It's roughly 15 minutes after 9:00 PM and I'm penning this entry from the office... I'm surrounded by a handful of co-workers who are all helping plug away on a project that has a looming deadline of June 16th.

Taking a small break from the grind to flex the left part of my brain for a little bit... I've opted to keep the Classic Rock Tune theme another day and selected Use Your Illusion I as my album of the day.

I've actually written about this at great length before - so I won't be delving to deep into reflections of the album. Below are a handful of observations I made while plugging away at some work this evening.

1.) Izzy Stradlin - is herby absolved of all sins and in my eyes he can do no wrong. In my opinion he's possibly the most important core GnR member. I just had a conversation with a Co-Worker about how I think Double Talkin' Jive is my favorite track from the double album... I kinda realized I meant that shortly after it came out of my mouth.

2.) Is there a contemporary "November Rain" out there? By that I mean a power ballad with soaring soundscapes and ridiculous guitar solos?

3.) Coma - I'm not sure why, but I fucking love this song. I'm tempted to leave the office in a few hours, visit a local bar and play this song 10 times on one of those digital jukeboxes and clear the entire place out because of my bizarre song selection. Have you ever bothered to read the lyrics to this song? There's a part at the end that I find incredibly rewarding... so rewarding that if I listen to this with headphones on, it kinda gives me goosebumps and the hairs on my arm goes nuts.

In the song - Axl has been zapped by those heart paddles a few times and he's not waking up. Slash is kinda phoning in a guitar solo before the song enters into it's last chapter and there's a lyrical reprise.

Drums begin to fill back in and they sorta mimic the sound of heart. The sound of 100 women begin to fill the ears... then the song comes back.

10:16 second mark

Live your life like it's a coma
Won't you tell me why we'd wanna?
With all the reasons you give it's
It's kinda hard to believe

But who am I to tell you, that I've seen
Any reason why you should stay?
Maybe we'd be better off without you, anyway

You got a one way ticket on your last chance ride
Gotta one way ticket to your suicide
Gotta one way ticket, and there's no way out alive

An all this crass communication
That has left you in the cold
Isn't much for consolation
When you feel so weak and old

But is home is where the heart is
Then there's stories to be told
No, you don't need a doctor
No one else can heal your soul

Got your mind in submission, got your life on the line
But nobody pulled the trigger, they just stepped aside
They be down by the water
While you watch 'em waving goodbye

They be callin' in the morning
They be hangin' on the phone
They be waiting for an answer
When you know nobody's home
When the bell's stopped ringing
It was nobody's fault, but your own

There were always ample warnings
There were always subtle signs
And you would have seen it comin'
But we gave you too much time

When you said that no one's listening
Why'd your best friend drop a dime
Sometimes we get so tired of waiting
For a way to spend our time

And it's so easy to be social
It's so easy to be cool
Yeah, it's easy to be hungry
When you ain't got shit to lose

And I wish that I could help you
With what you hope to find
But I'm still out here waiting
Watching reruns of my life

When you reach the point of breaking
Know it's gonna take some time
To heal the broken memories
That another man would need just to survive

Stand out Tracks

Artists: Guns N' Roses
Album: Use Your Illusion I
Producer: Mike Clink, GNR
Label: Geffen
Recorded: A&M Studios, Record Plant Studios, Studio 56, Image Recording, Conway Studios, Metalworks Recording Studios