last chord had ebbed away and the crowd made its way for the exits. A gig three years in the making shouldn't disappoint, and it certainly didn't on Tuesday night.

Guns N' Roses fans praise 'incredible' Glasgow gig

By Nicole Mitchell

GUNS N' Roses fans have praised last night's Bellahouston Park gig.

The rock band performed at the Southside park following their show at Glastonbury on Saturday which was met with mixed reviews.

However, those in yesterday's crowd took to Twitter to applaud the "incredible show".

One person tweeted: "Guns N' Roses last night in Glasgow was phenomenal.

"Three hours of heaven - Axl’s dance moves and voice and Slash on guitar.

"Totally on form."

Another said: "Fantastic Glasgow show guys, worth the wait and the ticket price, Glastonbury on TV did not reflect what this show was like live, sum it up with impressive."

A third wrote: "[Guns N' Roses] finally rocking Glasgow last night, came on late but played right till curfew, 30-songs three-hour 10min hard rock at it's finest, band was tight and on fire.

But they're not the only ones who got to hear the show as residents across the reported hearing the set from 'miles away'.

One person wrote: "Good grief Guns N' Roses are loud. (I am not at the gig, I’m a bit more than three miles away as the crow flies)."

Another said: "Sound check for the Guns N' Roses gig tonight is super loud right now even though it's four miles away.

"I couldn't hear any Arctic Monkeys at all on Sunday though."

Guns N' Roses make good on Glasgow date with epic set at Bellahouston Park

By Jenny Mensah

Axl Rose played an epic set at Glasgow's Bellahouston Park on Tuesday 27th June. Get their full setlist here.

After a headline Glastonbury set, which saw Axl Rose experience some vocal issues, Guns N Roses went up to Glasgow, Scotland to make good on their postponed date at Bellahouston Park.

Axl Rose, Slash, Duff McKagan, Dizzy Reed and co took to the stage for an incredible 30-song set, which spanned across their four decade-long career.

Opening with Appetite For Destruction track It's So Easy, Axl and co took a trip through the band's back catalogue, playing the likes of Welcome To The Jungle, Mr Brownstone and Rocket Queen, plus Double Talkin' Jive from Use Your Illusion I, Estranged from its partner Use Your Illusion II, and coming right up to date with the 2021 single Absurd.

GNR also played UK Subs' Down On The Farm, a track from their punk covers album The Spaghetti Incident? and even slotted in a version of Slither by Slash and Duff's side project, Velvet Revolver, as well as Live and Let Die and Knockin' On Heaven's Door from Wings and Bob Dylan respectively.

Music review: Guns N’ Roses, Bellahouston Park, Glasgow

With lead guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan back on board, and Axl Rose on fine, if middle-aged form, the latest iteration of Guns N’ Roses are making up for lost time, writes Fiona Shepherd

By Fiona Shepherd

Guns N’ Roses, Bellahouston Park, Glasgow ***

From double albums released on the same day to three-hour career-spanning sets – when Guns N’ Roses are in the mood, they go big. Right now, they have an appetite for construction – rebuilding (close to) the classic line-up and making sure their Covid-delayed tour covers as many bases as possible. Frontman Axl Rose even appears to have resolved the punctuality issues of old and the band took to the Bellahouston stage practically on (rock’n’roll) time.

Rose was on fine, if middle-aged form. The sneering rock whine/fluent falstetto combination of old was modified to a mostly mid-range register which did the job and there was certainly camp character in his performance, as well as unexpected charm and graciousness. Could this be the leavening influence of returning lead guitarist Slash and trusty bassist Duff McKagan?

The former is a frontman in his own right, ruling much of the concert with his deft fretwork, lightning boogie breakouts, classic rock licks and an anachronistic but entertaining vocoder solo, while the latter flexed his punk credentials fronting a cover of The Stooges’ TV Eye.

Iggy’s band are a perennial influence but Guns N’ Roses are a broad rock church, encompassing the pugnacious Absurd, power ballad Civil War (with Voodoo Chile outro), jamtastic Welcome to the Jungle (with Link Wray surf rock intro), melodic rock standard Sweet Child O’ Mine and the sonic smorgasbord of Live and Let Die, with Rose unleashing a couple of warcries.

Trim and taut isn’t really their thing but the set could have lost some of the more ponderous flab and arguably some of the cover versions with no detriment. Glen Campbell’s Wichita Lineman was a novel choice, The UK Subs’ Down on the Farm comical, Dylan’s Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door overdone, and none could match the happy marriage of band and material on closing galvanising anthem Paradise City.

