were GNR the biggest rock band ever??

[CheapJon]

They definately were...but arent anymore...The biggest band in the world doesnt play to half empty arenas here in the states....u2 sold out something like 7 nights in a row at MSG not long ago...and Bruce Springsteen sold out 10 thats right I said 10 straight dates at Giants Stadium which holds almost 80,000 people....THe concert attendance for the last GNR tour was respectable, especially because they have NO new material....I will say this however..the were the last great rock n roll band...nobody has come out after them that can even challenge them as far as how big they were..Nirvana is way behind in album sales and concert attendance...

Not necessarily the best comparison, as Nirvana won't exactly have a chance to catch up or compete at this point.? I agree, though...GnR have gotten a respectable turnout at shows, but again, that will all chance if and when the album hits.

Nirvana's success post-Cobain can be attributed to one thing... media hype.

Yes.? Hype and adoration.? Some of it well-deserved, I suppose...

nirvana was good but not nearly as great as the media say they were, one of the most overrated bands ever, and because they are that overrated has makin' me like them less or something for some wierd reason

[Bodhi]

I agree, Nirvana is overhyped...but they were the closest to being this huge rock band that GNR was...they fell way short...but they are second none the less....I am speaking of bands that came out the same time as GNR or after of course...

[bazgnr]

I agree, Nirvana is overhyped...but they were the closest to being this huge rock band that GNR was...they fell way short...but they are second none the less....I am speaking of bands that came out the same time as GNR or after of course...

I think what they have in common is that they both issued a wake up call to the world in terms of having something to say, and saying it like no other band did before them.  In their prime, Nirvana was far bigger than Guns were at the time, but Nirvana was unable to prevent themselves from imploding.  The Guns 'n Roses story is far from over, and for that, I'm pretty damn happy.

[The Legend]

They definately were...but arent anymore...The biggest band in the world doesnt play to half empty arenas here in the states....u2 sold out something like 7 nights in a row at MSG not long ago...and Bruce Springsteen sold out 10 thats right I said 10 straight dates at Giants Stadium which holds almost 80,000 people....THe concert attendance for the last GNR tour was respectable, especially because they have NO new material....I will say this however..the were the last great rock n roll band...nobody has come out after them that can even challenge them as far as how big they were..Nirvana is way behind in album sales and concert attendance...

Not necessarily the best comparison, as Nirvana won't exactly have a chance to catch up or compete at this point.? I agree, though...GnR have gotten a respectable turnout at shows, but again, that will all chance if and when the album hits.

Nirvana's success post-Cobain can be attributed to one thing... media hype.

Yes.? Hype and adoration.? Some of it well-deserved, I suppose...

nirvana was good but not nearly as great as the media say they were, one of the most overrated bands ever, and because they are that overrated has makin' me like them less or something for some wierd reason

That's what i'm saying. I like Nirvana. I really do. But they were a 'good' rock band imo. Not 'great', nor were they 'legends'.

Nirvana was simply a band of times. There's was the early-90's. They aren't timeless.

Most of their post-Cobain success has been due to overexposure/oversaturation.

[Amanda.]

GN'Rs immense success is kind of unique in musical history. I think only the Beatles can compare really.

If they had carried on with the same lineup, one could might exclude Popcorn, and released Chinese Democracy in the late 90s we could have been looking at U2 popularity and Led Zeppelin greatness today.

Beatles plays more like poprock or something.


what about queen? i think you can compare queen and guns. and i dunno about U2-popularity-thing...

[tomass74]

They could have been the greatest rock band ever but due to lack of material they will not.. They just didn't release enough music..

[The Legend]

They could have been the greatest rock band ever but due to lack of material they will not.. They just didn't release enough music..

Yeah, but that's the point. To release three full studio albums, and all three be considered masterpieces of their time (even though it took critics a little longer to appreciate the Illusions), and is still ranked as one of the greatest rock bands in history, is astonishing.

To make that kind of impact with only three studio albums, has to say something about longevity. Plus, unlike Nirvana, GN'R in their 'down time' from 1995-2000, 2003-2005, GN'R was not overexposed in the media. The GN'R name dropped out of sight basically until the 2002 VMA's, and the 2006 tour.

[tomass74]

I still consider LIES an album.. To me it was 4 highly successful albums.. I mean LIES kicked ass!!

[The Legend]

I still consider LIES an album.. To me it was 4 highly successful albums.. I mean LIES kicked ass!!

LIES was an 8-track EP, that contained 3 covers. I don't consider it a full original album, like TSI.

[tomass74]

I still consider LIES an album.. To me it was 4 highly successful albums.. I mean LIES kicked ass!!

LIES was an 8-track EP, that contained 3 covers. I don't consider it a full original album, like TSI.

Was there another cover besides Nice Boys and Mama Kin?

[gandra]

well,gnr were the biggest band in early 90's,and for me the best band ever...

but it's very hard to compare gnr success one one side and bon jovi or u2 success on second side...

why?

because gnr made a big success with none comercial and none easy music.
as kurt cobain said "i don't believe that one underground band are the biggest now"

on other side we have u2 and bon jovi music which is music for every "ear"

and this fact give gunsnroses special dimension

[The Legend]

I still consider LIES an album.. To me it was 4 highly successful albums.. I mean LIES kicked ass!!

LIES was an 8-track EP, that contained 3 covers. I don't consider it a full original album, like TSI.

Was there another cover besides Nice Boys and Mama Kin?

Apparently not. I recently learned I had been misinformed for years, and that Reckless Life was a GN'R original.

[mrlee]

i always thought led zeppelin and van halen were probably the biggest.

[polluxlm]

i always thought led zeppelin and van halen were probably the biggest.

They might have been bigger in terms of superior popularity, Zeppelin that is (Van Halen? ), but GN'R lived in the days of MTV and CNN. A whole nother world in terms of exposure. Zeppelin were the biggest band of the 70s, but GN'R were everywhere in their heyday.

[The Legend]

i always thought led zeppelin and van halen were probably the biggest.

They might have been bigger in terms of superior popularity, Zeppelin that is (Van Halen? ), but GN'R lived in the days of MTV and CNN. A whole nother world in terms of exposure. Zeppelin were the biggest band of the 70s, but GN'R were everywhere in their heyday.

Van Halen... uhhh, yeah. 

[gandra]

led zepellin is one of the biggest bands ever

but van halen bigger than gunnroses,no way

[mrlee]

you guys are telling me, that van halen, a band with one of the most influential guitarist of all time, wernt very popular?

[polluxlm]

you guys are telling me, that van halen, a band with one of the most influential guitarist of all time, wernt very popular?

No

[mrlee]

you guys are telling me, that van halen, a band with one of the most influential guitarist of all time, wernt very popular?

No

good lol. i was almost ready to think gnr forum goers had lost there minds.

[polluxlm]

you guys are telling me, that van halen, a band with one of the most influential guitarist of all time, wernt very popular?

No

good lol. i was almost ready to think gnr forum goers had lost there minds.

One has got nothing to do with the other