1.Vince Neil finds a new purpose in rock
by Ben Liemer

Vince Neil strides into wood-paneled Studio D at A&M Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California. In another room, just down the hall, the music business' biggest stars once gathered for the historic recording of "We Are the World." Today, however, Vince is. simply taping radio station IDs for Motley Crue's current tour with band-mate Tommy Lee. Clad in a black sleeveless T-shirt that reads "Hedonism II-Negril, Jamaica" along with shorts, sunglasses and a baseball cap, the tanned, relaxed-looking singer could have wandered in off the beach. We head for a corner sound isolation booth, as Vince's walkie-talkie buzzes him. Tommy tests their mikes in the main room while Neil chats with comanager Doc McGhee. That conversation concluded, the blond frontman removes his shades and our series of Motley Crue interviews begins.

When you and Tommy were still cutting classes at Royal Oak High School, did you ever dream it would turn out this way?

Of course, it's always there, but for me it was like a pipe dream: "Yeah, man, we're gonna be rock & roll stars." To me, a rock star was playing the Starwood on a Saturday night - that was a rock star. Because the other people playing the [L.A.] Forum, Madison Square Garden, those weren't stars, those were gods. You couldn't play in a party band and then become a god - it was completely impossible. So to play at the cool club in Hollywood on a Saturday night or a weekend, that was a rock star. So we became gods. Hahaha.

Girls, Girls, Girls is an album and live show based on strip clubs. Do you go to places like the Body Shop [on Sunset Blvd. in L.A.] more when you're at home or on the road?

No way. Any night of the week you can see me at the Tropicana out here. I love that place. I hang out there. I used to go to the other ones, but the Tropicana has the best-looking girls in California.

A friend of ours from Atlanta told us that Tattletales was hot...

Oh, yeah. I was out there with Bon Jovi, who were opening up for 38 Special. See, I was bored again, I had nothing to do, so I said, "Hey Doc [McGhee-Bon Jovi's management as, well as the Crue's], you think I could go on the road with those guys for, a few days?" He goes, "Sure." So I went out there and sang with them.

Generally, how do you guys come up with album concepts? Through group meetings?

You know where this concept came up first? I swear to you this was even before we had [the title] Girls, Girls, Girls, this was in the middle of the Theatre of Pain tour. . . traveling somewhere in the Midwest. Everybody was rotted, just wasted on the bus. And you know how you start rappin', you get into these stupid things? We go, "What if for the next show we had this chick with her legs spread and we'll all come out the pussy? We'll all be dressed in white and we'll drop balloons with little things hangin' from them. At that time it was a fuckin' joke and we all just laughed about it.

This has been your longest break from touring since the band began in 1981. Aside from recording, what have you been up to?

Just traveling, going to Palm Springs, going to the Caribbean, playing golf. I was in two tournaments this month, the Rock 'N Golf and one that Night Ranger did [the B.R. Cohen Winery Second Annual Golf Tournament in Sonoma, CA].

These were benefits?

Well, uh, Rock 'N Golf was for the T.J. Martell Foundation [for cancer research]. And the one up North was for a hospital wing [Sonoma Valley Hospital]. And we've got our softball team together. We killed Fleetwood Mac in a game. We came out, we had the L.A. Lakers cheerleaders rooting for us. See, right after Rock 'N Golf was Rock 'N Softball. We put together our own team. [Our tour manager] Rich Fisher was the manager and coach. I played third base. Keni Richards from Autograph played second, Randy Rand played first base. In the seventh inning I split to give someone a chance to play - we were winning 15-5. And I'm not saying that this happened because I left, but they scored ten runs. (Laughs) Now who's on third? Not me, man. And then all of a sudden, the lights in the park went out. So the game never ended.

While we're on the subject of sports, how's your knee, the one you hurt waterskiing last tour?

Yeah, it's better now. Matter of fact, I'm going waterskiing this weekend. Last tour, I had to wear a brace underneath my chaps - that's why I never took my chaps off. Yeah, me and Tommy have been riding dirt bikes all the time. We're gonna do the cover of Dirtbike Magazine.

What music do you like to listen to at home?

