Do rock comebacks ever produce new glories? Are the Rolling Stones anything more than a nostalgia act? Tonight, the Hammersmith Apollo in West London will attempt to answer the question by hosting rock’s biggest comeback in more than a decade — that of Guns N’ Roses and their tempestuous lead singer, the rebel-turned-recluse Axl Rose.

Back in the late Eighties, Guns N’ Roses were the world’s biggest rock band. With hits such as Sweet Child O’ Mine and Paradise City and an embassy-sized entourage, the band ruled over an anodyne pop landscape. Then the group imploded.

Rose, who kept the rights to the band’s name, has spent most of the past ten years hiring and firing new musicians in an attempt at a relaunch. A new album, Chinese Democracy, has never seen the light of day. Just as baffling has been his withdrawal from public life to become a recluse at his home in Malibu.

Rose’s upbringing contains several clues to his near-legendary bouts of stubbornness and rage. He grew up in a dysfunctional household in Indiana and has claimed that as a two-year-old he was molested by his stepfather. At 17 he ran away to Los Angeles, where he formed Guns N’ Roses.

While the group quickly scaled the charts with their debut album Appetite for Destruction, which sold more than 25 million copies, Rose has never managed to get over the trauma of his strict religious upbringing. His only serious attempt at a relationship, with the former model Stephanie Seymour, was also alleged to have foundered because of his anger.

Recently, though, just as it began to look as though China would get democracy before Rose got round to releasing his new album, the singer, now 44 and still a bachelor, resurfaced.

To mark the beginning of a world tour, he reappeared on stage at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, looking leaner than he has in recent years. He ran through all the old hits and introduced some new songs. Chinese Democracy, he has said, will finally see the light of day this autumn.

For anyone going to see the group tonight, though, a word of warning: Rose’s trademark rebellious streak remains. In New York he began each show two hours later than scheduled. And to top off his comeback, he celebrated in typical style — by getting into a celebrity fight with the designer Tommy Hilfiger.