Once Appetite for Destruction finally became a hit in 1988, Guns N' Roses bought some time by delivering the half-old/half-new LP G N' R Lies as a follow-up. Constructed as a double EP, with the "indie" debut Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide coming first and four new acoustic-based songs following on the second side, G N' R Lies is where the band metamorphosed from genuine threat to joke. Neither recorded live nor released by an indie label, Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide is competent bar band boogie, without the energy or danger of Appetite for Destruction. The new songs are considerably more problematic. "Patience" is Guns N' Roses at their prettiest and their sappiest, the most direct song they recorded to date. Its emotional directness makes the misogyny of "Used to Love Her (But I Had to Kill Her)" and the pitiful slanders of "One in a Million" sound genuine. Although the cover shrugs them off as a "joke," Axl Rose's venom is frightening -- there's little doubt that he truly does believe that "faggots" come to America from another country and that "niggers" should stay out of his way. Since he wasn't playing a character on the remainder of the album, there's little doubt this is from the heart as well. And what makes it harder to dismiss is the musical skill of the band, which makes the country-fried boogie of "Used to Love Her," the bluesy revamp of "You're Crazy," and the tough, paranoid fever dream of "One in a Million" indelible. So, you either listen to the music and are satisfied or else listen to the lyrics and become disturbed not only by Rose's intentions, but by the millions of record buyers that identified with him. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Lies, aka G N' R Lies, is the second studio album by the hard rock band Guns N' Roses in 1988 (see 1988 in music). According to the RIAA, it has sold 10 million copies in the United States and about 21 million copies worldwide to date. Presently 2009[1]
The first four tracks consist of the previously released EPLive ?!*@ Like a Suicide. The last four songs were recorded with acoustic guitars. They were written and recorded in only a few studio sessions[citation needed] (with the exception of "You're Crazy", which appeared in an alternate version on Appetite for Destruction), which producer Mike Clink called "one of those magical rock and roll history moments".[citation needed]
In later interviews, Axl Rose stated that while he loved how the band sounded on the last four songs, he hated the sound of his voice. Rose recalled that his voice was husky and scratchy from the band's lengthy touring at the time, and if he could he would've re-recorded his vocal tracks in a separate session.[citation needed]
The cover is a parody of tabloidnewspapers as are the liner notes. The LP cover art underwent several minor modifications when the title was released on CD.[citation needed] First, in the bottom left corner reading "LIES LIES LIES" originally read "Wife-beating has been around for 10,000 years." Secondly, instead of "Elephant gives birth to midget", the original headline reads, "Ladies, welcome to the Dark Ages". Many copies of the original LP release also contained an uncensored picture of a nude model on the inner LP sleeve.[2]