Uh, the usual stuff - I'm a rock fan. AC/DC. . . I listened to Van Halen II today, the Judas Priest Turbo album, some older stuff. You know what I like? The fuckin' Georgia Satellites - they're great, and the band Tesla. I think they're hot and the new Whitesnake is pretty good.

Girls, Girls, Girls has the widest range of vocals you've done to date. Was this a real challenge for you?

Yeah, it definitely was. When we started the album, I didn't even hang around - I went to Palm Springs for a month and just hung out. Because I didn't want to get in everybody's hair... there's really nothing for me to do when we start an album, anyway. And the lyrics weren't completely done when I went in to sing. We'll get the melody line down right and then [we have to fit a different number of] syllables into each melody line. Nikki will rewrite the lyrics to it, but there's still all the phrasing you have to polish off for the album. So it was an extra challenge for me. [On Theatre of Pain] I knew the songs already; the songs were finished in rehearsals. [On Girls,] some songs went off right away. Others, like the ballad, that one was a little hard to get.

You're talking about "All I Need?"

Yeah, that one took me a little while. And "Dancing On Glass." This time we sat down and studied the phrasing. A lot of times Tommy would say, "Why don't you try this part with this drum thing?" And we'd do it and it would turn out great and we'd keep it. Whenever I finished a vocal I would have the other members listen to it. I'm always open to criticism because I don't hear certain things that other people hear.

Tommy was there most of the time?

Yeah. Tommy and Nikki hung around. I'm not a studio-type guy - Tommy and Nikki are. I go, "Alright, I'm done, I'm outta here." I love playing live - that's it for me. I feel too confined in the studio. When I'm working it's fine, but Tommy and Nikki will hang out until four or five in the morning.

They want to learn how to produce records?

Right, because they've both got studios in their houses.

Do you think they'll end up like the Stones' Jagger-Richards ("the Glimmer Twins") producing their own records?

No. They have that ambition, but not for Motley Crue. I'm sure they'll do outside things, either separately or together. But that's kind of the end of a band for me, when you let somebody take it over. Because it's always been the four of us making all the decisions.

But wouldn't you want to produce yourself instead of using an outside producer?

No, I think bands need input from an outside source. Like I said before, you don't hear a lot of things that somebody else might. That's where Tom Werman works great with us because we argue with him about everything. But there's a compromise and it always turns out great. I would never want us to produce our own records. There's always gotta be an objective view to it. Or we'd do it in three days and leave. Ha ha ha. Sing the whole album in an hour. "Okay, sounds good to me - I'm outta here."

How would you say your life has changed from the early days of Motley Crue - from the days before the accident?

(Clears his throat) I think I'm just wiser now. When you're a kid you get caught up in this whirlwind. (Growing excited) You go, "Fucking great! Give me that drug! Yeah, give me that drug, yeah, I'll take that one too! Fuck it, I don't care, I'll take it anyway. I'll eat it." Back then you don't realize you have a future. You live for the day, for the moment. Now, I live for the next tour, too. And the next album. This is my life, this is my career and I don't want it to end.

2. Nikki Sixx: The Crue's complex leader
by Ben Liemer

The driveway leading to Nikki Sixx's house in the hills above Los Angeles is steep. A sign greets casual visitors, "Warning: Armed Response." The ink black Corvette Nikki drives in the Uncensored video compilation sits next to a red Jeep Renegade, complete with padded rollbar. Inside the open garage are a customized Harley Davidson and a full Nautilus-type weight training center. A metal plaque by the doorbell reads, "Warning: Beware of Occupant." The door is wide open in anticipation. "Come on in," yells the Crue bassist from an adjoining room. Inside a cozy den complete with a bar, oriental rugs and antiques, Nikki is talking on the telephone. Only two sophisticated, miniaturized stacks of stereo and video components, all run by remote control, give any clue that a rock star lives here. There's not a stitch of modern art, chrome or formica to be found anywhere in this tastefully appointed hideaway - just a long row of gold and platinum album plaques adorning one wall of his living room. An acoustic stand-up bass leans on its side nearby, a birthday present from the band. With his affectionate golden retriever Whiskey by his side, the tanned lyricist settles onto a couch. His hair is a confusion of long black spikes.

