Live Wire (Mötley Crüe song)

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"Live Wire"
Live Wire (Mötley Crüe song) coverart.jpg
Single by Mötley Crüe
from the album Too Fast for Love
ReleasedAugust 16, 1982
Recorded1981
Genre
Length3:15
LabelLeathür
Songwriter(s)Nikki Sixx
Mötley Crüe singles chronology
"Stick to Your Guns"
(1981) 		"Live Wire"
(1982) 		"Shout at the Devil"
(1983)

"Live Wire" is the debut single by the American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. It was released on their 1981 debut album Too Fast for Love.

Overview[]

The video was directed by the members of Mötley Crüe. It showcases the band's stage theatrics, such as Nikki Sixx setting himself on fire (due to lack of money to perform on stage pyrotechnics) and Mick Mars drooling blood. The single was released on August 16, 1982. In May 2006, it was ranked #17 on VH1's list of the 40 greatest metal songs of all time.[1] Musically, the song has been described as speed-metal,[2] glam metal, punk, death rock, and glitter rock.[3]

The song was remixed in 1991 alongside "Piece of Your Action" for the compilation album Decade of Decadence.

Cover versions[]

In 2000, fellow heavy metal band Fozzy covered this song for their debut self-titled album. Swedish hardcore punk band Refused included a cover in their The Demo Compilation. In 2010, Japanese rock band Vamps covered it as the B-side to their single "Devil Side". Meghan Kabir recorded a slow version of the song for Mötley Crüe's 2019 biopic The Dirt.[4]

In 2014, The Cadillac Three covered the song on Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute to Mötley Crüe released via Big Machine Records.

Personnel[]

In popular culture[]

"Live Wire" appears in the soundtracks to the video games Tony Hawk's American Wasteland, Brütal Legend, Saints Row: The Third, and NBA 2K20. The song also appears on the soundtrack to Charlie's Angels. It also appears in the Netflix original film The Dirt which is about Mötley Crüe's history.

Charts[]

Chart (2019) Peak
position
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[5] 24

References[]

  1. ^ "VH1 40 Greatest Metal Songs", 1–4 May 2006, VH1 Channel, reported by VH1.com; last accessed 2006-09-10.
  2. ^ "15-year-old girl sings Mötley Crüe's "Live Wire" on American Idol, impresses Nikki Sixx: Watch". Consequence. 2021-02-22. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
  3. ^ Sleazegrinder (December 4, 2015). "The 20 Best Hair Metal Anthems Of All Time Ever". loudersound. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  4. ^ Lifton, Dave; Wilkening, Matthew (March 22, 2019). "The Stories Behind the Non-Mötley Crüe Songs in The Dirt". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  5. ^ "Motley Crue Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
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