Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981 and a defining act of the Sunset Strip glam metal era. Dr. Feelgood (1989) — their first Billboard 200 number one — and Shout at the Devil (1983) are the essentials, and The Dirt only made the legend bigger. Dig into Mötley Crüe vinyl, CDs, and reissues at Wax Trax Records.
Mötley Crüe formed in Los Angeles in January 1981 around bassist Nikki Sixx, who recruited Tommy Lee, then Mick Mars, then Vince Neil. They are widely cited as one of the foundational acts of the 1980s Sunset Strip glam metal scene and one of the most commercially successful heavy metal bands of the era. Their debauched lifestyle and well-documented substance abuse problems are addressed extensively in the 2001 collaborative memoir The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band (made into a 2019 Netflix film). Vince Neil killed Hanoi Rocks drummer Razzle in a December 1984 drunk driving accident. Their 1989 album Dr. Feelgood became their first and only Billboard 200 #1 album. Vince Neil was fired in 1992 and replaced by John Corabi (1992-1996) before returning in 1997. The band dissolved with a 2014-2015 retirement tour, then reunited in 2019. Mick Mars retired from touring in October 2022 due to his ankylosing spondylitis (a progressive degenerative disease); he was replaced by John 5 (ex-Marilyn Manson, ex-Rob Zombie) as touring guitarist.
Mötley Crüe's sound combines heavy metal, glam metal, hard rock, and (in their early catalog) glam punk with Vince Neil's distinctive vocal delivery, Mick Mars's signature guitar work, and arrangements drawing on classic hard rock alongside contemporary glam metal aesthetics.
Original Elektra Records pressings of the 1980s Mötley Crüe catalog are widely collected. Multiple anniversary editions, audiophile reissues, and the comprehensive Mötley Records/BMG reissue programs have been released.
Listeners new to Mötley Crüe typically start with Dr. Feelgood (1989) or Shout at the Devil (1983).
