Come join us as we rock out and celebrate the 30th anniversary of Guns N’ Roses’ debut album Appetite for Destruction at The Cap on Friday, July 28. 30 years later, this iconic album still rocks the hearts of fans young and old. With 18 million copies sold in the US alone, it is the best-selling debut album of all time and we think one of the best! We can't wait to celebrate with a wild and rowdy night at The Cap!

Did You Know?

Here's some facts you may or may not know about Appetite for Destruction.

Appetite for Destruction did not debut at the top of the charts

Originally released on July 21, 1987 Appetite for Destruction debuted at number 182 on the Billboard 200 and didn’t reach number 1 until almost 50 weeks later. When the album sales sat at around 200,000, Geffen Records almost gave up on their promotion of the album. Good thing they didn’t, as the album eventually sold 18 million copies in the US, over 30 million worldwide and became the best-selling debut album of all time. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oYyPLPhr40[/embed]

The famous cross and skulls album cover is not the original

The well-known cover art for Appetite for Destruction was not the original artwork chosen for the cover. Music retailers refused to stock and sell the album due to the original gruesome artwork which was based on the Robert Williams’ painting, also named “Appetite for Destruction.” The band had to quickly find new artwork and settled for the famous cross and skulls, depicting the five members of the band and designed by tattoo artist, Billy White Jr. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFVgtP6UnuI[/embed]

Guns N' Roses threw out the traditional sides A and B

Unlike other albums which had the traditional ‘Side A’ and ‘Side B,’ Guns N’ Roses debut album was split into Sides G and R. Side G, Guns, was filled with songs about violence, drugs, and hard times such as "Welcome to the Jungle" and "Paradise City," while Side R, Roses, was filled with songs about love, sex, and relationships such as "My Michelle" and "Sweet Child O’ Mine." [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rbm6GXllBiw[/embed]

"Welcome to the Jungle" was written in less than a day

Co-written by Axl Rose and Slash, one of the greatest rock songs of all time, and the opening track to Appetite for Destruction, "Welcome to the Jungle," was written in about three hours. "I was at my house and I had that riff happening and Axl came over and he got those lyrics together, and then the band sort of arranged it. We got an arrangement for the whole band, 'cause that's how we work. Someone comes in with an idea and someone else has input and in that way everyone's happy. That came together really quickly too, that was arranged in one day," Slash says, reminiscing, “It was really the first thing we all collaborated on and it’s really a combination of everybody’s input.” Axl wrote the lyrics and came up with the title depicting the struggle to survive while pursuing fame in the jungle of Los Angeles, and "Welcome to the Jungle" was born. Click to read the full story [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jd9e6QCuXE[/embed]

The story behind "Sweet Child O' Mine"

The ballad of the album, "Sweet Child O’ Mine" was written when guitarists Slash and Izzy Stradlin were fooling around with some riffs on their own. In the moment, neither of them knew that singer, Axel Rose, was in an upstairs bedroom listening and writing lyrics. "If Axl hadn't been there writing those lyrics, chances are that song would have never existed," says Slash. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1w7OgIMMRc4[/embed]

Many other classic Guns N' Roses songs were almost on Appetite for Destruction

"November Rain" was originally on the track list for Appetite for Destruction but was removed because the band already had one ballad on the album in "Sweet Child O' Mine." Many other songs were also saved for later albums such as "You Could Be Mine," "Back Off Bitch" and "Don’t Cry." [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7xQ04nlePM[/embed]