What’s going on my fellow rock n’ rollers
don’t forget to hit the bell notification
icon to be notified every time i put out a
new video on my channel. Motley Crue finished
off the 80’s in fine form with the hugely
successful record 1989's Dr. Feelgood. As
the 90s were about to start there was a lot
of eyes on the band. What would they do next?
Well the simple answer is implode. Stay tuned
to find out the full story.
After some time off, and a huge seismic shift
in rock music with alternative rock dethroning
hair metal, Motley Crue reassembled in February
of 1992 to work on their follow up to Dr.
Feelgood.
From the getgo singer Vince Neil wasn’t
clicking with his bandmates and On February
10, 1992 the band held a meeting to fire Neil.
3 days later the band released a statement
claiming he’d left because his hobby of
car racing had as they put it ‘become a
priority in his life.’ Bassist Nikki Sixx
would clarify the real reason Neil had left
the band claiming that his drinking was taking
it’s toll on the band saying. "Except for
Mick, we were all slipping off the wagon,
but Vince was the only one who was letting
it affect his work,". he was holding us back."
And Neil would appear on Dennis Miller’s
talk show and claim the whole incident was
a shock to his as you can see here.
Man I don’t know how the hell you guys are
going on without you. I dunno. Yeah it came
as a complete shock to me and just happened
a few days ago. Yeah just actually two days
after my birthday so it’s like happy birthday
Vince. Jesus. Well hey that’s ok. well i
don’t understand now what the did you all
come in at the same time so everybody has
an equal vote is that what it is. Yeah the
way he had the band is that everybody had
25% input in everything and so 75% voted me
out and i was the 25% see it’s weird for
little kids across America to hear business
considerations with Motley Crue cause you
know They think that you and Tommy hang off
the roofs at night. They are great guys and
they had to do what they felt they had to
do and um It seems risky to me though because
really you seem like really interwoven with
the fabric of the band. Do they have any idea
of who they are going to replace you with?
Not David Lee Roth for God’s sake. You never
know. You never know I heard they are auditioning
people right now. Well see. I don’t know.
I don’t know.
A year later neil talked to the LA Times and
shed some more light on why he left the band
citing creative differences. Neil claimed
he would’ve seen things through had he been
given a chance, but he wasn’t. revealing
to the Times
"We had been rehearsing for a few months but
we didn't do any recording," "It just wasn't
sounding good to me. I'm not a blues singer
and Motley is a rock band – not a blues
band. I think it's a stupid idea that will
alienate the fans. I would have tried the
blues thing and tried to put my own spin on
it, but I never got the chance." The album
is stupid. The keyboards you're putting on
the album make us sound like pussies."
Following his departure Neil was offered a
solo artist deal with elektra records, the
same label that motley crue was signed too,
but he wasn’t happy with the money they
offered. At the end of the day Neil would
sign a solo deal with Warner Brothers and
Neil at one point claimed to be offered a
chance to work with fellow musicians from
other groups and that opportunity inspired
his debut single for the 1992 film Encino
Man titled, "You're Invited But Your Friend
Can't Come ,"The track was co-written with
Damn Yankees members Jack Blades and Tommy
Shaw.
At the end of the day Neil would sign a solo
deal with Warner brothers
He would go on to tell the LA Times about
his new career change becoming a solo artist
saying "This is like starting a new career
– dealing with all those insecurities,"
But I think I can deal with them." He would
also address motley crue’s statement about
his departure stating "Despite what everybody
heard, it had nothing to do with me choosing
racing over music," Neil said. "That was the
announcement the band put out and that's all
some people ever heard."
And Neil would assemble a band that include
Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens and began
work on his debut record, 1993’s Exposed,
which had an impressive debut peaking at number
13 on the billboard album charts. To support
the record Neil would open for Van Halen and
Motley Crue seemed like a distant memory with
Neil telling the LA Times "I haven't talked
to those guys since it happened," I don't
really care if I talk to them again."
The remaining members meanwhile of MOtley
Crue would audition new singers including
a rumored try out with Skid Row frontman Sebastian
Bach. The band would recruit frontman John
Corabi, who fronted the band Scream. With
a new singer in tow they would hit the studio
and the end result would be their self titled
album coming out in 1994 which arrived half
a decade since their last release. The album
was the group’s first release since they
signed a massive 25 million dollar deal with
Elektra records.
With the musical landscaping having changed
so much since Dr. Fellgood their self titled
record failed to match sales expectations,
only achieving gold status, which is selling
under a million copies. The album disappointed
al ot of the group’s longtime fans due to
it’s heavier sound and the absence of Vince
Neil.
Neil meanwhile would release his follow up
record 1995’s . Carved in Stone, which failed
to match the success of his debut solo album
with the album bottoming out at No. 139 on
the billboard charts. With Neil and The Crue
unable to make match the success of their
past, it was only a matter of time before
the two parties reconnected. Vocalist John
Corabi was also tired of the constant comparisons.
Eventually the hate seemed to subside in 1996,
but the possibility of a reunion still seemed
unlikely as Nikki Sixx would tell Kerrang
magazine. "I’m not running around spitting
on pictures of Vince Neil. I’m done being
pissed off. He’s got to go on; we’ve got
to go on. The fans too," "I know if you’re
into a band it means something to you, and
until we have a quote-unquote ‘successful’
album like we had in the past, it will always
be looked on that that lineup was better"
he’d say
Sixx would also claim that following the disappointing
performance of their self titled record the
group was more motivated than ever to prove
this new lineup was better than the old.
he’d claim "We’re obsessed with making
this the most invigorating album Motley have
ever done. If it’s gonna be about sex, drugs
and rock ‘n’ roll, then let’s make it
the ultimate in decadence! Or if it’s gonna
be a love song, let’s break their hearts,"
"This album is really extreme!" Now unfortunately
Crue fans would never get to hear the band’s
follow up with Carabi as Vince Neil would
reunite with the band by 1997. The band’s
longtime manager Allen Kovac knew the band
stood a better chance of staying relevant
and making more money if Neil was brought
back into the fold so he hatched a plan with
Neil’s manager Bert Stein to have the parties
reconcile their differences. The resulting
album would be 1997’s generation swine,
which was widely panned by critics, while
fairing a bit better on the charts peaking
at number 4.The band however, would also run
into legal trouble as former singer john carabi
filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against
the band over unpaid royalties. He would allege
that he wrote up to 80% of the material on
the generation swine record but was only credited
for two songs. He also alleged that he was
in the band while neil was brought back into
the fold.
So why did Motley Crue really reunite with
Neil in 1997? Well Neil would reveal in an
interview with Time Magazine in 2010 that
for him it was a business decision to return
ot the band saying
"We're still family. We still, basically,
love each other. It was a business decision
for me,". "When I was – depending on how
you look at it – fired or I quit the band,
I was a part of Motley Crue Inc. And I chose
not to come back into that. I looked at myself
as a free agent on a football team. I didn't
have to be worried about any corporate decisions.
All I had to do was show up and sing” he’d
say
While the band failed to match the commercial
success of the 80’s with Neil’s return
in the years that followed they were still
a big draw on the touring scene. They were
supposed ot hit the road one last time this
past summer, but we all know why that never
happened. That does it for today’s video
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