Strictly Rock

  • Home
  • Bands
  • Videos
  • Store
  • Events
  • Unsigned Bands
  • Blog
  • Contact

Motley Crue

May 15, 2014 by strictlyrock Leave a Comment

Click on the image to buy this print

The band that would later become known as Motley Crue, officially formed on January 17th, 1981 in Los Angeles when drummer Tommy Lee and bassist Nikki Sixx started playing together. Guitarist Bob “Mick Mars” Deal soon joined Sixx and Lee, but this still left the group without a singer. After having seen vocalist Vince Neil perform with an other band, Mars suggest they recruit him. Lee had known Neil from high school, and with persistence, convinced him to join. The guys went about recording and releasing the single “Stick to Your Guns/Toast of the Town,” by forming their own record label, Leathur Records. On November 10th, 1981, the band released their debut album, “Too Fast for Love.” The record included songs such as “Live Wire,” and “Merry-Go-Round,” and sold an impressive 20,000 copies. Elektra Records took notice and signed the band the next year. Elektra reissued the album on August 20th 1982 and it eventually sold more than 1 million copies.

Click on the image to buy this T-shirt

Motley Crue hit the road with their “Cruesing Through Canada Tour ’82.” The tour was not financially successful, but due to numerous publicized incidents, such as Tommy Lee tossing a television set out of a hotel window, the band gained that “Rock Star” image that helped build some much needed hype. On May 29th 1983 the band played at the US Festival, which featured bands like The Clash, Ozzy Osbourne and U2 among others. The group played up the image of excess they had earned by wearing outlandish clothing, applying makeup and wearing high-heeled boots, ect. They also started using MTV to further promote themselves. On September 26th, 1983, they released “Shout at the Devil,” which peaked at the #17 spot on the charts. The album included a cover of The Beatles song “Helter Skelter.” The record went on to sell more than 4 million copies in the US, greatly increasing the band’s ever-growing fan base.

Click on the image to buy this photo

The high paced life of glitz and glam was not with out its consequences however. In 1984, Vince Neil was involved in a serious car accident while driving home. Although Neil lived to see another day, his passenger Nicholas Dingley wasn’t so lucky. Neil was charged with driving under the influence and vehicular manslaughter, spending only a short time in jail. The next year the band continued on, releasing “Theatre of Pain.” Once again the record was a success, climbing all the way to #6 on the charts and selling more than 4 million copies in the United States alone. Proving themselves hit makers once again, the band released “Girl, Girls, Girls” on May 15th 1987. The record produced the tracks “Wild Side,” “You’re All I Need,” and what is arguably their most well known song, “Girls, Girls, Girls,” which spawned an infamous music video that featured exotic dancer and all the debauchery fans had come to live vicariously through. This lifestyle was starting to take its toll though.

Click on the image to buy this T-shirt

On December 21st, 1987 bassist Nikki Sixx suffered a near fatal overdose of heroin. This prompted the band’s management to intervene which lead to Sixx, Lee, and Neil going into rehab. Mars also cleaned up his act and the guys returned, sober, to record and release what became their most successful and profitable album, “Dr. Feelgood,” on September 1st, 1989. The album sold more than 6 million copies in the US alone and became a #1 hit with help from songs like its title track “Dr. Feelgood,” and “Kick Start my Heart,” which was inspired by Sixx’s overdose. Sixx also kept a diary which later documented his experiences in the 2006 novel “The Heroin Diaries; A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rockstar.” The band released the fittingly titled compilation album “Decade of Decadence,” on October 14th, 1991. It was certified Double Platinum and placed #2 on the charts.

Click on the image to buy this canvas

Vince Neil parted ways with Motley Crue in February 1992, and was replaced by John Corabi. The new version of the band released the self-titled “Motley Crue,” on March 15th 1994. Although it did fairly well on the charts, it failed to achieve the success of their previous albums. By 1997, Neil had reunited with his former band mates and they released “Generation Swine,” which debuted at #4, but quickly lost steam. They released “Supersonic and Demonic Relics,” in 1999 and when their contract with Elektra expired the band started its own label, re releasing all of their previous material. Later that year drummer Tommy Lee decided to leave the band and was replaced by Randy Castillo. The band released “New Tattoo,” in 2000, which didn’t sell very well, and sadly in 2002, Randy Castillo succumbed to cancer, and died. Drummer Samantha Maloney filled in, but shortly afterwards the band went on hiatus. The original band reunited once again for a tour that kicked off in 2005. The band released “Red, White & Crue” that same year, and later headlined a tour with Aerosmith in 2006. The band’s latest release was “Saints of Los Angeles,” in 2008. The album’s title track became a playable download for the video game “Rock Band.” Motley Crue can currently be seen in concert at “Crue Fest 2” which is touring the United States.

Filed Under: Rock Bands

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Cart

T-shirts

View all Products in this Category
View more T-Shirts

100 Greatest Rock & Roll Bands

  1. The Beatles
  2. The Rolling Stones
  3. Led Zeppelin
  4. Jimi Hendrix
  5. Elvis Presley
  6. The Who
  7. U2
  8. Pink Floyd
  9. The Doors
  10. The Police
  11. Elton John
  12. Metallica
  13. AC/DC
  14. Van Halen
  15. Nirvana
  16. Guns N' Roses
  17. Santana
  18. The Allman Brothers Band
  19. Bon Jovi
  20. David Bowie
  21. Grateful Dead
  22. Rush
  23. Yes
  24. Black Sabbath
  25. Bob Dylan
  26. James Brown
  27. The Beach Boys
  28. Eric Clapton
  29. Fleetwood Mac
  30. The Eagles
  31. Bob Marley
  32. Van Morrison
  33. Bruce Springsteen
  34. The Clash
  35. Queen
  36. Janis Joplin
  37. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
  38. R.E.M.
  39. The Kinks
  40. Steely Dan
  41. Steve Miller Band
  42. Jethro Tull
  43. Tool
  44. The Scorpions
  45. Coldplay
  46. Stone Temple Pilots
  47. Rod Stewart
  48. Marilyn Manson
  49. Creedence Clearwater Revival
  50. KISS
  51. The Pretenders
  52. Green Day
  53. Aerosmith
  54. Tina Turner
  55. Pearl Jam
  56. Ted Nugent
  57. Pantera
  58. Motörhead
  59. Judas Priest
  60. ZZ Top
  61. Megadeth
  62. Motley Crue
  63. Alice Cooper
  64. Def Leppard
  65. Iron Maiden
  66. Billy Idol
  67. Journey
  68. Anthrax
  69. Rage Against the Machine
  70. Blue Oyster Cult
  71. Alice in Chains
  72. Genesis
  73. Red Hot Chili Peppers
  74. Chuck Berry
  75. Buddy Holly
  76. Little Richard
  77. Elvis Costello
  78. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
  79. Sex Pistols
  80. Cream
  81. Frank Zappa
  82. Talking Heads
  83. Stevie Ray Vaughan
  84. Billy Joel
  85. The Band
  86. Ramones
  87. Lynyrd Skynyrd
  88. Jerry Lee Lewis
  89. Doobie Brothers
  90. Foo Fighters
  91. The Cure
  92. Soundgarden
  93. Iggy Pop
  94. Peter Gabriel
  95. The Byrds
  96. Traffic
  97. Deep Purple
  98. Blondie
  99. Velvet Underground
  100. Heart

Home | Bands | Videos | Store | Events | Unsigned Bands | Blog | Contact

Copyright © 2023 · strictlyrock.com

Copyright © 2023 · Website Maintenance Services