Welcome to my web page for all the Mötley Crüe fans out there! I built this web page in 3 days and on August 12th, 2002, I uploaded it. And I've had to update a lot of it since then!

This page is dedicated to the band whom we have come to know and love very much, and all of my fellow Crueheads. Here, you will find everything from band bio's, all their music, fan and band pics, and links of other Cruehead pages. Have fun and enjoy the site!

SOSCinn

The Low Down on Mötley Crüe

With a gritty reputation that was arguably equaled only by Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe's infamous antics made them a force to be reckoned with in the '80s. As one of the first and most influential hair metal bands of the '80s, Mötley Crüe had a series of hit albums, the biggest and most noteworthy being 1989's Dr. Feelgood. The band continued to court controversy into the next decade, even when their recording career took a downturn through a series of well-publicized mishaps and run-ins with the law. Mötley Crüe's beginning can be traced back to 1981, when bassist Nikki Sixx (born Frank Ferrano) and drummer "Tommy Lee" Bass decided to leave the bands they were in at the time and pursue a new project together. "Vince Neil" Wharton was added as vocalist and Bob "Mick Mars" Deal was hired to play guitar. The band went through several name changes before Mars presented them with Mottley Krue, recalling a time when his previous band was described as a "motley looking crew." After agreeing on this name and altering the spelling somewhat, the newly formed group began to play at local clubs and soon became cult favorites, known for their unique stage theatrics.

The band soon met up with Allan Coffman, who financed their first album, Too Fast for Love, on their own small, independent Lethur Records label; the record sold a surprising 20,000 copies. After signing to Elektra Records, the band released Shout at the Devil in 1983, which featured the hit video "Looks That Kill." The record went platinum, but the band's success was temporarily brought to a halt when Neil was involved in a deadly automobile accident on August 12. Driving under the influence of alcohol, Neil crashed into another car, killing his good friend and passenger Nicholas Dingley of Hanoi Rocks; the other victims emerged with broken bones and brain damage. Neil was found guilty of vehicular manslaughter and driving while intoxicated, and was incarcerated for 30 days in 1985, in addition to performing community service and paying a large cash settlement. By the time Neil had been sentenced, however, the band's newest record, Theatre of Pain, had already been released and soared up the charts, making the band stars and producing their first Top 40 hit with a cover of Brownsville Station's "Smokin' in the Boys' Room."

After a short hiatus, the band regrouped with Neil to film a music video for "Home Sweet Home"; the first hit power ballad to be aired on MTV, it became their most requested music video for four months straight. A 44-minute home video cassette, Uncensored, was released in 1986, containing rare live footage and interviews; meanwhile, Lee married actress Heather Locklear. A year later, Mötley Crüe released their fourth album, Girls Girls Girls. The Uncensored video for the popular title track was immediately banned from television, not airing until a slightly cleaned-up version was released; the band's star continued to rise, as other songs like "Wild Side" became increasingly popular. The group finally embarked on their own tour, but the Japanese dates were canceled when Sixx suffered a drug overdose and nearly lost his life. Over the next year, Mötley Crüe remained out of the spotlight, as all four members sought out drug rehabilitation. Clean and sober, they returned in 1989 with Dr. Feelgood, which hit number one on the Billboard charts due to the strong singles "Kickstart My Heart," "Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)," "Without You," and the infamous title-track, which became their first Top Ten single. After another worldwide tour, they released a compilation album, Decade of Decadence, in 1991. The album opened at number two, and a home video of the same name was released shortly afterwards. The group created their own record label, Mötley Records, and signed a new contract with Elektra for $25 million. Unfortunately by this time, the music industry that made them famous was beginning to change, and the pressure to keep pace with the times began to take its toll on the band members' camaraderie. In 1992, sessions for Mötley Crüe's next album turned ugly, and Neil was fired and replaced with vocalist John Corabi, formerly of Union. The 1994 product was Mötley Crüe, which peaked at number seven in the U.S. and eventually went gold, but was ultimately a commercial disappointment, as was the supporting tour. In early 1997, it was confirmed that Corabi had been fired and that Neil was back for the much-hyped Generation Swine album (Corabi would later resurface alongside former Kiss guitarist Bruce Kulick in the group Union). Though Generation Swine opened at number four, it was sharply criticized and fell off the charts before long. In 1998, the band released Greatest Hits, but shortly after the supporting tour, Lee was arrested for spousal abuse against wife Pamela Anderson and sentenced to jail time for most of the year. Meanwhile, the group's deal with Elektra fell apart, and Mötley Records switched its affiliation to the Beyond label, with the band acquiring the rights to its back catalog. After numerous bitter encounters with Neil, Lee left the band in 1999 to form Methods of Mayhem, who released their self-titled debut late that year; he was replaced with Ozzy Osbourne drummer Randy Castillo. That year, the revamped Crüe issued remastered editions of all their studio albums (complete with bonus tracks) plus the rarities collection Supersonic and Demonic Relics. An album of all new material, New Tattoo, appeared in the summer of 2000. Also in 2000, Sixx found time to launch a side project, 58, and their debut, Diet for a New America. On the eve of the Crüe's tour in support of New Tattoo (a co-headlining jaunt with Megadeth, titled the Maximum Rock tour), Castillo was stricken with an undisclosed illness and was forced to sit out the tour and recuperate. Instead of canceling the tour, the Crüe temporarily enlisted Hole drummer (and lifelong Crüe fan) Samantha Maloney, playing throughout the summer. In May of 2001, the band issued an over-the-top, tell-all biography, {-The Dirt} (which even included input from former drummer Lee), that quickly became a best-seller. Around the same time, Neil embarked on a brief solo tour of U.S. clubs and was looking for a new solo record deal, but was adamant that he was still very much a member of the Crüe. Sixx used the downtime to write material for other bands, including Tantric, Meatloaf, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, and James Michael. Sadly, Castillo passed away in the spring of 2002, and the band announced their hiatus would probably last into the next year. Sixx also began talking about reuniting the original lineup for a farewell tour, but Tommy Lee quickly went to the press and told them that his relationship with Vince Neil was simply too poor for that to happen. Controversy surrounded the band again as former producer Tom Werman sued the band for unpaid royalties, Neil's former wife Heidi Mark publicly accused him of physical abuse, and Neil was kicked off a nationally syndicated radio show for being too drunk to maintain an interview. Tour drummer Samantha Maloney was also mixed up in things as Sixx decided to write a mean-spirited posting on his website in retaliation to the public acknowledgement of a feud between her and his wife due to his infidelity during their 2000 tour.

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This page was last updated on 01/06/07.