Customer Reviews

Spaghetti Incident

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November of 1993 saw the release of Guns N' Roses fifth album "The Spaghetti Incident?" It was recorded mostly alongside the "Use Your Illusion" (1991) albums and featured the lineup of Axl Rose, (vocals) Slash, (lead guitar) Duff McKagan, (bass) Dizzy Reed, (keyboards) and Matt Sorum (drums). Izzy Stradlin's (rhythm guitar) parts were removed and replaced by then current gunner Gilby Clarke.

Guns N' Roses swan song (at least of old-school GN'R) "The Spaghetti Incident?" seems to rub people the wrong way. It unfortunately has the reputation of being one of those albums that "suck." That's a shame because while "The Spaghetti Incident?" is not a timeless classic, it's a good album.

Why do people seem to have such a negative reaction to this album? I think quite simply there really isn't an audience for a GN'R punk-cover album. While there was definitely an element of punk to the GN'R sound (courtesy of bassist Duff McKagan) people, by and large, who like "Paradise City," "Sweet Child `O Mine" and "November Rain" aren't going to dig Iggy and the Stooges, T-Rex, the Dammed, Fear, The UK Subs, etc. Likewise, fans of punk-rock aren't going to like the slick production, added solos, and other perceived bombast of GN'R's interpretations.

While Guns N' Roses renditions on "The Spaghetti Incident?" are nowhere near as raw or unadulterated as the original songs, that's not really a problem. If you went into "The Spaghetti Incident?" expecting a straight-up punk album, I can see why you'd be disappointed. But rather than just paying homage to the artists that influenced them by doing a punk album note-for-note, GN'R gave the songs their own spin, their own interpretation. With "The Spaghetti Incident?" Guns N' Roses made these songs their own by adding their own signature. So while these songs aren't as raw as the originals, they have more melody, color, hooks, and are far more palatable than the originals. While I can appreciate the argument from punk fans that GN'R shouldn't have taken liberties on their beloved classics, I personally really like these renditions.

Highlights include the Damned's excellent "New Rose," The UK Subs "Down on the Farm," (in which Axl Rose puts on a brilliant and somewhat hysterical faux British accent) the Misfits "Attitude" and Steve Jones' "Black Leather." The album's big hit, the Skyliners' "Since I Don't Have You" is hauntingly morose, yet sublime in its rich melody and killer solos. The album is probably best known for the "hidden track," Charles Manson's "Look at your Game Girl," which is creepy with its bizarre lyrics and eerie sparseness. It should be noted that Manson himself received no royalties from sales of the album.

The timing, however, was really bad for this album. By the end of '93 grunge and alternative rock were all the rage. While Guns N' Roses still had an enormous fan base by the end of '93, the band was seen as outdated, and the backlash spawned by their conceptual videos and over-the-top personas and lifestyles was beginning to set in. While "The Spaghetti Incident?" was meant merely as a stop-gap to tide fans over until the next release, thirteen years later, the next release, the forever in-the-works "Chinese Democracy" still has not yet arrived. "The Spaghetti Incident?" left a bad taste in the public's mouth and temporally took GN'R's legacy down a notch, although with the passage of time the sour taste has all but disappeared.

While "The Spaghetti Incident?" will ultimately be just a footnote in the legacy of GN'R, it is still a good album that is somewhat underrated. If you are new to GN'R, by all means, check it out.

The Spaghetti Incident by GN'r is one of the most underrated albums ever. It starts with the hit Since I Don't Have You. Then comes New Rose, which was surprisingly good. Down on the Farm sounds a bit like it is sung by a british guy. Human Being follows, and it is one of my favorites. Raw Power is good, and Ain't it Fun is the second hit on the album. Buick Makane is above average, and then is Hair of the Dog, my personal favorite on the album (this was also a hit, but not included on the Greatest Hits. Attitude is basically just the band singing the word attitude over and over, but it sounds good. Black Leather is great, and You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory is basically the Duff lover's dream. Some may see this as a bad album to end their career with, but what song would fit better than one called I Don't Care About You? At first it just seems like ranting, but then evolves into something a little more refined. Kinda like the band. No other song fits the Guns like this.

