I’ve made a point of not listening to the various Guns N’ Roses tribute CDs that have surfaced over the years. I mean why would you want to mess with a superior product anyway? I mean look what happened when they tinkered with the formula for Coca-Cola. Can anyone say Coca-Cola Classic?

Still as the hype for the release of Chinese Democracy builds, at least for those of us who believe it will come out in our lifetimes, I found myself tempted to break my tribute album fast.

As luck would have it the fine folks at tributealbums.com have just unleashed Chinese Hypocrisy: N’ International Tribute to Guns N’ Roses. The question is can these Guns N’ Roses impersonators from all over pay proper respect to one of rocks greatest artists.

The fact is that despite a handful of noble and lovingly executed attempts I have to stand firm in my opinion that you just can’t top something that’s already sublime. The one standout track, mainly because it’s such an odd choice, is the cover of “Get in the Ring” by European Guns N’ Roses tribute band Dust N’ Bones.

The rest of the album plays it safe by sticking to the band's better known tunes with the exception of a version of “Move to the City” by Emerald Monkey. I personally would have liked to hear a few more obscure Guns N’ Roses tunes, like “Garden of Eden” or “Shotgun Blues” covered, as it would have made the disc a bit more appealing

For the most part the album is just a bunch of bands paying tribute to a great band and doesn’t really match the ferocity of the original, or current, version of Guns N’ Roses. It’s not that the bands lack the musical chops to pull it off, it’s just that Axl, Slash and the rest of the band truly had a unique chemistry that is impossible to duplicate with any authenticity.

I’m not saying these things as an insult, and even though I would probably buy an album of Axl Rose farting into a microphone I also think that Guns N’ Roses’ attempt at covering “Sympathy for the Devil” by The Rolling Stones (From the Interview With The Vampire movie soundtrack) is one of the biggest wastes of studio time on record. Not only because the band was falling apart when they recorded it but also because you can’t fuck with Mick and Keith.

Still, if you are a huge Guns N’ Roses fan, like myself, you may want to give this a listen. It will help you kill the time, and provide a decent fix, until the release of Chinese Democracy. You can find more info at tributealbums.com