Metal Anarchy

While chatting with Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins) on “The Magnificent Others” podcast, Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee opened up about the band’s dispute with ex-guitarist Mick Mars. The group won that legal battle after an independent arbitrator ruled that Mars gave up his right to touring revenue upon his departure. According to Lee, the “whole thing was awkward and really hurtful.”

Lee said the following:

“For me, that whole thing was awkward and really hurtful, to the point where people were saying untrue things and kind of doing that, and I was, like, ‘God, this sucks.’ I’m not into that kind of stuff. It’s, like, why can’t we just all… You go do your thing, we’ll go do ours. It’s all cool. That part of it sucked. I guess that’s like a divorce or whatever. It sucks in any format. But there is only one Mick, and he’s an insane player, and it saddens me just on a personal level for him that this insane bone disease or spine disease slowly started dementing his shape. He started to get locked into being hunched over. Good thing it was forward instead of backwards. At least you’re looking at the guitar neck. [He went through] a lot of pain, and watching him struggle, and then all of a sudden, I think it takes a toll on… And maybe his age, too, you kind of mix all that in, he started to… He came to us saying, like, ‘I don’t wanna do this anymore. I can’t.’

I always try to put myself in Mick’s shoes, and I got nothing but love for that guy — nothing but love. I just wish it didn’t get so… and unfortunately, that’s just the way things go. When people are threatened or hurt, they fight back. But it’s all good.”

He also discussed recruiting John 5:

“I have to give props to John 5, because him coming in was the exact shot of adrenaline and life and energy and fire that we were missing, because it was really becoming a struggle. [On the 2022 ‘The Stadium Tour’] I’d be counting off ‘Live Wire’ and Mick would start ‘Wild Side’. He started to not know where he was [in the song]. [It was a] trainwreck. And I’ve had to stop songs — just stop songs. I’m, like, ‘Dude, we gotta restart this because he’s playing the wrong song, and he doesn’t know it.’ It’s, like, oh my God.

John has been a [Mötley Crüe] fan for a long time. He knows all the music inside and out, [and he] loves Mick… To me, dude, I don’t give a shit how talented you are, if you’re an [asshole], I don’t have much respect for that. If you’re talented and you’re a sweetheart [like John 5 is], you’re my favorite person.”

[via Blabbermouth]