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also available in the book: Chronological Crue Vol.3 - The Naughties

5/1/07
Pamela Anderson hits out at her recently-estranged husband Kid Rock
following reports that he attempted to beat-up her former-husband Tommy
Lee on New Year's Eve, calling his actions "completely childish
threats." Rock was seething over rumours that Tommy and Pam were
getting back together again, after reportedly spending Christmas
together and being seen all over each other at their son's basketball
game.
11/1/07
Dining at Lulu's Bait Shack in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Vince Neil
joins the rock cover band Fuse on stage and sings Home Sweet Home and
Girls, Girls, Girls with them. After re-joining friends at his table,
he gets back on stage for another impromptu performance later in the
evening of Dr. Feelgood.
At a press
conference in the Hyatt West Hollywood Hotel, Tommy announces Japan's
Pride Fighting Championships' February 24 event called Pride 33 Second
Coming. He is joined on stage by mixed martial arts fighters Wanderlei
Silva and Dan Henderson who will contest in a Middleweight Championship
title match.
15/1/07
Vince Neil’s Mötley Crüise 2007, a four-day, three-night rock and roll
cruise from Miami, Florida, to Nassau in The Bahamas and back, comes to
a close. In addition to a live concert by Vince and his band, several
on-board activities help to raise more than twenty thousand dollars for
his Skylar Neil Memorial Fund and The TJ Martell Foundation. Hooters
sends thirty of their models to compete in The Hooters Girls, Girls,
Girls Bikini Contest, as part of Vince Neil's Tres Rios Tequila Beach
Party. South Florida's finest Gentlemen's club Pure Platinum sends a
bevy of beauties who caddy for the Pure Platinum Miniature Golf
Challenge. Cruise passengers also enjoy a slew of other rock star-style
amenities and events including a custom Mötley Crüise Survival Kit, a
Vince Vineyards Wine Tasting Party hosted by Playmate Kimberley
Williams, a one-of-a-kind live charity auction, photo and autograph
session with Vince, and a No-Limit Texas Hold 'Em Poker Tournament.
20/1/07
Mick Mars and Nikki Sixx attend the 2007 Winter NAMM show in Anaheim,
California. Mick signs autographs for fans in the Marshall booth for
two hours, while Nikki spends his afternoon meeting fans in each of the
Dean Markley, Basson, and Ovation booths. The queue to his Ovation
booth begins three hours before his scheduled arrival and is one of the
longest of the convention.
The brand-new
Epiphone Nikki Sixx signature-model Blackbird bass makes its debut at
NAMM. The pitch-black bass is equipped with Epiphone’s new DeepSixx
bass humbuckers at the neck and bridge, while the fingerboard Maltese
cross inlays and pickguard emblem were designed by Nikki. The model
comes with Nikki's unique Opti-Grab feature and is very similar to the
original Gibson version.
28/1/07
Nikki says he is hard at work on the music and recording of The Heroin
Diaries soundtrack with DJ Ashba and James Michael. Due to be released
at the same time as the book, most likely this September, he tells fans
it is not a solo album, but an experimental musical journey. "All I can
say is expect the unexpected. The trip is weird, from Danny Elfman's
ghoulish arrangements, singer-songwriter story-telling to open-ended
rock... theatrical comes to mind. This is freedom and a journey with no
real expectations... We don't talk radio, charts or boundaries; we just
talk 'feel.' We are feeling our way through the project. There is one
feeling I will share with you all, the feeling that I've fallen back in
love with music. My life is so full and continues to grow." On a
personal level, Nikki says he has been soaking up the love of his kids.
"All I can think about is how everybody in the house laughs a lot, a
lot more than I can remember in a long time. Yes, it's different being
a single dad and having a career, but different in a better way. I have
a lot more to do daily and I take it very serious. I've not found
anybody worthy of really dating and that's OK by me... My kids come
first, then my career and last my social life. I can live without the
last two but not the first."
29/1/07
Tommy's Rock Star Supernova performs Can't Bring Myself to Light This
Fuse and an acoustic version of Headspin live on Regis & Kelly. The
performance is said to be the first time Tommy plays piano live on
national television.
8/2/07
Nikki attends a media day backstage during rehearsals at the
forty-ninth annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.
9/2/07
During a radio interview with Eddie Trunk, Vince confirms Mötley Crüe
will head to Europe in June for some festival appearances, which will
likely include a stop at the Download festival in England. He says the
band has written more than a hundred songs for a proposed new studio
album that is expected to be released next year. Vince also says he is
working on the pilot for a new A&E reality-TV show that will follow
him and his family; his parents Odie and Shirley have moved into his
Las Vegas home. Vince’s wife Lia hasn't talked to his mom since their
wedding last January.
10/2/07
Vince’s wife Lia throws a surprise party for his forty-sixth birthday.
As the couple is given a tour of the Nove Italiano in George Maloof's
Palms Fantasy Tower, forty of Vince’s closest friends and guests yell
“Happy Birthday” when the door to the outdoor rooftop patio opens.
Among those celebrating are Criss Angel, Dennis Rodman, Planet
Hollywood head honcho Mike Mecca, and comic Jeff Beacher.
14/2/07
Rock Star Supernova releases their self-funded video for the song
Headspin. The song about singer Lukas Rossi's rocky relationship with
his mother is an original that Rossi wrote with his former Rise
Electric guitarist Dominic Cifarelli and performed on the reality TV
show.
15/2/07
John Corabi says he’s been hired by Gibson Guitars to travel the world
and do some Story Teller-style clinics for them. “I’m really excited!
They have been treating me amazingly well, and they've been really
supportive of a lot of my ideas. Plus, I get to play the coolest
guitars ever: Les Pauls, J-200s, etc. How can you beat that?” Corabi
also says he is going to Nashville to record an album in the next month
or so. “I have a title and a bunch of ideas for it. It’s not country,
but I want to do something a little different, so think acoustic
‘Swampy Blues’.”
20/2/07
Vince promotes his signature Tres Rios (Three Rivers) tequila at an
event in Guadalajara, Mexico, where he performs briefly with a local
band. His Tres Rios tequila is said to be the outcome of a dedicated
search by Vince for the purest 100% agave nectar that he found
flourishing at the juncture of three rivers in Mexico.
