Axl Rose revealed in the 1993 November Rain: Makin' F@*!ing Videos Tommy Lee inspired the hit song " November Rain ".
“Tommy Lee was a huge influence on the song. The first time I watched the video for ' Home Sweet Home ,' when I saw the piano part, I realized I could take what I knew how to do on the piano and turn it into something simple, but very serious. I think the part where he plays the piano in 'Home Sweet Home' is beautiful; it's very simple, but it's done the right way. That's the approach I took. That's what got me started. I saw that clip, then I turned off the TV and started writing 'November Rain,'” said the Guns N' Roses (via Loudwire ).
The track featured on the album Use Your Illusion I (1991) also pushed Axl out of his comfort zone. “It was crazy to be impressed by all these new sounds and to work with them. I'm in a rock band where you just work with guitars, drums, vocals and bass. But working with string instruments, flugelhorn and bells was almost magical.”
Mötley Crüe 's drummer , however, wasn't the only influence on the classic song. Matt Sorum , former Guns N' Roses drummer, has commented that the composition was also inspired by Elton John : “Axl and I were sitting on the floor listening to ' Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me ', as he was a big Elton fan. We were eating Russian caviar, having a few shots of vodka, and then came the moment for the drums to come in. Axl says, 'I want you to do something like this in 'November Rain'” (via Igor Miranda ).
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