Mötley Crüe’s Shout at the Devil Was Released Thirty Years Ago Today
On September 26, 1983, Mötley Crüe released their second album, Shout at the Devil. And while there are definitely some classics on their debut, Too Fast for Love, I don’t think many fans would deny that Shout was their first truly great work — the album where they found their sound and morphed from a talented hard rock band into something far more unique, which would, for better or worse, prove to be far more influential.
Some fun facts about the album:
- It was the band’s first collaboration with producer Tom Werman, who would also man the boards for Theatre of Pain and Girls, Girls, Girls.
- Upon its release, it received absolutely AWFUL reviews. (So who knows, maybe there’s hope for Generation Swine to be considered a classic yet!)
- The original vinyl LP cover (below) featured not the now-famous four-square photo of the band you see above, but, rather, a pentagram which was visible only when held at a forty-five degree angle. It also contained a warning that the music might include hidden, backward messages. (I know Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee chat “Jesus is Satan” on the title track… dunno about any other actual hidden messages.) For these reasons, the album was actually considered controversial upon its release, which seems wholly ridiculous now. But I remember Nikki Sixx protesting, “We’re telling to people to shout at the devil, not with the devil!”
So happy birthday, Shout at the Devil! I can think of no better way to celebrate this album’s tremendous legacy than with the “reimagining” of the title track that the band recorded for 1997’s Swine. And they say you can’t improve perfection…
I jest, I jest! Here’s the actual album. Let ‘er rip, motherfuckers:
