Velvet Revolver was a supergroup consisting largely of members of Guns N' Roses, but with Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots at the vocal helm. The band's first single, "Slither," made a decent splash, reaching #56 in 2004 and winning a Grammy for Hard Rock Performance. Hopes were high that the band had even better tricks up their talented sleeves, but those hopes were dashed when the follow-up single, "Fall To Pieces," stalled at #67 and became their final chart appearance. No further singles charted and the band's sophomore release, "Libertad," drew little interest. Weiland then left to return to STP. The aptly titled "The Last Fight" was the second single from "Libertad."
The original lineup of Guns N' Roses released one of the best hard rock records of all time, 1987's "Appetite for Destruction," which yielded three top 10 hits including the #1 smash "Sweet Child O' Mine." Everyone was eager to hear more, so the band rushed out 1988's "G N' R Lies," perhaps a bit prematurely. A mix of live cuts and new songs, it performed very well off the heels of "Appetite" and the terrific acoustic ballad, "Patience," which went to #4. Fans would have to be patient for the next Guns N' Roses release, a double-album called "Use Your Illusion," which arrived in 1991. The band grew by leaps and bounds but divided fans who wanted "Appetite II." The bevy of songs (29 tracks) on the "Use Your Illusion" records was a mix of angst-driven rock, power ballads, cover tunes, and some overly long experimental tracks. Nonetheless, the band scored some big ballad hits including "Don't Cry" (#10) and "November Rain" (#3). Their rock tracks fared less well. It's so easy (you see what I did there?) for a lot of good songs to get lost in the woods of a double-album. "Civil War" is one of them. An epic ballad at nearly 8 minutes, it is a fan favorite and among the better lyrics Rose has ever written, a modest redemption from the dreadful lyrics of "One In A Million" from "Lies." "Civil War" has the added distinction of being the last song original drummer Steven Adler played on. The clip at the beginning is from the movie Cool Hand Luke, and the song Axel is whistling is "When Johnny Comes Marching Home."