25/2/07
Vince guests at Food Network's South Beach Wine & Food Festival in
Florida, presiding over the bar along with Francesco Lafranconi
(founder and director of Southern Wine & Spirits of Nevada's
Academy of Spirits) in the step-by-step art of making the perfect
margarita cocktail. He stays at the Ritz-Carlton in South Beach and
drinks all
day long over the week, racking up a tab of nine thousand dollars. He
also opens the Delta Live Auction tailored to the
ultimate Vince Neil fan who wins a case of signed bottles of Vince
Neil's Tres Rios Tequila, two first class tickets on Delta Airlines to
Las Vegas, a 'sweet' suite at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las
Vegas with all accommodations for two, a personal invitation from Vince
to have drinks with him in person at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas, dinner at Café Martorano's RIO, and a personally autographed
guitar.
2/3/07
Two songs written and produced by Nikki and DJ Ashba, Light Another
Candle and Reason I'm Alive, will be included on the new Drowning Pool
album titled Full Circle, due for release later this year on Eleven
Seven Music. The band recently took on a new management company in
Tenth Street Entertainment, who also manages Mötley Crüe and Buckcherry.
5/3/07
Nikki attends the Los Angeles premiere of the movie 300 at Grauman's
Chinese in Hollywood.
6/3/07
Vince cancels his late-March solo tour of Australia and postpones a
show in Kentucky, as he is again admitted to a
rehabilitation facility after an intervention by his wife Lia. His
management tells the public the reason for the cancellation is that he
recently underwent some
necessary medical procedures and is in good health. Lia says Nikki
spoke with Vince and was an inspiration, showing that sobriety is
possible. Meanwhile, a
troubled Britney Spears also receives some rehab support from Nikki,
who
says he 'hopes she will rise out of the ashes and come back bigger than
she ever was.'
12/3/07
Finalist from the Rock Star Supernova TV series, Dilana Robichaux, says
she wrote a song with Mick last week called Time is a Wound. She goes
to Mick's home in Malibu during the day where he gives her a 1980s
white and gold Gretsch guitar with a penguin on it. After having
recently met Mick, Dilana says, "I immediately 'fell in love' with my
new adopted Dad, Mick. We instantly had a chemistry and a connection so
special that I'm still totally dumb-founded by it. I've never met
someone so beautiful, funny, giving, caring and talented and I'm so
excited to work with him some more."
13/3/07
Tommy and Vince are among the rock legends set to feature in VH1
Classic's first thirty-second public service announcement geared
towards raising awareness about autism. Announced at the Cable
Television Public Affairs Association's annual conference, the campaign
will kick off on April 1.
15/3/07
Tommy Lee's Rock Star Supernova plays their first show outside of North
America in Melbourne, Australia, taking opportunity to visit the F1
Grand Prix preliminaries and party at a city strip club whilst in town.
During his media engagements, Tommy says he's currently working with
Lukas on songs for the next Rock Star Supernova album, while Vince is
in rehab again and Mick works with Dilana.
19/3/07
Nikki says the making of the soundtrack accompanying his soon-to-be
released book The Heroin Diaries has been spiritually awakening.
"DJ Ashba, James Michael and myself have basically played, written and
produced everything on the album. It's like we're standing on a cliff
with our eyes shut, arms open and just falling. Extending ourselves in
faith that someone will catch us, and relishing the freedom that comes
from that place. There are some exciting new adventures on the album: a
Persian-influenced song called Girl with Golden Eyes, and a ghoulish
godfather-ish track called Intermission. There's the thumping pomp of
Drugs Scouts of America, Van Nuys and Came Here to Take Yer Money,
mixed between movie-score sounding pieces like X Mas in Hell and Life
After Death. We can't wait to share this album with the world."
Industry-wise, a soundtrack always comes out before the movie, so they
now plan to release this soundtrack before the book is released.
23/3/07
After attending the Junker Designs Fall 2007 Fashion Show in Hollywood
with DJ Ashba the night before, where he enjoyed hanging out with Alice
Cooper, Slash and Billy Duffy, Nikki meets with Paul Brown to finalise
the artwork for his forthcoming book and CD. He says they're shooting
the first video clip for the music next week.
26/3/07
Mick goes to Sunset Strip Tattoo with Dilana where they get the same
'pact' tattoos of an African voodoo symbol for Mars; his on his hand
and hers on her chest. They then head back to Mick's place to work on
more songs.
Nikki is a
guest at the kick-off reception for the Covenant House California 8th
Annual Awards Gala in Beverly Hills. He says his Running Wild in the
Night foundation, which raises funds for Covenant House, is about to
break ground on a music program designed to help kids stay off the
streets and stay at Covenant House to get a firm footing in life.
29/3/07
Tommy is set to feature in the new anti-fur campaign of animal rights
group PETA, appearing on billboards and in newspapers across the Middle
East from next week, wearing nothing but his trademark tattoos
alongside the slogan ‘Ink, Not Mink’. The campaign is being released
before he performs at Dubai’s third annual Bike Week, which coincides
with Dubai International Fashion Week. The ad was shot in London by
fashion photographer Mary McCartney, daughter of long-time PETA
supporter Sir Paul McCartney. The animal rights group has identified
several stores selling fur and fur trim in Dubai. PETA claims that fur
trim alone is responsible for the deaths of millions of animals every
year, and because the trim trade doesn’t place much value on quality of
pelts, the care given to animals raised for trim is often worse than
those raised for full-length fur coats. Tommy says, “Be comfortable in
your own skin and let animals keep theirs.”
30/3/07
As Mötley Crüe officially announces a string of European concerts dates
in June this year, Nikki says the first single from The Heroin Diaries
album is done. "The track is called Funeral and really is a celebration
about being alive. James Michael, who wrote, produced and performed the
whole album along with me and DJ Ashba has mixed the first single.
Things are moving fast now and an audio book is in the works too. It
will launch at the same time with the book and album. First video will
be shot in two weeks too."
1/4/07
Nikki attends a 1690 Swimwear Launch party in Los Angeles with DJ Ashba.
