Motley Crue

They've been widely successful, frequently controversial and extremely influential. They're one of the most celebrated American hard-rock bands of all-time, and they've constantly forged forward with new sounds, new looks and new attitudes.

They are a band that defines both musicianship and showmanship. A band that - despite being equally known for its well-chronicled escapades of sex, drugs, booze, fast cars, big stage shows, flashy videos and starlet wives and girlfriends - has always been centered first and foremost around the grinding sounds of rock 'n' roll.
They are Motley Crue.

And although sometimes championed by the press, radio and music television, they are - more than anything else - a band of the people. They are a band that's sold millions of albums and concert tickets, yet has always remained attached to the streets from which they arose nearly two decades ago.

The Crue's story began in Los Angeles in 1981, when bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, guitarist Mick Mars and vocalist Vince Neil recorded their debut LP, Too Fast For Love. Released independently - something not nearly as common then as it is today - the album quickly sold over 20,000 copies and earned the band a national recording contract with Elektra Records.

Only two years after the band's inception, a new star was clearly on the horizon. And The Crue, whose success soon surpassed even the bands they once emulated, were more than ready to give the skinny-tied, overly-synthesized rock charts a swift kick in the ass.

With the 1983 release of Shout at The Devil, the band reached and shocked a new, hungry national audience. Songs such as "Looks That Kill" and "Too Young To Fall In Love" helped to create the first MTV generation and a headline-grabbing tour showcased the band's outrageous live shows. Fire, smoke and volume continuously powered The Crue's concerts and by 1984 photos of Motley Crue plastered magazine covers coast to coast.

"It was time to put the pedal down a little harder, put some faster fuel in the tank, turn the amps up and really push the envelop,'' recalls Nikki Sixx. ``Even though 'Shout' took us above ground, we were still the cult powerhouse on the street.''

With one foot on the street and the other on the gas pedal, Motley Crue's fast-paced rise continued. The band's onslaught of arenas, TV and radio continued throughout the mid-80s, with albums such as "Theatre of Pain'' and "Girls, Girls, Girls'' riding high on the charts and tunes such as ``Smokin' In The Boys Room,'' ``Wild Side'' and ``Home Sweet Home'' saturating the MTV airwaves. And with the melodic, hard-rock movement of the '80s in full swing, The Crue were clearly among the leaders of the pack.