Which two earlier bands' names were combined to form Guns N' Roses?

Guns N' Roses took its name by combining the names of L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. The merger occurred in Los Angeles in March 1985, creating the first incarnation of the band.

The two names reflected overlapping circles in the city’s developing hard-rock scene. Tracii Guns founded L.A. Guns, while Axl Rose, Izzy Stradlin, and Chris Weber were central to Hollywood Rose. After lineup changes and a reunion performance, Rose, Stradlin, Guns, drummer Rob Gardner, and bassist Ole Beich formed Guns N' Roses.

The original lineup did not last long. Duff McKagan replaced Beich, Slash replaced Tracii Guns, and Steven Adler replaced Gardner, producing the lineup most associated with the band’s first major successes. Poison, Faster Pussycat, and London were connected to the same Los Angeles rock ecosystem, which is why they can appear in related stories, but their names were not combined to create Guns N' Roses.