MÖTLEY CRÜE's VINCE NEIL And TOMMY LEE Name Their Early Influences

In a new interview with Jonathan Clarke, host of "Out Of The Box" on Q104.3, New York's classic rock station, MÖTLEY CRÜE's Vince Neil was asked to name the singer that really inspired him to say, "I wanna do that job. That's what I wanna do with my life." He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "That was David Lee Roth. I always wanted to look like him. I tried to emulate him, even before I was in MÖTLEY CRÜE. When I was just 16 years old, I would go and there's a place in L.A. called Long Beach Arena. And VAN HALEN was playing there, and I was a kid out in the parking lot listening to 'em, selling bootleg t-shirts. And then you hear him singing, and you're thinking, 'God, I wonder what's going on backstage.' And, 'Wow, what's it like inside?' He really inspired me."

Asked to name the drummer that made him want to "bang stuff for the rest of his life", MÖTLEY CRÜE's Tommy Lee said: "That's definitely John Bonham [LED ZEPPELIN], man. When you're a kid... I didn't have an older sibling that turns you on to music, but I had a buddy who had an older brother. And I remember being over at his house and hearing [LED ZEPPELIN's] 'Physical Graffiti' [album] on the turntable. And I was, like, 'What the fuck is this?' Like, the coolest drumming I've ever heard in my life. And that was it. That just changed the game for me. I was, like. 'Whoa.' Just that weird sound of the vinyl hitting the record. And he had a really bitching stereo. So I was, like, 'Oh my God. This guy's the shit.' That was it."

Last Friday (April 26),MÖTLEY CRÜE released a new single, "Dogs Of War". The track was made available via the band's new deal with Nashville's Big Machine Records.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's new deal with Big Machine Records sees the band working together again after making the 2014 project "Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute To Mötley Crüe", which featured CRÜE tracks covered by country stars RASCAL FLATTS, FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE, Darius Rucker and more. Big Machine also partnered with John 5 for the release of his 2021 album "Sinner".

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

In 2018, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded four new songs for "The Dirt" movie, including the single "The Dirt (Est. 1981) (Feat. Machine Gun Kelly)", "Ride With The Devil", "Crash And Burn" and the band's own spin on Madonna's "Like A Virgin".

John 5 joined MÖTLEY CRÜE in the fall of 2022 as the replacement for the band's co-founding guitarist Mick Mars. Mick announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE in October 2022 as a result of worsening health issues.

Mars suffers from Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS),a chronic and inflammatory form of arthritis that mainly affects the spine and pelvis. After years of performing through the pain, he informed the other members of MÖTLEY CRÜE in the summer of 2022 that he could no longer tour with them but would still be open to recording new music or performing at residencies that did not require much travel.

When Mars announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE, he maintained that he would remain a member of the band, with John 5 taking his place on the road. However, in early April 2023 the now-72-year-old musician filed a lawsuit against CRÜE in Los Angeles County's Superior Court claiming that, after his announcement, the rest of CRÜE tried to remove him as a significant stakeholder in the group's corporation and business holdings via a shareholders' meeting.