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When [[Tracii Guns]] and Robbie Gardner could not attend the first Guns N' Roses show in Seattle, Rose called guitarist [[Slash_(musician)|Slash]] and drummer [[Steven Adler]], whom he had met recently, and asked if they would join the band on stage for the show. The two agreed and the band's most famous line-up was finalized. On the way back to Los Angeles, the five members wrote the lyrics for the song "[[Welcome to the Jungle]]", which eventually became their signature song.
The band released a self-produced [[extended play|EP]], ''[[Live Like a Suicide (album)|Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide]]'', in
The band released a self-produced [[extended play|EP]], ''[[Live Like a Suicide (album)|Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide]]'', in 1986. Copies of the EP reached [[Geffen Records]] executives who soon signed the band. ''[[Appetite for Destruction]]'', GNR's debut album, was released on [[August 21]], [[1987]]. The album sold 20 million copies and hit #1 on the charts. The album included the songs "Welcome to the Jungle", "[[Sweet Child O' Mine]]" and "[[Paradise City]]", all of which were top 10 singles on the [[Billboard magazine|Billboard]] charts. [[As of 2005]], ''Appetite For Destruction'' remains the best-selling debut album of all time.
The band began opening shows for major bands in the rock industry, but as ''Appetite for Destruction'''s sales began to rise, a world tour in support of the album was scheduled. Guns N' Roses traveled all across United States, and in the spring of 1988, they were invited to co-headline the notorious [[Monsters of Rock]] Festival in [[Europe]]. The band shared the stage with legendary groups like [[Iron Maiden]], [[KISS]] and [[Judas Priest]]. However, the behavior of the members of GN'R was gathering attention from the media. McKagan, Slash and Adler were constantly seen on stage under the influence of [[alcohol]] or [[drugs]]. Members of the crew at the time even stated that Slash had to be carried on to the stage by a group of people and that he often passed out after the concerts ended. A tragic event occurred during the Monsters of Rock concert in the [[UK]], when two fans were accidentally killed when the crowd present at the concert began jumping and moving forward at the moment that the Guns N' Roses' show started. The media blamed the deaths of the fans on the band, even though they were unaware of the incident until after the show ended. All these events during the ''Appetite for Destruction'' tour earned the group the title of "the most dangerous band in the world".
Guns N' Roses' next release was the acoustic CD ''[[G N' R Lies (album)|G N' R Lies]]'' in 1988, which hit #2 on the <!--Billboard?--> music charts. The song "One In A Million", which used the words "[[nigger (word)|niggers]]" and "[[faggot (slang)|faggots]]", led to controversy that accused the band (or Axl) of [[racism]] and [[homophobia]], which Axl denied, saying his (then) lead guitarist was half black and that he was a big fan of homosexual singers such as [[Freddie Mercury]] and [[Elton John]].
The song "Welcome to the Jungle" was included on the soundtrack of the [[Dirty Harry]] movie ''[[The Dead Pool]]'', which led to a couple of seconds of screen time for the band.
In 1989, Guns N' Roses were presented with an [[American Music Award]] for favorite Pop/Rock single for "Sweet Child O' Mine". At the televised annual award show in 1989, Duff McKagan and Slash appeared intoxicated and used strong language while accepting the award for Best Heavy Metal Album for ''Appetite For Destruction'', and Best Heavy Metal Song for "Paradise City". Because of the incident, subsequent American Music Award shows have been broadcast using a five second delay. <!--it's not clear, did they win three awards in this year, (for SCOM, AFD, and PC?) on the same television program?-->
Shortly after the release of ''Lies'', drummer Steve Adler was dismissed from the band, reportedly due to his unwillingness to address his [[heroin addiction]]. Other members took further steps to deal with their addictions after Rose threatened to end the band if they continued with their heavy drug abuse. He also spoke up about them during an opening set for the [[Rolling Stones]] in 1989 saying that "if some members don't stop dancing with Mr. Browstone, Guns N' Roses will end." "[[Mr. Brownstone]]" is a common nickname for [[heroin]] as well as a song on ''Appetite for Destruction''.
=== The ''Use Your Illusion'' Tour (1991–1993) ===
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