Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine” Might be a Rip-Off of an Australian Rock Song

Ever heard of a band named Australian Crawl? Me neither, until today, when I read a post on Aussie blog MAX TV, which showcased how similar their song “Unpublished Critics” is to Guns N’ Roses’ “Sweet Child O’ Mine.” The former was released six years before the latter.

Here’s “Unpublished Critics” for those who’ve never heard it, followed by “Sweet Child O’ Mine” for those who’ve been living in a monastery the past two decades:

…holy crap! The chord progressions, the vocal rhythms, the extended note in the chorus, and even the guitar solo towards the end sound incredibly similar.

How did this not get noticed until recently? G’N’R are one of those bands who people are obsessed with to the point of madness (the editors of this blog included). Maybe it’s some Da Vinci Code shit, where a sect of Vunter Slaush disciples have been hiding this fact for fear it will destroy the foundations of their belief. I’ll let you know if top-hatted monks beat down my door later today.

As for Australian Crawl, singer James Reyne told The Daily Mail that he wouldn’t be pursuing the case:

‘I’m not about to take on the might of the Guns N’ Roses lawyers,’ he added.  

You can’t fault the guy for that. Given G’N’R’s history, any legal inquiries on Australian Crawl’s part would probably be responded to with an e-mail saying, “You sure you want to do this, guys?”