4/4/07
Mick signs a publishing deal with Cherry Lane Music, following the
termination of his agreement with Warner Chappell on July 1 last year
after more than twenty years with the company. Under the new five-year
deal, the publisher will administer Mick's catalog worldwide and will
co-publish future compositions created through projects set up by
Cherry Lane. Announcing the deal, Richard Stumpf, Cherry Lane's senior
VP of creative services & marketing, says, "In talking to Mick, he
made clear to me his interest in writing with other songwriters beyond
his brothers in Mötley Crüe and I was extremely impressed by his
eclectic songwriting styles. His history and talent will have a
profound effect on new up-and-coming songwriters and recording artists.
We already have him collaborating with some of our songwriter artists
and we have lots of other sessions in the works. Soon Mick will be
thought of as not only one of the legends from Mötley Crüe, but also as
one of today's key songwriting collaborators."
Vince signs a
partnership with former Miami Dolphins player Todd Wade and former
Florida Gator player Bob Hewko to open an 8,500-square-foot rock 'n'
roll themed bar-restaurant on Clematis Street in downtown West Palm
Beach named Dr. Feelgood's Rock Bar & Grill. The Florida venue, on
the corner of Olive Avenue in the space currently occupied by
MonkeyClub, will be stuffed with Vince's memorabilia and his Harley
collection. The bar area will be designed to look like a pharmacy, the
liquor bottles will be displayed between oversized pharmaceuticals and
the bartenders will wear sexy nurses' uniforms. Vince plans to play a
free concert for the grand opening.
Tommy
reportedly moves his belonging into Pamela Anderson's Malibu home while
builders work on renovations to his own place nearby. Pam joked in a
recent magazine article that she still sleeps with her ex-husband;
she has since retracted the comment.
5/4/07
Tommy is special guest host and DJ at the three-day third annual Bike
Week event held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He then heads to Hawaii
to holiday with Pamela and their two boys.
11/4/07
Vince enters into a five-year Exclusive Management Agreement with Burt
Stein's company B Entertainment, allowing him to continue to serve as
Vince's exclusive personal manager, representative and advisor,
throughout the world, with respect to all activities throughout the
entertainment industry. For services provided, Vince agrees to pay
Stein a sum equivalent to fifteen percent of the gross compensation he
receives.
15/4/07
After spending time with his kids during spring break, Nikki says the
first single from his forthcoming Heroin Diaries album will now be
called Life Is Beautiful instead of Funeral, as suggested by James
Michael to place more focus on the positive to help get the song's
message across. Paul Brown has finished producing the song's video,
which is stylistically similar to the book, audio book and soundtrack
CD. Nikki and DJ have also just finished scoring a public service
announcement (PSA) for Covenant
House. Nikki feels, "It's very magical because the kids directed,
produced, wrote and acted in the PSA. It's amazing what kids can do
when they're given the right tools."
19/4/07
Mick collaborates with Brent Smith from Shinedown on songs for
the southern hard rock band's third album, however none of the songs
from the session make the album's final release.
Nikki attends
the launch of Korn's Family Values tour at the Hollywood Forever
cemetery. The gothic event is called the Halloween in Spring Costume
Ball.
20/4/07
Vince guests at the inaugural Jennifer Harman Charity Poker Tournament,
inside the Caesar's Palace poker tournament room in Las Vegas.
21/4/07
Vince and Tommy both attend the grand opening of The Pearl concert
theatre at The Palms
Hotel and Casino Resort in Las Vegas, seeing Gwen Stefani perform in
concert.
28/4/07
Vince and his wife attend a Lili Claire Foundation fundraiser dinner at
the Mandalay Bay Events Centre in Las Vegas.
1/5/07
The title track that kicks off
Marion Raven's album
Set Me Free
was written by her with Nikki
and DJ Ashba.
The album also includes the song Heads Will Roll that was
co-written by Marion with Nikki and James Michael.
2/5/07
It’s starting to look even more likely that Tommy & Pamela are back
together, as he tells an English newspaper, “I’ve been doing a lot of
research on Dubai property and The World project. We’re going to buy
Greece because I’m Greek originally. Pammie actually turned me on to
the whole thing. Life is good now because I’m seeing my boys again."
Tommy hopes that he and Pam can spend time with their two sons on the
man-made archipelago of three hundred islands in the shape of the world
currently being built just off of the Dubai coast.
Vince sells
two sets of his stage clothing from Mötley Crüe's recent Route of All
Evil tour to the Hard Rock Café in Las Vegas.
4/5/07
As Mick celebrates his birthday, Vince hosts the Eleventh Annual Skylar
Neil Memorial Golf Tournament at Lost Canyons Golf Club in Simi Valley,
California.
11/5/07
Nikki and DJ Ashba work on music with Trapt vocalist Chris Brown as
James Michael finishes vocals on one of the most powerful songs they
have written called Accidents Can Happen. James is also in the final
stages of mixing The Heroin Diaries soundtrack as Nikki and DJ perform
little fix-ups, add-ons and musical updates for it. Nikki says he's
exhausted and extremely content, adding, "I've never been afraid to
work hard because I don't consider anything you truly love to ever be
work. So much music is flowing these days."
19/5/07
Nikki says, "All thirteen tunes are done. James is just mixing the last
few now and the album will be completely done next week. What a huge
body of work we've pulled off. We're all proud to have this album under
our wings." The album is performed by Nikki Sixx, DJ Ashba, and James
Michael who are collectively known as Sixx: A.M. (A for Ashba & M
for Michael). All drums on the album are programmed by DJ and James.
22/5/07
The Sixx: A.M. video for Life is Beautiful debuts online. Nikki says
they are overwhelmed at the response this first single is receiving,
"We are all blown away. To be honest, we had no expectations, except to
make a very adventurous album. I had so many people comment on how life
changing they feel the lyrics are. One person told me they were on the
verge of suicide until they heard the song. That is why we make music
right there, in a nutshell." The drummer in the video is Elias 'Bones'
Andra from the band Julien-K.
29/5/07
In New York City doing business for The Heroin Diaries book and
soundtrack, Nikki says, "There is an overwhelming response; so much
support for this positive project. I'm very proud of this: the music,
the book, and all the high-level partners who are coming to the table
in support. The only downside is lack of sleep, but what's new? Sitting
in these meetings playing the soundtrack album top to bottom and seeing
people's jaws hit the floor is the most satisfying feeling I've had in
years on a musical level." Nikki flies out to Zurich, Switzerland for a
rehearsal with Mötley Crüe. He says it looks like he will be able to
take a day off in between the band's nine European concerts for a
photography journey to Transylvania. His business partner Kelly Gray
will also join him, since she will be in London for them to meet with
retail about their forthcoming Royal Underground jewellery and women's
collection.
