'Appetite for Destruction' was one of the best debuts of all time, if not the best, the follow-up was always going to be difficult, so they went for the "more is better" principal and released 'Use your Illusion part I & II' together, totalling 30 tracks. Unfortunately both sport a plethora of filler and while this, the first of the two releases is generally regarded as the better, does loose the plot towards the end. The raw and sleazy approach of 'Appetite' is a lot less apparent here and while graced with more rockers that 'Part II' and some well penned slower material isn't comparable to the potent debut. 'Matt Sorum' takes over the drumming slot as 'Steven Adler' was fired allegedly due to his excessive drug problem.

'Part I' gets underway with a string of solid tracks, none more so than the opener 'Right Next Door to Hell' a tough rocker well in the mould of songs from 'Appetite', fast, frantic and graced with the accomplished guitar work of 'Slash' and 'Stradlin', the chorus isn't fantastic and all said if this had of appeared on the previous release, it would have been one of the weakest present. Following strongly is the 'Badlands' style groover 'Dust N' Bones' sung mainly by 'Izzy' which makes a nice change as 'Axl's' whiney vocals can get irritating all the way through a 75 minute album, I digress, this bluesy mid tempo number is one of the best tracks present. Umm, a cover of 'McCartney's' 'Live and Let Die', a nice take I suppose, the instrumentation is excellent, but 'Axl' does the lyrics no credit at all, reached #5 in the UK charts but definitely not one of their best singles. The pace drops for the balladsy 'Don't Cry', an emotionally performed number, complete with additional female vocals and a solid guitar solo. Better still is the short but brisk up tempo rocker 'Perfect Crime', lyrically It's not that impressive, but still an enjoyable blazer complete with great 'Slash' axe work. The tempo falls through the floor for the dreadful Bluesy plodder 'You ain't the First' a dire undertaking in exploring new ground. Improvements are made with the 'Rolling Stones' inspired 'Bad Obsession' a decent enough track graced with harmonica and sax work, which adds to the 'Stones' feel. Back on track is the sleazy rocker 'Back off Bitch' a sort of 'L.A Guns' type cut, 'Axl's' vocals lend themselves well to this sort of song and is backed up by fine instrumentation and close to the knuckle lyrics. Continuing in good stead is the experimental 'Double Talkin' Jive', which is governed by 'Izzy's' infectious guitar soloing and the unusual but inventive wind-down which gifts us a 'Slash' classical guitar solo. The momentum falls for the epic 'November Rain' a track which has lost a lot by it's overplay on radio, despite this it's a great ballad, with strong contributions from all concerned. 'Axl' does a fine job of the quality lyrics and is well supported by the backing vocalist, while 'Slash's' solos are fitting and impressive especially on the rockier outro. There's little hope for the darker sounding 'The Garden' a droning effort which is made none the better by 'Alice Cooper's' vocal contributions, the only highlight is the guitar solo- Not really a 'Guns N' Rose' song. 'Gardens of Eden' is a fast talking 'Aerosmith' style rocker that while brisk, is too rowdy for my liking and ultimately disappointing with it's shoddy synthesiser work. Much better is the back to basics 'Don't Damn Me' an up tempo affair, again with shades of 'Aerosmith' as 'Axl' and Co. concoct a lively, well penned number with lyrics that have a pop at the bad press the band got. The album's last three tracks fail to impress, 'Bad Apples' is a dull Bluesy Rock and Roll endeavour, while 'Dead Horse' is let down by the lifeless introduction but does pick up later with a more energetic approach. Last up is the epic 'Coma', some rate this a 'Guns N' Rose's' masterpiece, I personally am bored stiff by the listless rhythm and 'Axl' at his most whining, as usual the guitarists turn in a fine show, but it takes more than that to resurrect this 10 minute insomnia cure.

There's some quality here but most is overshadowed by the vast amount of filler, in fact this album would have sounded much better with about 25 minutes worth of tracks shaved off.