Background and Recording
The first four tracks consist of the previously released EP Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide. The last four songs were recorded with acoustic guitars. They were written and recorded in only a few studio sessions (with the exception of "You're Crazy," which appeared in an alternate version on Appetite for Destruction), which producer Mike Clink called "one of those magical rock and roll history moments."
In later interviews, Axl Rose stated that while he loved how the band sounded on the last four songs, he hated the sound of his voice. Rose recalled that his voice was husky and scratchy from the band's lengthy touring at the time, and if he could he would have re-recorded his vocal tracks in a separate session.
A significantly faster version of "You're Crazy" with electric guitars had previously been released on the band's debut album, Appetite for Destruction, and was now recorded as originally intended. "Mama Kin" is an Aerosmith song, which originally appeared on the band's 1973 debut album. "Nice Boys" is a Rose Tattoo cover from their 1978 album Rose Tattoo. "Used to Love Her" was written as a joke after Izzy Stradlin disliked a song he heard on the radio featuring "some guy whining about a broad who was treating him bad". Slash stated that "People think it's about one of our old girlfriends, but it's actually about Axl's dog." However, there are some suggestions that the Guns N' Roses song "Used to Love Her" is an uncredited version of Tales of Terror's "Danant," given that Tales' frontman Pat Stratford did live in Los Angeles with them for some time after Tales' break-up and before Guns N' Roses gained fame, they took a few song ideas from him.
Read more about this topic: G N' R Lies
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