1/6/07
Mick pays $1,460,000 for a 3,603-square-foot home at 3458 W Moon
Shadows Drive, Malibu,
California. Built in 1986, his new four-bedroom home sits on a
half-acre lot in the Sea View Estates area of Malibu. The house is one
of the largest homes in Sea View Estates, located more than three miles
north of the Pacific Ocean. Features in Mick’s new house include three
and a half baths, a large kitchen that opens to the family room, a
formal living room with vaulted ceilings, a formal dining area, an
entry with vaulted ceilings, a flat grassy yard and views of the ocean,
city lights and mountains.
While
Mötley
Crüe
plays the Eishalle Spirit of
Rock Festival in
Switzerland, Mick meets eyes with twenty-three-year-old former Miss
Zürich contestant Seraina Schönenberger, othwerwise known as Fai, and
they become virtually
inseparable.
2/6/07
During Mötley Crüe’s performance of Live Wire in Milan, Tommy stands up
behind his drum kit mid-song and repeatedly shouts “Porco Dio” to the
crowd. Translated from Italian, porco dio literally means pig god,
conveying that God is a pig. The incident gains controversy as Italian
press reports the blasphemies offended a large portion of the audience.
Crüe dancer Jozie Di Maria introduces the band in her native Italian
language before handing Vince his guitar when the band kicks into
Don't Go Away Mad.
4/6/07
Mötley Crüe has to cancel their concert at Finland's Helsinki Ice
Stadium as the band's gear remains stuck in a cargo plane that
experiences a technical failure preventing it from taking off from
Italy following their performance at the Gods of Metal festival over
the weekend. The band reschedules the date for three-days time and
expects their next European shows to go ahead as planned.
7/6/07
On stage in Finland, Nikki dedicates Live Wire to Andy McCoy from Hanoi Rocks, who is a guest in the crowd. Referring to the bad blood
between the bands ever since the 1984 car crash in which Hanoi Rocks
drummer Razzle lost his life as a passenger in Vince’s sports car,
Nikki says that life goes on. McCoy responds by raising his
middle-finger in the air.
8/6/07
Following the Crüe's performance in
Brussels, Belgium, fans witness an impromptu performance of the song
Brandon when Tommy decides to play a grand piano in the lobby of the
hotel they are staying at.
9/6/07
Returning to Donington for their first time in sixteen years, Mötley
plays a ninety-minute set on the Dimebag Darrell Stage at Download
Festival. Vince tells the crowd, "It has been a long time since we
played here and hot f@ck we just keep coming back" before Nikki says,
"England has made a lot of progress on the groupie front since we were
last here. I've just had two groupies backstage sucking my dick and
they just happened to be sisters." Meanwhile on another stage, Linkin
Park singer Chester Bennington tells the crowd, "The only thing that
I'm bummed about is that I'm missing Mötley Crüe's set."
At a press
conference, Nikki says, "There's only two more shows for us and we
won't be playing again until sometime next year, maybe '09, depending
on how it goes on making a record." He also says he is starting work on
writing a novel at the moment after staring to write one day with a
stream-of-consciousness stuff and couldn’t stop. He buys some books on
character development to accelerate the project.
Back in his
London hotel room Nikki says, “Tonight’s show at the Download Festival
was magic. Wish you were there; all the pistons were firing and
carburettor was wide open. Sexy, dark and beautiful in the ugliest of
ways or in less poetic terms: We f@cking rocked… and so did Donington
Park. Sweaty, stinky, down and dirty and more sweat… boiling under the
tent and loving every moment of it.”
11/6/07 Nikki attends the fifth
annual Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards at Koko in London with Marion
Raven. Tommy was scheduled to attend but a recurrence of his tendonitis
causes him to miss the event plus sit out the Crüe's headlining
show with Papa Roach at the
Hammersmith Apollo. Fresh from playing European shows drumming with
Evanescence, Will Hunt plays drums during a shortened Mötleyset.
Tommy manages to play the piano parts on Home Sweet Home and entertain
the crowd by coming front of stage
with Jozie to hand Vince his guitar and proceeding to pretend to make
out with Vince instead of Jozie, making Vince blush and say, "I got to
kiss Tommy Lee!" The band leaves the stage without returning for an
encore, to the disgust of some punters who jeer, boo, and throw bottles at the stage. The band attends
an after-party at Chinawhite where Bob Geldof's daughter Peaches was
booked to DJ but cancels last minute
as she had forgotten she had an exam the following day.
12/6/07
Will Hunt fills-in for Tommy on the last Crüe show of the tour in
Manchester, with Tommy only able to drum on Kickstart My Heart due to
the tendonitis that has flared up in his left shoulder. Nikki promises
the crowd that Mötleywill return to English stages in 2009 as the
band returns to the U.S., except for Mick, who spends some time in
Switzerland.
15/6/07
Tommy and Pamela hang out together at The Heart Bar at Planet Hollywood
Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, following another night of her
performing in The Beauty of Magic show with Hans Klok.
18/6/07
The four founding members of the band through Mötley Crüe
Inc. file a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court charging that one of
their managers, Carl Stubner, who also represents Tommy, orchestrated a
campaign of “self dealing” to “divert revenue” from the band. Named as
defendants in addition to Stubner are three companies he’s associated
with: Carl Stubner Productions, Inc., Sanctuary Group, Inc. and
Sanctuary Artist Management, Inc. The lawsuit states that the
defendants “promoted Tommy’s solo activities to the detriment of the
band, and at the same time, mismanaged Tommy’s career so as to harm the Mötley Crüe brand and Tommy’s reputation as a musician and
band member.” The suit further states: “Stubner’s motivation was greed.
He has brazenly said as much. Stubner stated that he received
significantly higher commissions on Tommy’s solo projects because he
did not have to share his take with the other managers. He claimed that
it was a ‘no brainer’ to promote Tommy’s projects over those of Mötley Crüe.
Because favoring Tommy’s personal interests to the band’s was such a
‘no brainer,’ Stubner stated that he would only make Tommy available
for tour dates if the band and the other two managers agreed to
increase his commission quotient. Stubner also demanded one hundred
tickets per show for free, which he then resold at ‘scalper’ prices.”
Furthermore, the suit claims, Stubner forced Tommy to "to become
engaged in 'reality' projects that were bad career moves for Tommy,
harming the four band members, the Mötley
Crüe brand and Tommy's own image."
The suit calls the low-rated NBC show Tommy Lee Goes to College a
"critical disappointment and a ratings disaster," adding it painted
Tommy as "incoherent, lazy and incompetent" and made him "look like a
laughing stock who could not carry a drum beat." The suit also claims
Tommy's participation on Rock Star: Supernova "diminished the public's
interest in Tommy and their overall perception of his musical talents."
Because Tommy was so busy doing reality TV, the band says he was
unavailable to tour with the Crüe, thus causing the cancellation of several key
concert dates. The band claims that they lost eight million dollars in
ticket and merchandise revenue because of Tommy's scheduling conflicts.
The band claims these conflicts were "both real and concocted" by
Stubner to "leverage his control over Lee to his financial advantage
and to Mötley Crüe and Lee's detriment."
The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages of more than twenty million
dollars for lost earnings, lost profits and diminished brand and
goodwill value resulting from the defendants’ actions. The lawsuit also
requests punitive damages because, as claimed in the lawsuit, the
defendants’ “despicable” actions were undertaken “fraudulently,
maliciously and oppressively.”
19/6/07 Carl Stubner and
Sanctuary issue a statement in response to the Mötley Crüe
lawsuit: "Neither Carl Stubner nor Sanctuary Artist Management Inc.
(nor any other Sanctuary company) have ever managed Mötley Crüe
or any members of Mötley Crüe other than Tommy Lee. Mr. Stubner and Sanctuary
continue to manage Tommy and make no apology for having effectively
managed, promoted and furthered Tommy's career with great success. Mr.
Stubner and Sanctuary will vociferously defend this lawsuit which is
utterly and entirely without merit or basis."
As Nikki
attends the premiere of the movie Yellow at The Landmark in West Los
Angeles, Mick spends time in Stockholm, Sweden to work on songs with
CrashDiet, the first sleaze rock band to be signed directly to a
major record label in over ten years. Three songs were cut with guitarist Martin Sweet for the
band's as-yet-untitled album that is scheduled for release in September
via Universal Records.
20/6/07 Mötley Crüe's attorney, Skip Miller of Miller Barondess LLP
in Los Angeles, says, "For Mr. Stubner to assert that neither he nor
his companies have ever participated in the management of Mötley Crüe
is simply absurd. Mr. Stubner took part in numerous meetings and
conference calls regarding the management of Mötley Crüe.
In fact, Mr. Stubner and Sanctuary Artist Management have been paid
nearly one million dollars in commissions from the band for their
management services. Mr. Stubner and Sanctuary are now going to have to
explain their actions, and the receipt of all these commissions, to a
judge and jury."
Tommy's own
attorney Barbara Berkowitz also issues a statement: "Tommy Lee is not
an individual participant in the lawsuit filed by the corporation,
Motley Crue, Inc. against Tommy's personal manager, Carl Stubner and
Sanctuary Management. Mr. Stubner and Sanctuary do not manage Mötley Crüe,
however they continue to represent Tommy Lee personally. Tommy was
neither consulted regarding this matter, nor authorised the lawsuit.
Tommy has not made any allegations against his current personal
manager. He feels fortunate to have been part of the Mötley Crüe
reunion tour, as well as other opportunities outside of Mötley Crüe
over the past several years. It is unfortunate that others believe that
they all could have made more money had Tommy exclusively participated
in the band that he co-founded. However, Tommy is a versatile artist,
and is grateful that he participated in other projects as well."
28/6/07
Tommy leaves the opening of the Los Angeles Pink Taco Mexican
restaurant with Rod Stewart’s twenty-seven-year-old daughter Kimberley,
sparking tabloid talk that they are dating. The two were also spotted
late one night at Kim’s hotel in London during Mötley Crüe’s
European tour. 30/6/07
Tommy helps ex-wife Pamela celebrate her fortieth birthday at Planet
Hollywood Casino in Las Vegas.
7/7/07 Vince is a guest judge at the World
Series of Video Games' Guitar Hero 2 competition at the Gaylord Hotel
in Dallas, Texas.
14/7/07 Vince plays a great
set at Rocklahoma with his solo band, which includes Zoltan Chaney from
Orlando, Florida on drums as the newest member. Having sobered up
earlier this year, he follows on from his much improved vocal
performances with Mötley Crüe in Europe, where he also took time to
watch other artists perform. A rumoured guest appearance from Nikki
during Vince's Rocklahoma set doesn't eventuate.
Tommy DJs
at the Forum in Los Angeles; one of many events on his DJ calendar over
the next couple of months.
16/7/07 Executives from MTV
along with sister company Pocket Books (a division of Simon &
Schuster) hold an early-morning press conference at Crash Mansion in
downtown Los Angeles to give the media and a few lucky fans a preview
of Nikki’s book and soundtrack CD, The Heroin Diaries. Hosted by
Billboard Magazine editor Tamara Conniff, Nikki tells a packed room of
reporters and camera crews that the book was based on the actual
diaries he kept during the height of his crippling heroin addiction in
the late ‘80s. Simon & Schuster Deputy Publisher Anthony Ziccardi,
in describing what drew him to the book, calls The Heroin Diaries “the
most brutally honest and revealing account of drug abuse ever written.”
MTV Senior Executive Peter Baron announces that the literary work will
be branded as an MTV/VH1 book, supported with a full range of “on
channel, off channel and online” programming, including heavy support
of the music video for Life Is Beautiful, which he shows to the media
and describes as “visually bringing the book to life” by combining band
performance with edgy animation of the book’s artwork. Nikki announces
that twenty five percent of his book royalties will go to benefit his
Running Wild In The Night charity that he began in association with
Covenant House. George Lozano, Executive Director of Covenant House Los
Angeles, which helps rescue homeless and runaway youth from the street,
calls Nikki an inspiration and role model for the kids helped by
his organisation. To underscore the point, Lozano introduces Irwin
Gonzalez, an eighteen-year-old rescued by Covenant House, who says that
because of people like Nikki who help provide an alternative to the
lifestyle of the street through music, he has been given “the gift of
hope.”
