10 Rock Bands That Fell Apart At The Top Of Their Game

10. Guns N Roses

Since the hair metal movement's time in the sun had reached the end of its rope, it looked like Guns N Roses were about to usher in a whole new brand of rock and roll from California. Having the same upbringing that their glam peers had, there was something about songs like Sweet Child O Mine and Paradise City that felt like they were more street level than whatever audio sunshine that Warrant was coming out with. When the '90s rolled around, the band just got way too big way too fast.

Almost trying to outdo the magic that they had on Appetite for Destruction, the Use Your Illusion albums were a pretty dense experience, being a double release where they toyed with every type of grandiose style of music that they could get their hands on. While the actual sessions were grueling and cost them drummer Steven Adler, the road wasn't much better, with gigs frequently getting cancelled and Axl Rose becoming the diva of the road, either not bothering to turn up to gigs or cutting things short for no good reason.

By the time they had finished the tour, they had been around the world twice and were left to lick their wounds, with no one except Axl wanting to get to work. As sessions started for Chinese Democracy, one band member at a time left the group until Axl was the only one who still owned the rights to the name Guns N Roses. You can call this era of the band what you want, but it was basically a glorified Axl solo outfit for a few years.