Guns N' Roses

Guns N' Roses 

Liverpool Echo Arena

May 20th 2012

Over the years Guns n Roses have received a lot of criticism from both fans and the media, so when my hubby told me that we were going to see them for our tenth wedding anniversary I was both excited and apprehensive.

Knowing that Guns n Roses have a habit of either hitting the stage well after curfew or not at all, I worried that we would travel all of the way to Liverpool and still not get to see the band that accompanied me through my teenage years.

To say that I was blown away that night is an understatement!  The night started with the brilliant Thin Lizzy who played for about an hour, providing the audience with a full set of upbeat and high energy songs, including all of their greatest hits.

At 11pm Guns and Roses burst onto the stage, showering the audience with all of the classics from ‘Welcome to the jungle’, ‘Don’t Cry’, ‘Estranged’, ‘Mr Brownstone’, ‘ Paradise City’ and a very explosive version of ‘Live and Let Die’ to name but a few.

I was a little concerned that their set was going to be cut short when one idiot in the pit threw his drink at the stage and Axl stopped singing to inform him that throwing glasses and drinks was not acceptable.  Luckily the Guns picked up where they left off and continued to entertain us well into the early hours. (2am to be exact!)

It is clear to see that Axl is a perfectionist not just in his own work but also in the musicians he works with, which include DJ Ashba on lead guitar, Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal and  Richard Fortus on guitar, Tommy Stinson on bass, Dizzy Reed on piano/keyboards, Frank Ferrer on Drums and Chris Pitman on keyboards.

Each of the members of band had their chance to show what they are made of as each performed  a solo.  My personal favourites were the amazing and powerful tune ‘Mi Amor’ performed by the very talented DJ Ashba and the fun if not slightly sarcastic song ‘Glad  to be here’ by the fantastic Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal.

The Guns played non-stop throughout the explosive three hour set.  They left the stage in a shower of ticker tape and streamers leaving the audience totally buzzing!

It was safe to say that I enjoyed the show as I quickly got hold of a ticket for their Manchester show the week after so I could enjoy it all over again.