On June 6, 1985, Axl Rose, Slash, Izzy Stradlin, Duff McKagan and Steven Adler performed for the first time as Guns N’ Roses, at the Troubadour in their hometown of Los Angeles. Immediately afterward, they embarked on an extremely ill-fated West Coast tour. Here’s how bad it got: Their car broke down in Fresno, so they hitchhiked for 40 hours — only to find out they’d be getting one-fifth of their promised paycheck for that show. Oh, and that the rest of the tour was canceled. But as bassist Duff McKagan explained in his autobiography, the incident galvanized the group: “Guns N’ Roses were no longer a band, but the band — our band. These are my fucking boys, they’re willing to fight through anything.”
Text and photo courtesy of Ultimate Rock
