Mötley Crüe "Shout At The Devil"

Shout at the Devil is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, released on September 26, 1983. It was the band's breakthrough album, establishing Mötley Crüe as one of the top selling heavy metal acts of the 1980s. The singles "Looks That Kill" and "Too Young to Fall in Love" were moderate hits for the band.

Shout at the Devil was Mötley Crüe's breakthrough success, bringing them to international attention. The album's title and the band's use of a pentagram brought the band a great deal of controversy upon its 1983 release, as Christian and conservative groups claimed the band was encouraging their listeners to worship Satan. The Pentagram was something Nikki Sixx brought with him from Sister, a very theatrical band he had been a member of (along with future W.A.S.P. vocalist Blackie Lawless) in the late 70s prior to the formation of Mötley Crüe. Sister were the first L.A. band to fuse occult symbolism such as the Pentagram into a theatrical heavy metal show incorporating blood and facial makeup. Sixx asked Lawless for permission to use some of Sister's occult-related imagery for Shout at the Devil, as at that point Lawless was intent on moving in a different direction. "I said 'take whatever you want' because at that point, I realised that with an image like that, you end up painting yourself in a corner and you can't get out," said Lawless.

Just prior to returning home to Los Angeles to begin recording the album, Mötley Crüe was famously kicked off their support spot on Kiss' Creatures of the Night tour. The bands played only five shows together before Gene Simmons demanded they be replaced, citing their "bad behavior".

During recording, bassist Sixx was involved in a serious car accident after drunkenly stealing a friend's Porsche in Los Angeles. At around the same time, actress and friend Demi Moore told Sixx he needed Alcoholics Anonymous, though Sixx dismissed her concerns. Sixx badly injured his shoulder in the crash and was prescribed Percocet, a combination of acetaminophen and the powerful opioid oxycodone which was commonly prescribed to treat severe short-term pain. Sixx's use of Percocet transitioned directly to a crippling addiction to heroin which would cost him $3,500 a day and almost claim his life later in the decade.

Another car accident the following year would nearly end Mötley Crüe. The band had just wrapped up several months of touring in support of Shout at the Devil when vocalist Vince Neil threw a massive party at his Redondo Beach home, attended by the band Hanoi Rocks. After days of drinking and drugs, Neil borrowed his neighbor’s 1972 Ford Pantera, and he and Hanoi Rocks' drummer Razzle made a trip to a nearby liquor store to buy more beer. Though they made it to the liquor store without incident, on the return trip the car slipped on a wet spot on the road. Neil lost control of the sportscar and veered into oncoming traffic at 65MPH, colliding with another vehicle heading in the opposite direction. The impact left the driver of the other car in a month-long coma, and her passenger was also seriously injured. Though Neil escaped without injury, his passenger wasn't so fortunate. Razzle was pronounced dead at the scene at the age of 24. Neil was subsequently charged with drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter, and the band's future was very much in doubt as Neil faced possible prison time. In the end, Neil was sentenced to 200 hours of community service, paid $2.6 million in restitution to Razzle's family, and served only 30 days in jail.

The song "Bastard" was targeted by Tipper Gore and the PMRC, who were behind the move to have warning labels placed on albums with lyrics or other content they found disturbing. According to guitarist Mick Mars, the song wasn't a call to violence but rather was about "a certain person that we used to work with that we felt we were stabbed in the back by."

"Knock 'Em Dead, Kid" was inspired by a violent encounter between Sixx and a group of Hells Angels. Sixx somehow or another wound up in a fight with a group of bikers, even hitting one member in the face with a chain he had been wearing as a belt. The Hells Angels turned out to be undercover cops, and the bassist was subsequently badly beaten and jailed, resulting in a black eye and broken cheekbone. After being released from jail, he was inspired to write a song about the ordeal.

The album also features a cover of The Beatles' 1968 song "Helter Skelter", a song that allegedly inspired mass murderer Charles Manson. Sixx was not a Beatles' fan, referring to the band as "fucking wimpy", but he lists "Helter Skelter" and The White Album among his favorites of all time.

Track listing

All lyrics and music written by Nikki Sixx, except where noted.

Side one

1. "In the Beginning" Geoff Workman 1:13
2. "Shout at the Devil" 3:16
3. "Looks That Kill" 4:07
4. "Bastard" 2:54
5. "God Bless the Children of the Beast" (Instrumental) Mick Mars 1:33
6. "Helter Skelter" (The Beatles cover) John Lennon, Paul McCartney Lennon–McCartney 3:09

Side two

1. "Red Hot" Sixx, Mars, Vince Neil 2:20
2. "Too Young to Fall in Love" 3:34
3. "Knock 'Em Dead, Kid" Neil, Sixx 3:43
4. "Ten Seconds to Love" Sixx, Neil 4:17
5. "Danger" Mars, Sixx, Neil 3:51

Total length: 33:57

In 2003, the band re-issued their albums on their own label Mötley Records, including added bonus tracks from each album's specific era. The bonus tracks of the remastered edition of Shout at the Devil are mainly composed of demos, but include also the previously unreleased song "I Will Survive", which was recorded in the same sessions. The song "Black Widow", included in the Red, White & Crüe compilation, was also recorded and left off this album. The track "Hotter than Hell" was later renamed and re-recorded into "Louder Than Hell" on the Theatre of Pain album. This edition also sports a warning that the album may contain masked backwards messages. This is in reference to Sixx and Lee chanting "Jesus is Satan" as an underdub on the title track.

2003 Remastered edition bonus tracks

1. "Shout at the Devil" (demo) 3:18
2. "Looks That Kill" (demo) 5:06
3. "Hotter Than Hell" (demo version of Louder Than Hell) 2:49
4. "I Will Survive" Sixx, Mars 3:19
5. "Too Young to Fall in Love" (demo) 3:03

Total length: 51:32

A limited edition "Mini-LP" Compact Disc version of the album was released in the Japanese market, featuring the original cover that was previously available only on the vinyl LP release.

The album was a continuation of Mötley Crüe's participation in the early 1980s glam metal scene.

Gatefold cover.

The intro narration is by Geoff Workman, the sound engineer. It has been claimed to be Nikki Sixx, and Allister Fiend, but it's neither.

The original cover, with the embossed black pentagram, was only available on LP until the Japan Mini LP reissue of the remasters on which the original cover was restored.

Music videos:

- Looks That Kill

- Too Young to Fall in Love

The original album also contained a warning that the album may contain backwards messages. The backward message was Sixx and Lee trying to chant "Jesus is Satan" as an underdub on the title track.

Recording information:

Produced by Tom Werman for Julia's Music Inc.

Recorded and mixed by Geoff Workman at Cherokee Studios, Hollywood, California.

Second engineer: Doug Schwartz.