PHOTOS
Lisa Sokolowski
In Tommy Lee's biography Tommyland, he wrote he wants to find an Amish girl on rumspringa. Living in a society that teaches education in a one-room school until eighth grade, and a culture that omits zippers from its wardrobe, chances are a female wouldn't know of the Mötley Crüe drummer or his three ex-wives.
Sure, he would still be a tattooed father of two, but someone on rumspringa wouldn't know of his escapades and wouldn't try to marry him for fame or money. That would be his ideal girl.
He's getting to the right state when Crue Fest comes to the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain on Saturday, Aug. 30. But his chance of finding anyone at the venue who doesn't know him is slim.
There might be people who don't know the opening bands - Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Sixx:A.M., and Trapt - but they're bands that the Crue likes.
"We had 30 bands that we were looking at," Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx said during a teleconference in May, noting some bands had one hit; some bands were new, others weren't. "It's a long day; you want to hear songs you know."
If the opening bands are looking for a crash course in stardom, they've come to the right place. If it's wisdom they're after, they might look elsewhere.
When asked what advice the vets had for the newbies, Sixx gave a typical rock star answer. "Double wrap it," he said, "That's the best advice we could give. Double wrap it and don't take Polaroids."
Sixx is 49, guitarist Mick Mars is 57, Vince Neil is 47, and Lee is the baby at 45. But don't think that made Sixx or Mars act much more mature than their 1980-selfs would have.
There was a college writer on the teleconference, one who noted that college students' parents were partying with the band back in the day. But, before his insight, he asked if the duo on the call ever played the famed Rock Band.
The dialogue went as so:
Sixx to Mars: Do you play Rock Band?
Mars: Do I? No. It's so much different. ... It reminds me a lot of that old game Simon. ... There are buttons to push and different colors.
Sixx: My kids kick my ass on it. I can't do it.
Mars: I can't grasp it.
The tour hadn't started at the time of the teleconference, but overanxious reporters were already asking, "What's next?" And, instead of some sensible answer, the guys gave what they gave best that day - humor-filled answers that were slightly off center.
Sixx: We're thinking about opening a Mötley Crüe amusement park.
Mars: I was going to say funeral home.
Sixx: ... You could be buried in your Mick Mars casket, Les Paul or Stratocaster case.
Journalist who got sucked into playing along: How much would plots be?
Mars: Six-fifty.
Sixx: Gene Simmons price.
Mars: I think we're Home Depot.
Sixx: Embrace our inner white trash.