Guns N' Roses pays tribute to Glen Campbell

Credit: Mark Horton

Credit: Mark Horton

Guns N' Roses surprised its audience Wednesday night in Edmonton, Alberta, playing a faithful cover of Glen Campbell's "Wichita Lineman," Rolling Stone reported.

“We're going to play something we've never played before. It might not be your thing, but we're just trying to pay a tribute to someone,” Rose told the Canadian crowd. “And it's not what you think.”

Campbell died Aug. 8 after a long struggle with Alzheimer's disease. He was 81.

During its Not in This Lifetime reunion tour, Guns N’ Roses has played a cover of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun,” since the death of Chris Cornell in May. On Wednesday, the band added Campbell’s 1968 song as a tribute to the country singer who crossed over into the pop charts with No. 1 hits like “Rhinestone Cowboy in 1975 and “Southern Nights” two years later.

“For Glen," Rose said as the song ended.

"Wichita Lineman" was released as a single in October 1968, and Campbell's version reached No. 3 on the top-40 charts, staying in the top 100 for 15 weeks. The song was written by Jimmy Webb, who also wrote the title track for Campbell's final album, "Adios," a song that was a hit for Linda Ronstadt in 1990.

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