1991 Rock Ballad, 8 Years in the Making by Guns N’ Roses, Is Still a Masterpiece 35 Years Later

Over three decades after it first came out, the impactful Guns N’ Roses ballad called “November Rain” is still a true rock masterpiece.

The song might’ve missed the top spot on music charts, but it made its mark on the world of classic rock music. It was released on the album Use Your Illusion I in 1991 before it came out as a single the next year.

But it took a long time for the song to come together. Written by Axl Rose, he first started the song a couple of years before Guns N’ Roses was even formed. In an old interview with Spin magazine, Tracii Guns of L.A. Guns, who helped form Guns N’ Roses in the 1980s, talked about how the song was first started.

He said, “I remember, when we were doing that EP for L.A. Guns, like ’83? He was playing ‘November Rain’ — and it was called ‘November Rain’ … you know, on piano … It was the only thing he knew how to play.”

Guns noted how confident Rose was in the song’s potential, adding that he would say, “Someday this song is gonna be really cool.” Rose would apparently play the song on the piano wherever they went when he had a moment. Guns would always ask him when he would finish it.

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At the time, Rose wasn’t sure about what direction to go with “November Rain,” but eventually, it all came together. By 1986, about a year after Guns N’ Roses was formed, the band had an 18-minute demo of the song done. Over the next few years, they worked it down to a runtime of about nine minutes, still including Slash‘s memorable guitar solo.

“November Rain” was finally officially released in 1991, and it was worth all the time and effort. The song was very successful, and after it was released as a single, it peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 3. Until Taylor Swift released her extended version of “All Too Well,” it was the longest song to make it into the Top 10 on the U.S. music chart.

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