IF SIXX WAS 9

A GUITAR-CENTRIC LOOK BACK AT MÖTLEY CRÜE’S NINE STUDIO ALBUMS

BY ANDREW DALY

IT’S EASY TO take Mötley Crüe for granted. But if we step back from the recent drama surrounding the band and instead focus on the music they’ve created over the last 40-plus years, surely we’ll be reminded that their influence over rock and metal is undeniable. And so, to turn the attention back to the music we’ve all come to know and love, we present a play-by-play guide to all nine Mötley Crüe studio outings.

Too Fast for Love (1981)

If you didn’t grow up with it, or if you have an aversion to leather, the significance of Mötley’s debut might be lost on you. Sure, it’s a little bit wild and a whole lot sleazy, but the fact remains: Mötley changed the game with Too Fast for Love. Remember, this record came out before “hair metal” was a thing. So in retrospect, a track like “Live Wire,” with its crunchy riffs and frenetic solo, was a total outlier. And who could forget other stunners like “Piece of Your Action” and “Too Fast for Love,” which all but cemented Mötley Crüe as kings of the Sunset Strip?

Download: “Live Wire”

Shout at the Devil (1983)

Following up a debut like Too Fast for Love couldn’t have been easy. But follow it up they did with Shout at the Devil, which clocks in as one of the group’s finest. Some bands would have looked at the raw nature of an album like Too Fast for Love and seen it as a detriment. But not Mötley. Instead, the band seemingly leaned into that sound, further driving home the point that as far as hair metal goes, they were not to be messed with. Of course, songs like “Shout at the Devil,” featuring gargantuan power chords draped in echo-laden effects, only aided that narrative. As did the equally abrasive and utterly ear-rupturing “Looks That Kill.”

Download: “Shout at the Devil”

Theatre of Pain (1985)

Say what you will about the Crüe regarding their sporadic latter-day output, but if we dial back to the Eighties, they were nothing short of prolific. And it’s a good thing, considering the mounting success of each successive release. Want proof? Look to Theatre of Pain, a genre staple that rocketed out of the gate, careening up the Billboard charts and landing at Number 6. Oh, and by the way — the album went quadruple platinum. Not too shabby, eh? Theatre of Pain also signaled a shift toward a slightly more commercial sound, as evidenced by songs like the quintessential power ballad “Home Sweet Home,” featuring one of Mick Mars’ finest and most bluesy solos. And their cover of Brownsville Station’s “Smokin’ in the Boys Room” finds Mars owning the track like the Strat-toting boss he is.

Download: “Home Sweet Home”

Girls, Girls, Girls (1987)

The skinny on Girls, Girls, Girls has long been that it’s Mötley Crüe’s “blues rock album.” And while that’s debatable, what’s not is the fact that Girls, Girls, Girls managed to find a way to better its predecessor, ascending to Number 2 on the Billboard charts. It might have reached Number 1 had Whitney Houston not thwarted Mötley’s efforts with her own Eighties classic, Whitney. Regardless, we suppose there are blues touches to be found here, as Mars has often made it clear he admires those players. But make no mistake — Girls, Girls, Girls, and its hit single, “Wild Side,” is nothing short of a period-correct hair metal buffet that Mars owns with some of the catchiest and cleanest fretwork you’ll hear within the genre.

Download: “Wild Side”

Dr. Feelgood (1989)

Considered Mötley’s last “classic era” record, Dr. Feelgood is also one of Mötley’s finest from a guitar-related perspective. Of Dr. Feelgood’s 11 tracks, Mars chimed in with eight songwriting credits. And with that prolific burst came bundles of slick riffage and some utterly sexy solos. The wailing opener of “Kickstart My Heart” is one we all know and love, as is the good-time boogie nature of songs like “Rattlesnake Shake” and “Same ’Ol Situation (S.O.S.).” And, of course, the title track features a riff/ solo combination that could only have been extracted from an over-the-top glam metal record. So there’s a solid case to be made that Dr. Feelgood is Mötley’s finest hour. But it’s bittersweet, as Vince Neil would split the scene shortly after.

