Imagine if you will, a twelve year old Big$ wanders into his living room on a Friday night only to find it vacant of any adult supervision. Strategies begin to run through my mind: search for a scrambled channel?; see if the lady on "Dream On" is exposing anything worthwhile?; Falcon's Crest??? Even with those options at my disposal, my hand was inspired to move the knob on the ole cable box to "15" which was (and still is) MTV.
Now this was pre-"Teen Mom" MTV, so the odds were good that something of quality was about to beam through the old tube set. Even with this expectation, 1980's MTV outdid themselves. For on this evening, Guns and Roses - Live at the Ritz was being broadcast coast to coast. My mind was completely and utterly blown. Coming into my living room was a Scooby Doo sized sandwich of sweat, sex, drugs, suspenders, booze and screaming girls between two slabs of screeching vocals and killer riffs. On top of the sleazy pomp and circumstance, the songs were out of this world. The Appetite For Destruction tracklist is so strong that the mighty "Anything Goes" is often an afterthought. If you doubt the power of these songs, go listen to "Rocket Queen" right now and let it sink into your bloodstream. Your significant other will thank you.
Now the parents who so flippantly vacated the living room on this evening will spin tales of the glory of The Beatles on Ed Sullivan. I'm no Beatles guy, but I'm not gonna diminish the importance of that event just based on the fact that it may or may not have led to Black Sabbath. What I will say is that there were no neckties or holding hands in GNR's Live at the Ritz. Instead, what you see are the rock and roll visions prophesized by Chuck, Little Richard and Jerry Lee in living color.
This must be a 1st ballot Hall of Famer!
If you don't believe me, watch for yourself