Rock ‘n’ Roil: Debates on Who’s No. 1, Racism, Sexism and Criticism

Robert Hilburn’s posing of the question, “Who’s the greatest rock band in the world, the Rolling Stones or Guns N’ Roses?,” has got to rank among his most ludicrous efforts in a long career of confusing music criticism with boxing championships. How is anybody, let alone an allegedly qualified rock critic, supposed to take Guns N’ Roses that seriously? Merely based on the fact that 9 million people bought their first record? If that’s the only standard that matters, I guess McDonald’s must serve the greatest food in the world.

STEPHEN LONDON

Encino