Use Your Illusion I is the third studio album by American hard rock band Guns N’ Roses, released on September 17, 1991, the same day as its counterpart Use Your Illusion II. Both albums were released in conjunction with the Use Your Illusion Tour. The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard charts, selling 685,000 copies in its first week, behind Use Your Illusion II’s first-week sales of 770,000. Use Your Illusion I has sold 5,502,000 units in the United States as of 2010, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Each of the Use Your Illusion albums have been certified 7× Platinum by the RIAA. It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1992. This is their first album to featured the former The Cult drummer Matt Sorum, replaced Steven Adler following Adler’s departure in 1990 (although he was featured again on “Civil War”, which featured on their counterpart album), as well as their first album to be recorded as six-piece band members, with the added of the keyboardist Dizzy Reed.
1. “Right Next Door to Hell” 3:02
2. “Dust N’ Bones” 4:58
3. “Live and Let Die” 3:04
4. “Don’t Cry” (Original) 4:44
5. “Perfect Crime” 2:23
6. “You Ain’t the First” 2:36
7. “Bad Obsession” 5:28
8. “Back Off Bitch” 5:03
9. “Double Talkin’ Jive” 3:23
10. “November Rain” 8:57
11. “The Garden (ft. Alice Cooper)” 5:22
12. “Garden of Eden” 2:41
13. “Don’t Damn Me” 5:18
14. “Bad Apples” 4:28
15. “Dead Horse” 4:17
16. “Coma” R 10:13
W. Axl Rose – lead vocals, piano, choir, synthesizer, programming, backing vocals, acoustic guitar, sound effects
Slash – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, slide guitar, acoustic guitar, dobro, classical guitar, talkbox, six-string bass, backing vocals
Izzy Stradlin – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, acoustic guitar, lead guitar, lead vocals on “Dust N’ Bones”, “Double Talkin’ Jive”, and “You Ain’t the First”
Duff McKagan – bass, backing vocals, acoustic guitar
Matt Sorum – drums, percussion, backing vocals, choir
Dizzy Reed – keyboards, backing vocals
Use Your Illusion II is the fourth studio album by the American hard rock band Guns N’ Roses. The album was released on September 17, 1991, the same day as its counterpart Use Your Illusion I. Both albums were released in conjunction with the Use Your Illusion Tour. Bolstered by the lead single “You Could Be Mine”, Use Your Illusion II was the slightly more popular of the two albums, selling 770,000 copies its first week and debuting at No. 1 on the U.S. charts, ahead of Use Your Illusion I’s first-week sales of 685,000. As of 2010, Use Your Illusion II has sold 5,587,000 units in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Both albums have since been certified 7× Platinum by the RIAA. It was also No. 1 on the UK Albums Chart for a single week.
It is the last Guns N’ Roses album to feature rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin. It also includes “Civil War”, the last track to feature drummer Steven Adler in any capacity. This album, along with the counterpart of the album, were the last Guns N’ Roses album to feature original material until 2008’s album Chinese Democracy.
1. “Civil War” 7:42
2. “14 Years” 4:21
3. “Yesterdays” 3:14
4. “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” 5:36
5. “Get in the Ring” 5:42
6. “Shotgun Blues” 3:23
7. “Breakdown” 7:04
8. “Pretty Tied Up (The Perils of Rock n’ Roll Decadence)” 4:48
9. “Locomotive (Complicity)” 8:42
10. “So Fine” 4:08
11. “Estranged” 9:23
12. “You Could Be Mine” 5:43
13. “Don’t Cry” (Alt. Lyrics) 4:45
14. “My World” 1:24
W. Axl Rose – lead vocals, piano, whistling, backing vocals, rhythm guitar on “Shotgun Blues”, synthesizer, drum machine
Slash – lead guitar, acoustic guitar, banjo, rhythm guitar on “Breakdown” and “Locomotive”, backing vocals
Izzy Stradlin – rhythm guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals on “14 Years”, acoustic guitar, coral sitar, lead guitar
Duff McKagan – bass, backing vocals, lead vocals on “So Fine”, percussion
Matt Sorum – drums, backing vocals
Dizzy Reed – keyboards, backing vocals
Steven Adler – drums on “Civil War”
Johann Langlie – drums, keyboards and sound effects on “My World”
The Waters – backing vocals on “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”
Howard Teman – piano on “So Fine”
Shannon Hoon – co-lead vocals on “Don’t Cry”