TSI? is an amazing album. Every song is either good or great. Covers or not, Guns N' Roses did a tremendous job here. Nothing to complain about except the infamous "Duff song" (bassist.) Which is "You Can't Put Your Arms Around a Memory" where he does the vocals, plays bass, drums, everything and although a nice gesture towards Johnny Thunders (whom he tributes the song to at the beginning), the song is the worst on the album. The vocals make me cringe.

Most critics didn't give this album a chance...and it's a shame. Had there been some actual promotion, maybe the more reknown critics would have given this CD a chance.

Also, "Look at Your Game", while written by serial killer Charles Manson, is a blatant effort at provoking negative publicity, it's an incredible mellow song. It's a hidden track on this disc (number 12, after "I Don't Care About You", just wait for it to kick in.)

For some reason, a lot of people do not like this album. Sure it's not as good as Appetite or the Illusion cds, but the Spaghetti Incident is still a really good album.

1.Since I Don't Have You-This doesn't seem like a song that GN'R would cover, but it is still pretty good.

2.New Rose-This is a punk song that Duff does vocals on. It is fun to listen to.

3.Down on the Farm-One of my favorite tracks on this album. It is really creative and fun to listen to.

4.Human Being-This song is awesome, although you can't tell what Axl is saying.

5.Raw Power-This song is pretty good, but not as good as the rest.

6.Ain't It Fun-Awesome song. Axl's voice and the lyrics make it sound really dark.

7.Buick McKaine-Sort of a strange song, but the "F*** you" chant is really cool.

8. Hair of the Dog-This is my favorite song on the album. It is a Nazareth cover, and rocks very hard.

9.Attitude-This is a punk song that is sung by Duff. It is good, but too short.

10.Black Leather-Some people really like this song, others(like me)don't. I guess it depends on your taste.

11.You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory-A ballady type song that Duff McKagen sings on, plus Duff plays the bass,guitar, and drums on this song as well.

12.I Don't Care About You-This song is really rebellious, and fun to listen to.

13.Look At Your Game Girl-This is a hidden track that you can find if you keep the cd playing after track 12. It is actually very pretty, even though Charles Manson wrote it.

...after Appetite and the Use Your Illusion albums we expect more than good from GnR. Not that the songs they chose to cover are bad, they're not. And it's not that I don't like covers: I love it when bands punk up/slow down/add their own twist to songs... but these versions are pretty similar to the originals. Not what you'd expect from GnR.

I'm all for popular rock groups introducing their young fans to bands they might not hear or look into otherwise, but when a band with the power to write rock classics (such as Sweet Child and Paradise City) and original epics (like Estranged and Coma) compiles an entire album of cover songs -more to the point, AVERAGE cover songs- you can't help but feel a little let down.
It seems they've taken advantage of their popularity, cos I doubt any other bands would dare release a record like this. Overall it's a good, fun album... but compared to their previous offerings it's horrible.

Best tracks are probably Black Leather (better than the original with its elevated guitar riffs, but not a patch on the Runaways' version); Ain't it Fun (though, much as I like Hanoi Rocks, was it really necessary to bring out Michael Monroe AGAIN? Despite the strength of both Hanoi and GnR his voice can really grate on the nerves); Buike MacKane/Big Dumb Sex; Hair of the Dog (Nazareth don't get enough credit y'know...); and the pretty little Charles Manson cover (a desperate attempt at controversy perhaps?)
But all are far too similar to the originals, and even these "best tracks" don't compare to the weaker songs on Appetite or UYI 1 &2.

Since I Don't Have You and Down on the Farm are atrocities I won't even mention.
The other tracks are moderately good, but by no means great.

On the whole, a worthwhile purchase if you're already a fan (especially if you're keen to look into which bands influenced them,) and not without a few good tracks and a certain punkish charm.
But if you're relatively new to GnR, STAY AWAY, cos it doesn't truly reflect their good musicianship or songwriting skills.

The Spaghetti Incident? was released in december of 1993 and is GN'R fourth studio album.

The band was not doing very well at time TSI? was released. Departure of two band's original members (Guitarist Izzy Stradlin left in fall of 1991 and drummer Steven Adler was fired in late 1990), exaustion after Use Your Illusion world tour and personal conflicts weakened Guns N' Roses. No one would be surprised if these guys released a weaker album - and so They did. TSI? is GN'R tribute to their punk roots. What We've got here is bunch of loud, noisy punk covers of bands like Sex Pistols, Nazareth, or The UK Subs. Some of them are interesting tunes, but mostly it's average release. Definately not something GN'R fans desire from this band.