Why did you choose the name Nikki Sixx?

You know how I came up with that? Here, let me show you. [Takes out his wallet.] You're not going to believe this, but it's from my driver's license, I swear. See? [Hands us his California photo driver's license bearing the name Nikki Sixx] The number there begins with N6. That's where I got the idea.

Many bands put out similar sounding follow-up albums. How did you avoid the temptation to do Theatre of Pain, Part II?

You've got to be able to look at yourself in the mirror in the morning, man. It's like looking at yourself and saying, "I just fucked like two million people." That's what you're doing. I can't live with that. We're not in this for the money because obviously we all have money [now]. So we're really only in it for the enjoyment of the music and that's the best part. It's pretty honest rock & roll.

The group always comes first, doesn't it? You've told us about ideas that you're planning that you haven't even told your management about yet...

They've been busy with other artists in the management company and now it's time for them to start doing things with us [now that the new album is done]. It's got to take a lot of pressure off them - they don't have to baby-sit us all the time. They used to. We're OK now; we used to be 24-hour mayhem. Now it's only after dusk.

Motley Crue's been together roughly six years. What are you most proud of as you look back?

That we do everything the way we want to do it. That's what I'm really most proud of. We've never prostituted ourselves for anybody or anything. We've never sold out, never did anything for the wrong reasons. And that's a good feeling. We can live with that one. I think kids really [appreciate that]. In fact, some kid said to me last night, "Man, I love you guys because no matter how much heat you get, you say, 'Fuck you' and do it your own way." I mean that's what it's all about, the kids, making them happy without slaving yourself off [selling yourself out]. [In the beginning], we were just on overdrive and we did it our way until we made it and we just kept on doin' it. And I don't think we know any other way. If you're doing obnoxious rock & roll and being successful, then why change? This is great!

But does it bother you always being singled out for criticism?

I think it's funny. I guess we get what we deserve, in a way. We've done some pretty looney tunes things in the past. And I guess we're still doin'em. Once, we were biting our bus driver at 80 miles an hour. I took a chomp out of his arm. [Editor's note: Tommy confirmed later that he was also covering the driver's eyes]. But we only bite people that we like - that's our way of showing affection. I haven't bit anybody in awhile. We have to admit it's been a couple of weeks. [But anyway], the bottom line is that the kids know what's goin' on. And if the newspapers don't get it, who gives a fuck? And this PMRC shit, whatever, who cares?

You've written many slice-of-life songs-numbers based on real events in your life or on things that you've read, say in a newspaper. Does it ever worry you that kids will imitate you?

I think a small group of them do [imitate our lookl, but in general, the people that appreciate the music aren't necessarily just kids that dress up and stand around and pretend. You know, poseur types. I think most of the kids appreciate the band for what we are and they've got their own lives. I mean, you go to L.A. and you get all the poseurs and you come to New York and you've got 20 guys here and 20 guys there. But the bottom line is you sell three million records, there's a lot... 99 percent of that is just a lot of working class kids. I don't think we appeal to college kids so much as we appeal to kids that are just turning 16 - maybe there's some younger ones - but 16 to 25 that are just going through life, going through changes. We've got kids in Oklahoma and Iowa and the Midwest and all over the world. It's not just a bunch of kids with haystack hairdos.

How is life different for a successful rocker that grew up on the streets with, well, almost nothing?

We all met up on the street. So we cut our teeth on the street itself. With the punk rock movement [in L.A. in 1981] it was like all these poseurs and we were the only ones being fuckin' street punks. Everyone was going around, "We can't relate to it." And everyone thought that that was intimidating. And we were way beyond that. We were the really hard asses years ago. But you grow a bit happier with yourself and obviously success means that you don't have to deal with a lot of the raunchier sides. I still find myself going back to the same places, though. I'm obviously familiar, I feel comfortable, in a very expensive high class restaurant wearin' a blown-out silk suit or something. But then, I get on my beat up pants and biker boots and jump on my Harley and go down to the local club and grab a beer with the dudes. It's fun, you get to do everything. That's the positive thing about it.

In past interviews you've mentioned that you admire people like the Rolling Stones and David Bowie for their longevity, their 20-year careers. So far, Motley Crue has survived. You've proven those who said you would self-destruct wrong...