Download: “Same ‘Ol Situation (S.O.S.)”

Mötley Crüe (1994)

When Mötley Crüe entered the studio in ’92 to work on its follow-up to Dr. Feelgood, all was seemingly well. But before long Sixx, Lee and Mars fell out with Neil, leading to him being fired or quitting. And sure, they needed a singer, but hiring John Corabi, a very different animal than Neil, was unexpected. What also was unexpected was Mötley proceeding to unleash their version of a grunge album. But then again, when in Rome… Still, despite it being an outlier amongst an otherwise campy discography, Mötley Crüe remains a high point. Corabi has long been a capable riffsmith and rhythm player, and his presence seemed to open Mars up. That, along with a renewed approach, leaves tracks like “Misunderstood” as memorable as it is aptly titled.

Download: “Hooligan’s Holiday”

Generation Swine (1998)

A reunion with Vince Neil was inevitable. Mötley (and their fans) just weren’t down with Corabi’s brand of alt meets metal. And that reunion resulted in 1998’s Generation Swine, aka Mötley’s “reunion album.” Interestingly, even though Neil was back in the fold, some of Corabi’s cuts remained. And without a doubt, the alternative metal vibes still run deep throughout. But while songs like “Afraid” and “Beauty” are filled with fine riffs and solos, there’s no denying something is missing. And that checks out given Mars’ recent revelation during an explosive interview with Rolling Stone that he was “squeezed out of the decision making process” for Generation Swine. He continued, “I don’t think there’s one note that I played. They didn’t want my guitar to sound like a guitar, basically. They wanted it to sound like a synthesizer. I felt so useless. I’d do a part, they’d erase it, and somebody else would come in and play.”

Download: “Afraid”

New Tattoo (2000)

Interestingly, the Crüe titled this record New Tattoo, even though old themes are prevalent. But we suppose that was the idea! To that end, Mötley dropped the doomy, gloomy, alt-metal vibes for said album in favor of riffage, soloage and vibe-age akin to its Eighties heyday. Oh, and of note — Tommy Lee is nowhere to be found here as he picked up and left the band just after they’d made nice with Vince Neil. Ouch. From a guitar standpoint, whoever handled the duties featured a hyperdialed-in approach that screams, “We love the Eighties!” across tracks like “Hell on High Heels” and “New Tattoo.” But if Mars is to be believed, it wasn’t him. In the previously mentioned Rolling Stone Q&A, Mars says he “didn’t write any of those songs as I wasn’t invited,” adding, “I think I got one lick on that album.” But if you ask Sixx, his version is that, “Mick played lead guitar, rhythm guitar and any other guitar that’s on that record.”

Download: “Hell on High Heels”

Saints of Los Angeles (2008)

The years it took to release Saints of Los Angeles was worth it as the Crüe crafted its most “Motley-sounding” album since 1989. After years of upheaval, a once-again reunited Sixx, Lee, Neil and Mars made what should probably be considered the truest spiritual follow-up to Dr. Feelgood. That’s not to say Saints of Los Angeles is as “good” as Dr. Feelgood. But there’s no denying that the title track, along with “Face Down in the Dirt” and “This Ain’t a Love Song,” conjures those ghosts damn well. And that’s largely due to Mars’ ability to capably pair massive hooks and catchy rhythms alongside Mötley’s patented gang vocals and sleazy imagery. But it’s worth noting that he had some help in the form of former Guns N’ Roses man D.J. Ashba. With Mars reportedly kinda, sorta agreeing with Sixx’s assertion that, “Mick was struggling to play his parts, so there’s a mixture of D.J. and Mick, and we would always make Mick the center of focus, unless, of course, he couldn’t play his parts, or remember his parts.”

Download: “Saints of Los Angeles”