Slash Reveals He Hated GNR's 'Sweet Child O' Mine' at First

Slash surprisingly didn't like "Sweet Child O' Mine" when it was first created. The guitarist felt the ballad didn't fit Guns N' Roses' hard rock image. He even dreaded performing the song live and struggled to remember the riff. Despite his initial hesitation, the track became one of the band's most iconic songs.

Key Points: Slash Didn't Like Guns N' Roses Sweet Child O' Mine

  • Slash created the iconic riff but didn't know what to do with it
  • He considered GNR a hard rock band and disliked ballads
  • The guitarist struggled to remember the riff while performing drunk
  • Slash reveals his famous solos were never pre-planned or structured
2 min read

Slash didn't initially like GNR's iconic track 'Sweet Child O' Mine'

Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash admits he initially disliked the band's iconic ballad "Sweet Child O' Mine" despite creating its famous riff.

"I have to admit I did have a thing with it... to me, we were like a Motorhead-type hard rock band, so any kind of ballads were sort of uncongressed - Slash"

Los Angeles, Oct 27

The American rock band, Guns N' Roses is grabbing headlines of late. Adding to the same, now the band’s lead guitarist Slash has shared that he didn't like the iconic song ‘Sweet Child O' Mine’ at first.

The 1988 track has become one of the rock band's defining singles but the musician was unconvinced by the "ballad" feel to the song, even though he came up with the track's riff, reports ‘Female First UK’.

Slash told ‘Guitar World’ magazine, “I have to admit I did have a thing with it. It was a riff I came up with, and I didn't know what I was going to do with it. I wasn't really thinking about it at the time, but it inspired the whole song. I always say this, but to me, we were like a Motorhead-type hard rock band, so any kind of ballads were sort of uncongressed”.

The 60-year-old guitarist added, "We played it one time opening for Ted Nugent, and when it was time to play that song, I was like, 'Oh, f***’. And, of course, I had to remember how to play the riff accurately by myself in front of everybody every time we played, which, at the time I was a little drunk, and you never knew what was going to happen”.

As per ‘Female First UK’, Slash is famous for his guitar solos on Guns N' Roses tracks such as November Rain and Welcome to the Jungle but admits they weren't planned.

He shared, "I don't remember ever sitting down and figuring any of them out. I remember going into that, and it sounds very structured to a point, but that's just what the chord changes were. It's interesting to think back on sometimes. When you're onstage, your mind wanders, and I'll go back and think about stuff like that”.

Slash left Guns N' Roses back in 1996 due to tensions with frontman Axl Rose before rejoining in 2016 and insists that he is on good terms with his bandmates, including fellow guitarists Duff McKagan and Richard Fortus.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
As a musician myself, I can relate to this. Sometimes we create something amazing but don't realize its potential until others appreciate it. That opening riff is pure magic though!
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Arjun K
This shows how artists can be their own worst critics. Sweet Child O' Mine is legendary in rock history. Funny how he had to remember the riff while being drunk during performances! 😄
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Sarah B
Respectfully, I think this highlights how sometimes artists need to trust their creative process more. The fact that such iconic solos weren't even planned shows true musical genius.
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Vikram M
This song used to play on MTV all the time when I was in college. Can't imagine GNR without Sweet Child O' Mine. It's amazing how band dynamics work - they broke up but came back together after 20 years!
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Ananya R
The guitar solo in this song gives me goosebumps every time! It's inspiring to know that even legends like Slash have doubts about their work. Makes me feel better about my own creative struggles.

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