Guns N' Roses' return to the road setlist: some surprises, and an AC/DC cover

(Image credit: Miguel Fernandes/YouTube)

Guns N' Roses' current tour, which kicked off in 2020 and completed its most recent run of North American dates last October at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida, has resumed in Europe.

The first show of a 16-date trek through Europe took place at the 50,000-capacity Passeio Marítimo de Algés in Oeiras, Portugal, on Saturday, just a few minutes from downtown Lisbon, and the 27-song setlist threw up a few surprises.

When Axl fronted AC/DC after Brian Johnson was ordered to stop touring in 2016 due to hearing problems, his first show with the band was at Passeio Marítimo de Algés, and Guns N' Roses played Walk All Over You – from 1979's Highway To Hell – on his return to the venue.

Also appearing in the set were Reckless Life, which originally appeared on the band’s debut Live ?!*@ Like a Suicide EP and hasn't been played live since 1993, and a full-electric version of You’re Crazy, a song they've been performing acoustically since 1991.

Other covers versions that featured in the set were old favourites Live And Let Die (Wings) and Knockin' on Heaven's Door (Bob Dylan), as well as a version of The Stooges' I Wanna Be Your Dog featuring bassist Duff McKagan on lead vocals.

"New" Guns N' Roses songs Hard Skool and Absurd – reworkings of songs from the Chinese Democracy sessions that were officially released as singles in 2020 – were played back-to-back. Full setlist below.

“There is new material coming – everybody’s always asking,” Slash told Consequence of Sound in February. “I would imagine that there will be one or two songs that come out around the time that we hit the road in June.”

It's June. So keep your eyes peeled.

Guns N' Roses setlist

It's So Easy
Mr. Brownstone
Chinese Democracy
Slither
Double Talkin' Jive
Welcome To The Jungle
Better
Coma
Reckless Life
Estranged
Shadow Of Your Love
Walk All Over You
Live and Let Die
You Could Be Mine
Hard Skool
Absurd
Civil War
Sweet Child O' Mine
Rocket Queen
I Wanna Be Your Dog
November Rain
Knockin' on Heaven's Door
Nightrain

Encore
Patience
You're Crazy
Paradise City

Artists

Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 40 years in music industry, online for 27. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.