To celebrate the 35th anniversary of the release of Appetite for Destruction, The First 50 Gigs: Guns N’ Roses and the Making of Appetite for Destruction video podcast presented a photo exhibition of the photography featured in the show on July 21, 35 years to the date of the release of the seminal album at the Bourbon Room in Hollywood.
The event was hosted by Matt Pinfield who curated the music for the evening in addition to moderating the Q&A with photographers Marc Canter and Jack Lue and a few surprise special guests.
The video podcast The First 50 Gigs is the creation of Reckless Road: Guns N’ Roses and the Making of Appetite for Destruction authors Marc Canter and Jason Porath. The book, which was published in 2008 and won an IPPY for Pop Culture Book of the Year, was just the tip of the iceberg of an archive created by Marc Canter, photographer, music historian, and owner of the world-famous Canter’s Deli.
Canter captured the band’s formative years and the heyday of the Sunset Strip music scene. The project was designed as a gift to fans to unlock the stories behind the most famous songs from the ever-elusive band, in particular the younger fans, many of whom were not even born when Appetite came out.
The images and ephemera featured in the show were from the band’s formative pre-fame years leading into the release of Appetite for Destruction, which came out on July 21 1987. Photography from Marc Canter and Jack Lue included incredible never before seen photos that run the gamut from the very first show with the Appetite lineup, photography from famed LA rock haunts such as Madame Wong’s, Gazzarri’s, The Roxy, and the Troubadour, to photos from the shows where the band debuted songs such as “My Michelle” and “Rocket Queen” for the very first time.