Guns ‘n’ Roses & The Pretenders – live in Bellahouston Park

It’s not without an element of happy surprise that I’m writing this blog. I’ve never hidden the fact that I’m not what you’d call a hardcore fan of Guns ‘n’ Roses, or more particularly the voice of Axl Rose, having a tendency to lean more towards the guitars in the band, I did have the pleasure of witnessing Slash and Duff several times in their guise of Velvet Revolver. Don’t get me wrong, I think Appetite for Destruction is a classic debut, one that took its blueprint from the likes of Hanoi Rocks and The Heartbreakers and added their own hard rock edge and punk attitude to create the sound that many others would try, and fail, to replicate. On a dreich Tuesday night in a rain soaked park in Glasgow on a late June night, I’m pleased to say that after a 3 year and two day wait, my mind was more or less entirely changed (I’m afraid nothing will ever get me to love, or even like, the overblown histrionics of November Rain or Patience…) having witnessed three solid hours of quality live raaaaaaaaaaaawk music.

Make that four hours… Before Axl and co. took to the Bellahouston stage, we had the pleasure of The Pretenders entertaining the early comers with an utterly glorious set culled from across their back catalogue pleasing both hardcore followers and the casual observer alike. This was my baptism into a live show from Chrissie Hynd and co, and I’m pleased to say I’ve now added them to an esteemed list of bands who have impressed me with their live shows. Granted Ms Hynd is the last woman standing from the original line-up, after the far too early tragic loss of guitarist James Honeyman-Scott and Pete Farndon a year after each other in the early 80’s. I may not have seen The Pretenders before, however, the musicians minus Chrissie are a superb band in their own right, and I have had the pleasure of seeing the magnificent His Lordship, whose name has graced these pages several times, twice over the past couple of years. When you have a band as tight and talented as that, adding the divine vocals of Chrissie Hynd on top is the icing on the cake. While other singers have been criticised, Guns ‘n’ Roses for one, as their voices change with age, Chrissie’s voice has not changed a jot, she still has the ability to both make your heart swoon or your pulse race depending on the song. And what of the songs? As mentioned, the set list was a joy to behold singles, interspersed with album tracks giving everyone something to love from early singles like Talk of the Town and Message of Love, through to most recent song in the set I’ll Stand By You, and taking in songs from Pretenders I & II, Learning to Crawl, Get Close and Last of the Independents – including Tattooed Love Boys, Cuban Slide, Back on the Chain Gang, Don’t Get Me Wrong and Hymn to Her (with an introductory tribute to ex-mother in law Irene Kerr) as well as tongue in cheek tribute to Glasgow in Junkie Walk, before closing the set with a superb rendition of Mystery Achievement. There was no mystery as to why they got achieved a resounding reception from the G’n’R crowd.

The headliners were pencilled in for a 7.30pm start, as the time came and went, with each 5 minutes passing, there was an edginess apparent and some faltering jokes about not believing the gig would actually happen until they appeared. Soon enough the stage graphics came to life and the band took to the stage to perform the Appetite for Destruction classic, It’s So Easy. Any fears over Axl’s vocal dissipated just as the rain that had been falling all day had prior to The Pretenders starting. The song was a perfect opener, band and singer on fire and in perfect harmony, setting out their stall for the rest of the night. Axl has obviously been working on his vocals as they impressed for the vast majority of the night, only twice did I wince slightly, on the chorus of Slither and on Welcome to the Jungle. During the rest of the set his range was excellent. Am I actually becoming an Axl fan? I even surprised myself, as someone who claims to only like Appetite for Destruction, in declaring that some of the highlights of the night for me were Double Talking Jive and You Could be Mine. On a personal note the lyrics of newer song Absurd “screaming fucking banshee” reminded me I need to finish writing my novel, (there’s a psychobilly band in it called the Screaming Banshees…)

Anyway, back to the gig. The epic three hour set included several well chosen cover versions, another of the nights highlights for me was UK Subs Down on the Farm (of course I was wearing my Another Kinds of Blues t-shirt), with a superb version of The Stooges TV Eye from Duff and an inspired cover of Witchita Lineman which saw Axl shine. Pretty Tied Up (another Use Your Illusion song, I’m really stretching myself now..) was an early set highlight, with Slash’s guitar solo late on in the set reflecting some Link Wray style rock n roll and rockabilly, a most pleasing interlude, followed by a peerless rendition of Sweet Child O’ Mine before November Rain gave me the perfect excuse to go to the toilets. Incidentally, kudos to the smooth organisation of the event, no queues to get in, at the bar or at the toilets all night, and despite the rain all day, it was solid underfoot (a lot of credit for that must go to all the work done on drainage over the last couple of years). Of course I was there mainly for the Appetite for Destruction bangers, so the epic Rocket Queen was sensational, as was Anything Goes and the initial set closer Nightrain. Special mention though for Paradise City, the set closer, which, despite our distance from the stage, led to much bouncing and pogoing in the vicinity around me, myself included. All night Axl had been repeating his gratitude for the patience of the fans waiting over 3 years for the gig to finally happen, in a final move, ingratiating himself to the partisan crowd wearing a leather jacket with Scotland emblazoned across the back as they gave their bows and left. For a gig I was only really going to to please my partner (the gig should originally have been played on her 50th birthday) was it worth the wait? You bet it was, with bells on. Now, let me try listening to November Rain again….