Even the bands with the most volatile breakups and lineups find a reason to get back together eventually. Usually that reason involves the piles of money that can be made by getting the old band back together. In that spirit, Stereogum announces today that Guns N’ Roses will embark on another North American tour to follow up 2016’s “Not In This Lifetime” jaunt in order to coast on the evergreen wave of nostalgia. Hey, it worked for the Sex Pistols’ 1996 “Filthy Lucre” Tour and The Eagles’ “Hell Freezes Over” tour in 1994. “Not In This Lifetime” reunited original members Axl Rose, Slash, and Duff McKagan for the first time in about 20 years, keeping with the stated tour theme of “there’s no way this tour is happening even as it’s actually happening.”
From the looks of things everyone survived that effort and are (probably) still on speaking terms, despite a few rusty errors like starting 15 minutes early and getting the name of the city wrong during a show. This current tour takes advantage of recent headlining festival appearances—such as Austin City Limits and New Orleans Voodoo Festival—and keeps the band solidly on the western side of North America with the lineup of Rose, Slash, McKagan, keyboardist Dizzy Reed, guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer, and keyboardist Melissa Reese. While guitarist Izzy Stradlin from the original lineup had made some guest appearances with the band after GNR’s induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2012, he declined to get in on the full reunion action, claiming to Loudwire that the band “didn’t want to split the loot equally.”
If you want to plunk down your hard-earned cashed to see (nearly) everyone else, dates are below. Recent set lists reveal that GNR is wisely skewing toward its blockbuster hits but is also including some fun covers, like The Who’s “The Seeker” and Jimmy Webb’s “Wichita Lineman.” It looks like the showstopping closer is one of the band’s biggest hits: “Paradise City,” naturally.
Guns N’ Roses Tour Dates
9/25—Spectrum Center—Charlotte, North Carolina
9/28—Louder Than Life Festival—Louisville, Kentucky
10/1—VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena—Jacksonville, Florida
10/4—Austin City Limits—Austin, Texas
10/7—INTRUST Bank Arena—Wichita, Kansas
10/11—Austin City Limits—Austin, Texas
10/13—Exit 111 Festival—Manchester, Tennessee
10/15—Pinnacle Bank Arena—Lincoln, Nebraska
10/18—Estadio Jalisco—Guadalajara, Mexico
10/20—Estadio Caliente—Tijuana, Mexico
10/23—Chesapeake Energy Arena—Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
10/25—Voodoo Festival—New Orleans, Louisiana
10/29—Vivint Smart Home Arena—Salt Lake City, Utah
11/1 and 11/2—The Colosseum At Caesars Palace—Las Vegas, Nevada