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Motley Crue Wrote a Song About Never Getting ‘Canceled’

Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter

Motley Crue has done some very questionable things. But during their heyday, it was a very different time compared to now. So, obviously, they wrote a song about it.

Tommy Lee touched on this in a new appearance on Club Random with Bill Maher. Lee told Maher, “We just recorded a song called ‘Canceled’ because we were just inspired by the rest of the world and things and places, like anybody else.”

The Crue drummer said the band was inspired to write the song after coming across an article questioning how the band was never “canceled.” Lee did admit to Maher, “We snuck in under the whatever threshold, wherever that was, where we got away with f—ing murder.”

Lee did jokingly say that since the Crue was never canceled, it makes him want to try harder to get canceled. Or at least we think he was joking. Perhaps we’ll find out eventually if he was!

 

Motley Crue: Their 5 Best Videos

Motley Crue emerged seemingly at the same time as MTV. The Crue’s debut album, Too Fast For Love, was released on November 10, 1981. This was just a little over three months after MTV hit launched on August 1. As a result, they and other bands of that era made it a point to get on the station’s radar with every video they released.

The band really broke through thanks to their second studio album, Shout at the Devil, which came out on September 26, 1983. That album yielded some killer tracks, as well as some killer videos. (Well, not all of those videos were great, but we’ll get to that shortly.)

When looking back at Motley Crue’s videos, it’s truly a wild look at an even wilder band. As you watch some of them, you can almost feel a contact high taking over. Knowing the band’s insane story thanks to The Dirt, you can’t help but wonder what was going on behind the scenes during filming.

To celebrate the band and their impressive catalog of clips, here are the top five Motley Crue videos. Enjoy!

  • Honorable Mention: 'Too Young To Fall In Love'

    This is one of the campiest videos of all time, and we don’t talk about it enough. Make no mistake: This video isn’t good at all. Its plot makes no sense, but once you watch it, your brain screams, “Play it again! Let’s figure this out!” Great song, though.

  • 5. 'Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)'

    When most people think of Motley Crue, there’s a certain “look” that comes to mind. They often think about the band’s full glam attire, hair, etc. No one thinks of the denim and black, Sunset Blvd meets Seattle image they’re rocking in the video for “Don’t Go Away Mad.” The video follows the narrative of the song, but the band themselves just look so different that it makes the video instantly memorable.

  • 4. 'Girls, Girls, Girls'

    Obviously, a song about strippers and strip clubs should feature strippers and strip clubs. No need to make things complicated here, which is what makes “Girls, Girls, Girls” a classic video. Oh, and there’s an uncensored version of this video that we’ll let you Google yourself if you want to see actual boobs and the Crue.

  • 3. 'If I Die Tomorrow'

    There’s no sugar-coating it here; this video is heavy. Set in an art gallery, various canvases come to life depicting significant dark moments in the lives of each Crue member. For Vince Neil, it’s the infamous 1984 drunk-driving crash that killed Hanoi Rocks drummer Nicholas “Razzle” Dingley. Mick Mars’ canvas shows him struggling with his chronic spinal disease, ankylosing spondylitis. For Tommy Lee, it was serving six months in jail after assaulting his then-wife Pamala Anderson. Nikki Sixx’s canvas, of course, featured his 1987 overdose when he was revived via two syringes of adrenaline.

  • 2. 'Looks That Kill'

    Let’s lighten the mood a little bit, shall we? Is the “Looks That Kill” video campy like the aforementioned video for “Too Young to Fall In Love”? Yes, but you can at least follow the plot! Plus, that look into the camera from Nikki Sixx during the first chorus is truly iconic. It’s the type of breakthrough video that most bands at the height of MTV’s powers only dreamed of. 10/10, no notes.

  • 1. 'Home Sweet Home'

    Motley Crue has a number of performance-based videos, as did many rock bands in the ’80s, but there’s just something truly magical about “Home Sweet Home.” It’s the perfect snapshot that captures the Crue’s concert dominance: A big, energetic show, wild fans and a sinful amount of fun. One watch makes it obvious why the video was in such heavy rotation on MTV.

Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights

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Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter
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