With the sea change that came over the music world in the early 90’s, it was great news to have Vince Neil back in Motley Crue and to be able to see them live in a big arena. Generation Swine wasn’t exactly what I was looking for from the reunited Crue but the show delivered everything I was hoping for.
This took place at the San Diego Sports Arena, my first show there since my military days. The opening bands were Krunk, which featured Tommy Lee’s sister Athena and her husband James Kottak, and another group that had some family ties to T-Bone. I don’t remember who it was but Tommy came out on stage to introduce them.
We sat on the side, pretty close to the stage about even with the drum set, and had a great view of Tommy’s playing. Pam Anderson and their baby Brandon were watching from the side just below us. Motley started with “Find Myself” from the Generation Swine record and it worked pretty well for the opener with the crowd going bonkers.
After that they ripped through a block of classic songs, starting with “Girls, Girls, Girls” before going back to the new record with “Glitter”. They mixed in a total of six new songs with the bangers from throughout their career. “Primal Scream” was a highlight along with back-to-back songs from their debut record, “Live Wire” and “Too Fast For Love.”
On the other end of the spectrum, T-Bone played and sang “Brandon,” which may be the worst song they’ve had on any album, but then they rolled into “Home Sweet Home” immediately after. They finished strong with “Anarchy In The U.K.,” “Helter Skelter” and “Kickstart My Heart.”
Great show from the mighty Motley Crue, still in their prime as a live act and energized to have Vince back. The Generation Swine record was a big change that was intended to roll with the trends of the day in music and I didn’t really care for much of it. But I knew the show would kick, and it did.