We've got nothin' but time ahead of us. We're not goin' anywhere. We'll stick around just to piss people off. (Laughing) Even if we're still not makin' records, we'll still make appearances just to bum out people. [Adopts a complaining tone] "Oh God, they've got to come back to town?"

3. Mick Mars: Inside Motley's mystery man
by Ben Liemer

NO, the rumors that Mick Mars comes from Transylvania and is 147 years old are not true. It is true that Mars is rarely seen out in mid-day Los Angeles sunlight, being a homebody who prefers the quiet of Marina Del Rey and the evening hours. And so we find ourselves sitting in the front reception area of A&M Studios, talking to the elusive guitarist via telephone. Just as the conversation is to begin, Sammy Hagar strolls by, hair pulled back in a pony tail. In the nearby studio, he and Edward Van Halen break from recording Hagar's new solo LP. With the sound of their ping pong game in the background, the mysterious Mr. Mars revealed the following secrets.

Your sound is completely different from the California whammybar-speed-demon guitarists. Many fans seem to appreciate a good solo that works within a good song rather than a song that is really one long solo. How do you feel about this?

That's exactly the point I'm trying to get across on this album - that less is more. As we've discussed before, it's kind of like total burnout [on the rock scene today] - every guitar player sounds exactly the same. I want to be totally different, whether it means sacrificing the speed or whatever. You know, playing with more taste. I think that is probably gonna be the next thing. Hopefully.

On songs like Theatre of Pain's "City Boy Blues" and Girls, Girls, Girls' "Sumthin' For Nuthin'," you've been playing more and more slide guitar, which few hard rock guitarists are doing presently. Is slide guitar playing a lost art?

I don't know. Maybe it is, but I'd like to rediscover it and bring it out again because it is more refreshing than hearing multiple scales and everyone sounding the same.

Do you think today's guitarists are all technique and no feeling?

Yeah. A lot of them lack emotion and feeling. Steve Vai is an example of a great player and artist. He does everything well and he has feel too. He's got every base covered.

Why did you choose Mars as your new last name when you joined Motley Crue?

Um, it's the angry red planet. I don't know - the [two] names went well together. It's like, rebellious. Mars is the god of war.

Have you ever written any whole songs - at least musically, if not with words - that you intended for the band?

Yeah. I have a song that I've just written. It's not on any album yet. I took it over to NIkki's the other day and he thought it was great. There's no name for it yet, I just call it "The Fake Song," because I haven't got any lyrics for it. You know, I've got quite a bit [of material]... I've got an in-house recorder, a little eight-track Tascam and I have four tapes full of ideas for songs. Usually what I'll do is, I'll take Nikki a cassette - a basic drums, bass, guitar and all that, but no lyrics. And if we hear a good idea, like with "Girls," that riff in there... I showed it to him and he said, "Yeah, that's a good one." Then everyone wrote and put their two cents in.

So you're not always sitting back, waiting for Nikki to come up with an initial spark for the band?

No, no. By no means. I don't think any of us ever do that. We're always trying to come up with new ideas. That's a heavy load for just one person - writing all the songs and everyone else waiting and depending on him. Nikki will have an idea for a song and I'll have an idea and the two parts will mesh. So we can write a song. Or Tommy will have an idea. Works out pretty well that way.

What, in your opinion, is new about this album?

I think on Theatre of Pain, on "City Boy Blues," that song was more blues-oriented, more like good-time, have-fun rock & roll stuff like old Aerosmith. That was a new direction. So that's what I'd say is new about this album-a direction that's kind of blues-flavored, but [still] rock.

Are you a different musician today than you were when Motley Crue started?

I think the music we're writing and playing now is more the stuff I was raised on. The blues-oriented players like Paul Butterfield, Michael Bloomfield, some of the older blues guys.

So you feel more comfortable with the direction the band is evolving in? You feel better integrated into the band than ever before?

Oh yeah. Much more of the real way I play, as opposed to flyin' all over the guitar neck. I think that [style's] been going on like five or six years - it's time for a change. I mean, Motorhead - those guys are great, they'll always be around - but with the L.A. bands, I think it's time for something different.