Media and guests hear a preview of the accompanying Heroin Diaries
soundtrack, written and produced by Nikki, James Michael and DJ Ashba
under the moniker Sixx: A.M. Clear Channel Director of Rock Programming
Jim Richards heavily praises the lead single Life Is Beautiful that is
already top forty on the rock radio charts despite only officially
being serviced for playlists this week. Richards refers to the album as
a complete body of work and draws comparisons with albums such as Tommy
by The Who and Pink Floyd’s The Wall. The album serves as something of
a precursor to the book, with each of the disc's thirteen tracks
coinciding with one of the graphic book's chapters, making the record a
soundtrack, of sorts, to Nikki’s troubled, drug-addled past. Nikki
says, "This music was written with no intention of ever being played
live, so a lot of the stuff was just based on being creative. The only
limit we had was that we had to cut it from a double album to a single
album. Honestly, it got to the point where it was a bit ridiculous,
where one of us would come in every single day with a new idea and at
some point it was like, 'We’ve got to stop; we have thirty five
songs.'" Nikki isn’t sure yet when Sixx: A.M. will tour, saying that
they're just taking things as they come. "We didn't think we'd ever
play live together a few months ago," he said. "Radio is freaking out
over the song, and we didn't even expect that. Somebody had to tell us
that we had the most added song [to rock radio] and we didn't even know
because we're sort of just not paying attention to that aspect of it.
We're just doing it for us, inspired by the book, and now we're playing
live and now people are saying, 'Well, when are you guys touring?'
Well, that's news to us."
Following the press conference, Sixx: A.M make their world premiere
with a live set, featuring Pearl Aday on backing vocals and DJ’s former
Beautiful Creatures band-mate Glen Sobel on drums, in front of the
press and contest winners from radio & MySpace. Synchronous visual
projections of animation and artwork from the book are screened as a
recording of the song Xmas in Hell is played first. DJ Ashba then plays
keyboards for the opening of the song Van Nuys before James walks on
stage,and they are then finally joined by Nikki. The band then follows
into Pray For Me, Heart Failure, Accidents Can Happen and Life Is
Beautiful before exiting, as a recording of Life After Death plays over
the empty stage. 17/7/07
Nikki says Mötley should begin working on their next album toward the
latter part of this year. "We're always writing, but it will take its
time. Mötley Crüe is a big machine. It's like a barge. It takes a lot
to turn it around, but it's something I'm really proud of and something
I plan on doing for a very long time."
23/7/07
Having just experienced his first fashion show as a designer following
Royal Underground's parade in Dallas during the annual Neiman Marcus
Conclave, Nikki says, "We seem to be gaining speed faster than expected
from retail and our design sensibility is spot-on but still edgy in all
the right places."
26/7/07
Nikki posts another Sixx A.M. song on his MySpace page entitled Pray
For Me.
27/7/07
Rod Stewart has given his daughter Kimberley his blessing to date
Tommy, who was recently left red-faced when he hired a helicopter to
woo Kimberley and attempted to land the aircraft in the garden of Rod's
Los Angeles mansion, only to be told by authorities to move on. Rod
says, "I've tried some manoeuvres in my time to pursue a woman, but
I've got to admit this is a pretty strong move. Attempting to land a
helicopter in my garden just to impress my daughter - that is quite
something!"
7/8/07
Mötley Crüe and their management company 10th Street Entertainment
enter into an agreement with Vince and his personal manager's company B
Entertainment. Among other terms, they agree that Burt Stein and B
Entertainment will continue to receive commissions on the same basis as
they were paid before, to the extent that Stein remains the manager of
Vince and until a different agreement is reached.
A song called Reason I'm
Alive that was written and produced
by Nikki Sixx and DJ Ashba is released on the new Drowning Pool album
titled Full Circle. Another track titled
Light Another Candle and co-written by the pair doesn't make the final
cut of songs. This unreleased track also features Nikki's son Gunnar
playing didgeridoo.
10/8/07 American Idol Carrie
Underwood sings Kickstart My Heart with Vince Neil during his solo
performance at Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon.
20/8/07 During a Rockline radio
interview with all Sixx: A.M. band members, Nikki says
they plan to use their successful formula to do it again and score
another soundtrack to a new or classic book (from the likes of William
Burroughs for example), or even Nikki's forthcoming novel, and have an
end destination like a charity to benefit from the body of work.
When asked the status of the Mötley Crüe movie, Nikki says they are
in no hurry to make a bad movie. They
have now gone through two Directors, one of whom MTV fired, because
they wanted to water the film down.
21/8/07 Nikki's Heroin Diaries
book soundtrack CD featuring thirteen new songs by Sixx: A.M. is
released in
the U.S. through Eleven Seven Music. It comes with the promise of
upcoming national television appearances with Jimmy Kimmel, Craig
Ferguson, Carson Daly, Conan O’Brien, and more. Other upcoming national
television appearances include a Heroin Diaries Headbangers' Ball
Special, and VH1 Storytellers - Breaking an Addiction (hosted by
Nikki).
There will also be album reviews/interviews/features to hit with street
date in major publications like Spin, Rolling Stone, Billboard,
Blender,
and more, as coordinated by publicity company BWR.
22/8/07 A judge rules that the
legal papers of Mötley Crüe’s lawsuit against Tommy Lee’s manager Carl
Stubner don't support a cause of action. He allows them twenty days to
re-file the papers with additional facts.
23/8/07 Dilana finishes her song
with Mick at Nikki’s Funny Farm Studios. DJ Ashba also assists with the
song that started out titled Time is the Wound before being re-named
Rotten Apple, and then finally OvaYou.
24/8/07
Tommy has reportedly purchased a six-bedroom, 8,891-square foot home in
a gated suburb area of the Calabasas Golf and Country Club, California
that was listed for $6.75 million. According to listing information,
the house with seven bathrooms was remodeled in 2005 and includes a
jaw-dropping 3,000 square foot underground garage for twelve cars. A
few other unique features of the house, includes a three-story atrium
with koi pond and spa, indoor gardens with a retractable roof, full
gym, a professional movie theater, two kitchens (including one which is
a catering/wine tasting kitchen complete with stone floors and oak
kegs), and a piano shaped pebble-tech pool with a party spa for ten
people.
