Song#: 2387
Date: 07/13/1985
Debut: 77
Peak: 16
Weeks: 15
Genre: Hard Rock
Pop Bits: The Crüe were riding high after the success of their second album Shout at the Devil, but an accident that killed Hanoi Rock's drummer Razzle suddenly made things messy for the band. Vince Neil was the driver of the car and a court case followed that found him charged with a DUI and vehicular manslaughter. Once all was settled and Neil finished his short stay in jail, the band was ready to record a new album. Titled Theater of Pain, it was dedicated to the memory of Razzle. The LP also harnessed the band's hard metal from their previous albums into something more glam with a hint of commercial appeal. To get the set kicked off, this first single was released. Thanks in part to the song's conceptual MTV video, the song caught on and it soon became their first Rock Top 10 (#7) and first Pop Top 20 hit. The singled helped push the album to #6, which was their first to crack the Top 10. Eventually, the LP would sell over four million copies.
ReduxReview: This was the right song at the right time for the band. They were really breaking through, but needed a chart hit of some kind to push them further to the masses. This cover tune (see below) was the perfect vehicle for them. They could jam on something more commercial while retaining their bad boy image. It also helped that the video was popular on MTV. As for me, I didn't much like the original, so the remake didn't do anything for me.
ReduxRating: 5/10
Trivia: This is a remake of a song originally done by the band Brownsville Station. The Ann Arbor, Michigan, blues-rock band recorded the song for their third album Yeah! Written by band members Cub Koda and Mike Lutz, their original take on the song hit #3 on the Pop chart in 1973. It would be the biggest of their seven charting songs. The band would record four more albums before breaking up in 1979.
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