If you
think Motley Crue's best songs are mostly devoted to sex, drugs and rock and
roll, well … actually, you're pretty much right. The group are almost as famous
for their wild offstage antics as they are for their music, making headlines
for sex tapes, divorces and various arrests on a regular basis. Their songs are
a musical chronology of their debauchery, but that's not to say the guys don't
have a more sensitive side — as you'll see in our list of the Top 10 Motley
Crue Songs.
10
'Live Wire'
From: 'Too
Fast for Love' (1981)
Motley Crue
made their debut with 'Live Wire,' the first single from the group's
independent debut album 'Too Fast for Love.' Musically the song is an
introduction to the straightforward riffing that characterized early Crue,
earning enough attention that the group got signed to Elektra — despite some
detractors who felt the song borrowed too much from Girlschool's 'Yeah Right.'
9
'Looks That
Kill'
From:
'Shout at the Devil' (1983)
'Looks That
Kill' was the shot heard 'round the world for the '80s L.A. glam metal scene,
marrying an aggressive, heavy riff and lyric with a visual image that seemed
both feminine and masculine all
at once and landing in our list of the Top 10
Motley Crue Songs. The video gave Motley Crue their first mainstream MTV
exposure, while the track provided a classic Mick Mars guitar solo. A longtime
fan favorite, 'Looks That Kill' has become a staple of the group's live shows.
8
'Same Ol'
Situation (S.O.S.)'
From: 'Dr.
Feelgood' (1989)
In an
interesting lyrical twist, the fifth single from 'Dr. Feelgood' tells the
touching story of boy meets girl meets girl, with the two starry-eyed women
destined to be together in the end. “Introduced me to her lover in a cellophane
dress / Then they bid me a sweet farewell / Last time I saw them they were
kissing so softly / To the sound of wedding bells,” Vince Neil sings over a
funk-rock backing track.
7
'Shout at
the Devil'
From:
'Shout at the Devil' (1983)
Motley
Crue's second single was another heavy, riff-driven rocker that resulted in the
group being accused of Satanism. The track is dominated by a dark, aggressive
tone and arguably isn't appropriate fare for church, but the lyric doesn't
exactly seem to encourage worshiping evil, instead urging listeners, “But in
the seasons of wither, we'll stand and deliver / Be strong and laugh and shout
at the devil.”
Hear 'Shout
at the Devil'
6
'Don't Go
Away Mad (Just Go Away)'
From: 'Dr.
Feelgood' (1989)
Motley Crue
demonstrated a step forward with the somewhat more mature lyrical perspective
of 'Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away),' a wryly sarcastic relationship-ending
song inspired by a line Nikki Sixx saw in a movie. Musically the track also
shows the Crue moving forward, superimposing acoustic guitar picking over
electric power chords and featuring a stronger grasp of pop songcraft than most
of the group's earlier output, earning it a spot on our Top 10 Motley Crue
Songs list.
5
'Wild Side'
From:
'Girls, Girls, Girls' (1987)
'Wild Side'
is one of the Crue's most complex tracks, both musically and lyrically. The
track moves in and out of several different time signatures while still
maintaining a heavy rock feel, while the lyric features interesting symbolism
and wordplay like “Kneel down ye sinners, to streetwise religion / Greed's been
crowned the new king / Hollywood dream teens, yesterday's trash queens / Save
the blessings for the final ring, Amen.”
4
'Dr.
Feelgood'
From: 'Dr.
Feelgood' (1989)
The intersection
of the L.A. Sunset Strip scene and drugs was never any big secret, but Motley
Crue brought it right out into the open with 'Dr. Feelgood,' a song about a
drug dealer. Musically the track features a massive funk-rock groove that saw
the group moving further away from the straight riffing and simple lyrics of
their early work and into a looser feel and clever lyrical approach. 'Dr.
Feelgood' was Motley Crue's first mainstream Top 10 hit and is their
highest-charting single to date.
3
'Girls,
Girls, Girls'
From:
'Girls, Girls, Girls' (1987)
The guys in
Motley Crue gave a shoutout to hardworking strippers everywhere with the title
song from their 1987 album. The video featured tough-guy bravado and motorcycle
imagery, while the track itself referenced some of the Crue's favorite Sunset
Strip clubs like the Body Shop, the Tropicana and Seventh Veil. The lyrics are
none-too-subtle but certainly make their point: “Trick or treat, sweet to eat /
On Halloween and New Year's Eve / Yankee girls, ya just can’t be beat / But
you’re the best when you’re off your feet.”
2
'Kickstart
My Heart'
From: 'Dr.
Feelgood' (1989)
Nikki Sixx
wrote 'Kickstart My Heart' after an infamous episode in which he overdosed and
was declared clinically dead before an EMT brought him back to life with two
adrenaline shots to the heart. The Grammy-nominated song features a heavy riff
so compelling that it has often served to open shows, while the lyric as
written described not an overdose, but a life of thrill-seeking: “When I get
high,I get high on speed / Top fuel funny car's a drug for me / My heart, my
heart, kickstart my heart.”
1
'Home Sweet
Home'
From:
'Theatre of Pain' (1985)
Motley Crue
made a dramatic turn toward the mainstream with this power ballad, which
centers around a simple piano motif. Lyrically the song portrays a softer side
as well: “You know that I've seen too many romantic dreams / Up in lights,
fallin' off the silver screen / My heart's like an open book for the whole
world to read / Sometimes nothing keeps me together at the seams.” 'Home Sweet
Home' not only tops our list of the Top 10 Motley Crue songs, it also came in
at No. 67 on our list of the Top 100 Classic Rock Songs.
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