26/8/07
Vince's manager Burt Stein gives the green light to author Alan Parker
to work on an official Vince Neil biography. Burt and Vince were
impressed with Parker's most recent book titled Sid Vicious: No One Is
Innocent.
29/8/07
The Heroin Diaries soundtrack by
Nikki's Sixx: A.M. sells over ten-and-a-half-thousand copies in its
first week to debut at number sixty two on the Billboard 200 chart for
U.S. sales.
Vince makes a guest
appearance at the Nevada Exotic Dancer Hall of Fame Induction.
31/8/07 Nikki's Royal
Underground clothing label announces it will launch its debut men's
jewellery line later this year. Along with his partner Kelly Gray, they
have styled the collection in conjunction with Mitchell Binder of King
Baby, the high-profile jewellery brand. The twenty-piece line will
comprise of both silver and gold metals. It will convey the same edgy
rock 'n' roll sensibility of Royal Underground clothing with jewellery
styles founded on bold motifs, including those representing the Om
symbol and references to the Hindu elephant god, Ganesh.
2/9/07
Walking in to The Hampton’s Dune nightclub in New York City, Tommy
reportedly asks staff, “Is it cool to have sex in here?” Thinking he
was kidding, Tommy soon shocked a room-full of onlookers after he
started having sex with a blonde party girl on a banquette. As media
outlets around the world publish the raunchy bar behaviour story, a
representative for Tommy says it is not true.
6/9/07 Nikki is a featured
speaker at the eighteenth annual National Alcohol and Drug Addiction
Recovery Month luncheon on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. He was
invited by NAADAC, the association for addiction professionals, to
share his compelling story at this national forum alongside Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Administrator
Terry Cline Ph.D., and Center for Substance Abuse Treatment Director H.
Westley Clark M.D., J.D. Nikki is the first member of the rock world to
share his story of surviving addiction at such an event — a
particularly ironic distinction since he was once viewed as one of the
most wild and excessive men in rock.
The Heroin Diaries catches
the attention of Democratic congressman Patrick Kennedy, himself a
recovering drug addict, who invited Nikki to Capitol Hill to brainstorm
ideas for raising awareness about addiction, and to champion a new bill
to demystify and facilitate treatment options for addicts. Nikki says,
"I sat in his office and he’s poking me in the arm and in-my-face
passionate about it and I was like, "I like you. You’re serious.” He’s
got everything to lose. I said to him, “I don’t care if we have to
create Live Aid for this.” Whatever we have to do, I’m down for it
because I know how to do one thing really well: play music. And I know
a lot of people. The guys in Aerosmith: sober. The guys in Metallica:
sober. Slash: sober. Eric Clapton, David Bowie, Elton John—okay, I
think we have a concert here. In the end, I just want to give it away.
I don’t want five years from now anyone to go, “Oh man, Nikki made like
$400 million off that recovery tour.” I don’t want anything from this."
9/9/07
During Alicia Keys' on stage performance at the MTV Video Music Awards,
Criss Angel and Tommy move and sit with P. Diddy at his table in the
audience. As Kid Rock walks past them on his way to introduce the final
performance, Tommy reportedly mutters something to Kid before a scuffle
breaks out between the two former husbands of Pamela Anderson (who was
photographed sitting on Tommy’s lap earlier in the evening before she
presented an award). Rap producer Rich Nice, who witnesses the event,
later tells reporters, “It looked like Tommy initiated the fight
because Kid was ignoring him. Tommy started to antagonise Kid, and then
when Tommy stood up Kid hit him first with a backhand. Tommy looked
like he was trying to aggressively retaliate and then Kid hit him
again. Security then grabbed Tommy in a headlock and pulled him off.”
With his cigar still in his mouth, Kid is held briefly while security
escorts Tommy out of the Pearl Theatre and into the hotel’s main
casino, before Kid is also ejected. The fight elicits on-air comments
by Jamie Foxx as he takes the stage before presenting the next award,
saying, “Stop all of this white-on-white crime. Tommy Lee and Kid Rock
fighting like black folks – it's hilarious."
When Las Vegas police are
called to the disturbance at the Palms Casino Resort, they interview
Tommy, Kid and eyewitnesses, before issuing a citation for misdemeanor
battery to Kid Rock, determining that he was the instigator of the
altercation. He is not taken into custody, instead issued this summons.
Explaining why only Rock was given a citation, police officer Bill
Castle says, “He was deemed to be the primary aggressor,” and adding
that Rock will have to appear in court in probably three-to-five weeks
to enter a plea. If convicted, Rock faces a $500 fine and up to six
months in jail, though it's unlikely that anyone on similar charges
would serve that time.
11/9/07 Tommy provides a recap
of his MTV Awards experience on his website: “Here I am minding my own
biz having a great time with my friend Criss Angel (magician) and
watching the MTV Awards in the front row saying hello to all my
friends… Pamela comes and sits on my lap, who I love and adore... and
also say hello to my friend Travis Barker and his wife!... and I get a
text from another friend P. Diddy and he says come sit with me, and
he's sitting with Miss ‘Hot as F@ck’ Megan Fox! So I go over and sit
with P! Not a minute later, Alicia Keys starts her amazing performance
(I apologise sweetie; I had nothing to do with the timing and
disrespect). So I get a tap on the shoulder from Kid Pebble. I stand up
and embrace him with a semi-hug and say, ‘Hey dude, What up?’ He
punches me in the face; well, if ya wanna call it that – more like a
bitch slap! Wuss! Anyway, I go to knock this jealous no-career-havin’,
country bumpkin the f@ck out and before I can have a meeting with my
fist and his ugly-ass mug, security guards (not mine) at the Palms grab
me and haul my ass out of the Award show, threatening me that if I move
they'll break my arm – yeah whatever! My security guard Bruce grabs
them and says, ‘I got him. Let go!’ So I’m fine and of course leave to
my room with police and owner George Maloof. The rest is paper work and
bullshit! Anyway… I would like to apologise to Alicia, George and MTV
for the disrespectful bullshit caused by a piece of shit called Kid
Pebble!”
