‘Appetite For Destruction’ Album Artwork Designer Dies
Billy White Jr., the artist behind the cross logo featured on the cover of Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite For Destruction, has died. Slash confirmed White Jr.’s death in a post on…
Billy White Jr., the artist behind the cross logo featured on the cover of Guns N' Roses' Appetite For Destruction, has died.
Slash confirmed White Jr.'s death in a post on Instagram. The guitarist wrote, "RIP #BillyWhiteJr og designer of GNR cross logo & long time friend of the band. You will be missed." GN'R bassist Duff McKagan wrote in the comments reacting to the news, "Ah...sh*t!"
White Jr.'s cause of death is currently unknown.
The iconic GN'R cross logo has been featured on every imaginable merch item from the band. Currently, at the Guns N' Roses official online shop, the logo is on a cooler, a beach towel and a Zippo lighter.
In a 2016 interview, White Jr. explained his cousin connected him with Axl Rose. At the time, he was an art student in Long Beach, Calif. Rose had seen White Jr.'s work and asked if he could sketch a design for a tattoo he wanted to get. That design ended up being the iconic cross featuring the five skulls of the GN'R band members.
Of course, the skull cross wasn't the original artwork for Appetite. The original artwork was a graphic painting by Robert Williams titled "Appetite for Destruction." As a result of it impacting sales, the artwork was changed to the skull cross.
Appetite for Destruction became the biggest-selling debut album of all time. Keep scrolling to learn more about this classic album.
BY THE NUMBERS: Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Appetite For Destruction’
Guns N' Roses' game-changing Appetite For Destruction was released on July 21, 1987. When you're the best-selling debut album of all time, your stats tend to be pretty impressive.
Top to bottom, there's not a filler track in the bunch. Even three decades on, it sounds as vicious as ever. Here's Appetite "By The Numbers."
12
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesNumber of tracks on 'Appetite For Destruction.' 1. “Welcome to the Jungle” 2. “It’s So Easy” 3. “Nightrain” 4. “Out ta Get Me” 5. “Mr. Brownstone” 6. “Paradise City” 7. “My Michelle” 8. “Think About You” 9. “Sweet Child o’ Mine” 10. “You’re Crazy” 11. “Anything Goes” 12. “Rocket Queen”
1
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesHighest Billboard 200 Album Chart Position
173
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesNumber of weeks on the Billboard 200 Album Chart
3
A.PAES/ShutterstockNumber of singles that made the Billboard Hot 100: “Welcome to the Jungle” (Number 7), “Sweet Child o’ Mine” (Number 1) and “Paradise City” (Number 5.)
27
Antonio Scorza/ShutterstockRanking On 'Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Albums of the 80s' list.
62
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesRanking On 'Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time' list.
18 million
A.PAES/ShutterstockNumber of copies of 'Appetite For Destruction' sold in the United States.
30 million
UMGNumber of copies of 'Appetite For Destruction' sold worldwide.
