I can tell you exactly where I was at 10:00 am on June 21st, 1985. I was standing outside Wooden Nickel Records waiting for them to open so I could buy Mötley Crüe’s new album Theatre Of Pain which was coming out that day.
This was the first time that I ever stood outside a closed record store waiting to buy a newly released album. Aric and I both were there. We bought Theatre Of Pain then went back to my house to listen to it.
I think that we both thought it started off well with City Boy Blues and Smokin’ In The Boys Room. It was good but it didn’t seem to have the rough metal sound that I was expecting. I wanted it to sound more like Shout At The Devil but it didn’t.
Still, it was new Mötley Crüe and that was good. Then Home Sweet Home came on and I was thinking What is this? I would eventually grow to love Home Sweet Home as a good song if not necessarily a Mötley Crüe song.
Theatre Of Pain is kind of like The Dark Knight Rises. It would be the best Batman movie except that The Dark Knight is the best Batman movie. If I didn’t know about or own Shout At The Devil, this would have been a great album but even though I really like it, it is no Shout At The Devil. It seemed like they went out of their way to appeal to girls. A concept that I’d adopt myself in the coming years.
With all that said, we played Theatre Of Pain a lot that summer. Listening to it now takes me back to my old blue Galaxie in the summer. Cruising with the windows down, just having fun.
City Boy Blues
Smokin’ In The Boys Room
Keep Your Eye On The Money
Home Sweet Home
Tonight (We Need A Lover)