First of all, GN'R are not a punk band - punk music influenced Them, but it wasn't their mainstream. They used to play raw, powerful Rock N' Roll that became their trademark. Unfortunately, We don't get anything like that on this album. Some of the songs are actually interesting remakes - Since I Don't Have You is easily one of the sweetest tunes the band has ever recorded. It was originally recorded by Skyliners, but this version kills the original one. Raw and nasty Hair Of The Dog is also strong point of the album. You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory and the fast-paced Attitude are other standouts here. Ain't It Fun and Black Leather are interesting... but it all ends here. Rest of the album is just bunch of mediocre punk covers. For the end GN'R recorded one of their unfamous, critized tunes - Look At Your Game Girl. This one is just a simple acoustic piece. There is nothing wrong with the song, but the fact that Charles Manson wrote it is actually quite... shocking? This track is not even listed, it's part of I Don't Care About You.

If I would have to sume up, this is the weakest GN'R effort. While their other albums are almost perfect on each note, this one has only a few interesting points. TSI? is the one You should get last if You're into Guns N' Roses. If You're a new fan, don't even touch it. Get Appetite For Destruction.

It seems like everybody in the world hates this album, and I don't know why. Greatness is in the ear of the listener I suppose, but I like this album very much. Their version of "Hair of The Dog" turned me onto Nazareth. You certainly can't knock the songs (if you do then you probably don't like or understand Rock n' Roll period), and I think this is a fine and enthusiastic tribute to the music that inspired GN'R, and I can honestly find no fault with it.

And to whoever said GN'R were an average band, I just wanna say where do you hang around? Seriously, I wanna know, because if the average bands in your neck of the woods are as vital and incendiary as GN'R, then I think I want to move there!

It's just a cover album of punk songs. When it was released it wasnt supposed to sell millions it was just to tied the fans over for a while(I.E. LIES). You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory is a great song to begin with and duff does a great job with it. attitude is awesome. I dont like I don't care about you very much but the only song on this album that i really hate is Look at Your Game Girl written by charles manson. cough cough publicity stunt. overall for what it is , this cd is really good.

I am surprised to see this album doesn't have a review. I purchased this back in '93 when it came out, and really enjoyed it. It was a good fill in while hoping for the next GNR album.
They managed to take the songs and make them their own, not just cheesy covers. Axl's vocals and Slash's typically great guitar work puts GNR's stamp all over these songs. Most of the songs seem to be the guys having fun putting their spin on some old punk songs and a few classic rock tunes. It is pulled off so well that you can pretty much just imagine that is is an album of tunes from Guns.
I highly recommend this to folks who liked GNR and miss them these days. If you don't have it, you need it.

This Is NOT a "BAD" album, But even as a huge Guns N' Roses fan, I can't call this a "GREAT" Album and it is an Unfortunate way to end the legacy of "THE GREATEST SEX, DRUGS, & ROCK & ROLL BAND OF ALL TIME" So when I see other reviewers calling this album "Strange" or "Odd" I feel it is important to mention that THE SPAGHETTI INCIDENT? is not what it started out to be, S.I.? was initially intended to be a stop-gap release of a FEW Punk Covers. This Punk [EP] was meant to be released during the long period between LIES & The USE YOUR ILLUSION album. Jamming on some of their favorite Punk songs was supposed to be a way for the band to get focused before diving into NEW songs. It worked (perhaps Too well). The Band ended up with so many ideas & songs that Use Your Illusion Became 2 Albums & the [EP] was shelved only to re-emerge after the U.Y.I albums as a Full-length [LP].

I think THE SPAGHETTI INCIDENT? would have done much better & been better received, if it had been released as intended. As a Fun [EP] to wet our destructive appetites, And it would have been cooler if GNR had left on the much grander note of their ILLUSION epics than a comparatively weak cover album, but who am I to complain about MORE songs... especially now that GNR is gone

But If your New to Guns N' Roses, I recommend

GNR's GREATEST HITS:
(If you like the songs you may have heard on the radio or seen on MTV)

or

APPETITE FOR DESTRUCTION
one of the best hard rock albums of all time, & one of the few from the 80's that hasn't become a joke)

...& I know GNR isn't gone but I consider what Axl is doing a completely different animal

....................................CHINESE DEMOCRACY NOW!!!