12/9/07
Mötley Crüe files an amended complaint containing newly obtained
evidence in its breach of fiduciary duties and constructive fraud
lawsuit against artist manager Carl Stubner and his three companies
Sanctuary Group, Inc., Sanctuary Artist Management, Inc. and Carl
Stubner Productions, Inc. A press release issued by the band says, “The
evidence, consisting of statements from band members Vince Neil, Nikki
Sixx and Mick Mars as well as ten sworn declarations from key
professionals associated with the band, demonstrates beyond any
question that Stubner was a manager of Mötley Crüe and not just the
manager of drummer Tommy Lee as he has previously claimed in press
releases and legal filings. The newly obtained evidence supports and
confirms allegations in the amended complaint filed in Los Angeles
Superior Court that Stubner breached his fiduciary duties to Mötley
Crüe by orchestrating a scheme for his personal financial gain at the
expense and to the detriment of the band.
“Even though he received approximately a million dollars in commissions
from Mötley Crüe, Stubner used his positions as the band’s manager and
the manager of one of the band members to demand a higher commission
for himself. The amended complaint contends that his motivation was
pure greed. The new evidence also confirms that Stubner demanded
tickets from the band that he resold at “scalper” prices for his own
gain. The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages of more than $20 million
for lost earnings and profits resulting from the Defendants’ actions.
The lawsuit also seeks punitive damages because, as claimed in the
amended complaint, the defendants’ “despicable” actions were undertaken
“fraudulently, maliciously and oppressively.”
As a shock to fans, the court documents reveal that Tommy "recently
informed Nikki and Mick, the shareholders of Mötley Crüe, Inc., that he
was resigning from the band and his resignation was accepted." As the
two shareholders of Mötley Crüe Inc., Nikki and Mick have complete
control of the entity that owns and controls all Mötley Crüe business
and assets including the rights to the name, trademarks, copyrights,
logos, artwork and the right to license the brand. Since 2004, Vince
and Tommy have been employees and/or agents of the Mötley Crüe entity.
13/9/07
Tommy issues a statement retracting his resignation from the band,
stating, “I am a founding member of Mötley Crüe. Based on internal band
issues aired publicly, my future with the band is uncertain. I have
tried to meet with my band-mates repeatedly without success but have
informed them that I’m not walking away from my band of twenty-five
years. It troubles me that the current legal issues, which were filed
by the corporations against my personal manager, are separating us and
causing more dysfunction. I hope we can work this out amongst
ourselves.”
In response to the amended lawsuit filed, a statement issued by Carl
Stubner's rep says, "Certain members of Mötley Crüe and their
representatives obviously intend to try this case in the press, rather
than in the courtroom. Indeed, their original complaint which they also
tried in the press was thrown out by the Court. In an effort to get
something that certain members of Mötley Crüe and their representatives
want, but are not legally entitled to, they have once again filed a
spurious lawsuit which Carl Stubner and Sanctuary will vigorously
defend and seek the appropriate relief from these baseless attacks in
the press. Tommy Lee stands by Carl Stubner and Sanctuary.”
Las Vegas lounge entertainer Jeff Beacher urges Tommy and Kid Rock to
settle their differences over Pamela Anderson in a professional manner
– in a boxing ring for a $1 million winner-take-all prize. Rapper LL
Cool J says, "I'm not sure who'd win in a fight between Tommy Lee and
Kid Rock. You know what we should do? Let's pay-per-view the thing, and
I'll even front the money." Commenting on the incident, Pamela tells
talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres, “I’m staying out of it.”
While performing on stage at
Seacrets in Ocean City, MD, Vince accidentally hits his head on one of
the PA speakers resulting in a nasty cut. In true rock and roll
fashion, he keeps performing as if nothing happened, before checking
into a nearby hospital after the show and receiving six stitches.
18/9/07 Nikki's book The Heroin
Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star is released
through MTV Books/Simon & Schuster, documenting 1986-87 through his
Girls, Girls, Girls era. The book features commentary from Slash,
Lemmy, Tommy, Vince and Mick, security people, as well as his family
members. Twenty-five percent of Nikki's royalties from the book will go
to Running Wild In The Night, the charity he established in conjunction
with Covenant House to rescue homeless and runaway youth from the
streets.
Nikki holds a guest in-store
signing at Borders on Westwood Boulevard in Los Angeles during the
evening. The store sells out of their Heroin Diaries stock and Lita
Weissman, the District Marketing Manager at Borders, says, "We've had
many book signings here at Borders but this was absolutely one of the
biggest."
20/9/07
Testifying for the second straight day in a non-jury trial hearing
concerning financial issues and property division in the divorce of
Nikki and Donna D'Errico, Nikki testifies that he was told his former
model-actress wife previously worked as a prostitute and a stripper,
saying, “I heard she was doing high-end call girl work. I was freaking
out. Your head starts to spin. We have a child together.” Nikki
testifies in the Los Angeles court that a madam told him about it while
Mötley was touring with Aerosmith earlier this year. When he asked the
madam for proof, she gave him names and other information that led him
to believe she was telling the truth. One of the names was of a man who
he knew to be a Las Vegas pimp. Nikki also testified he was stunned to
find out that Donna worked years earlier as a stripper in Texas and Las
Vegas and says, “I was hurt and I was in shock… she didn't tell me
that.”
25/9/07
When Howard Stern asks Nikki what's up with
Mötley Crüe
during a radio interview, he says Tommy has quit the band because of
the lawsuit against his personal manager. He says one would think that
Tommy would support the band but that's not the case. Nikki says that
Tommy isn't the singer or songwriter so they should be fine without
him, and he holds no grudges against him.
In the evening, Nikki makes
an in-store appearance at Virgin MegaStore in Times Square, New York
where more than six hundred copies of The Heroin Diaries are purchased
on the night.
27/9/07
Nikki's new book The Heroin Diaries debuts at number seven on The New
York Times Book Review non-fiction best-seller list and fast gains a
reputation as one of the most extraordinary memoirs of addiction ever
published. The book's entrance in the Top Ten of the Best-Seller list
equals the success of The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack CD, which entered
the Billboard Independent album chart at number seven upon its release
in August. The album's first single Life is Beautiful just entered the
Top Ten at active rock radio and the video is getting massive rotation
at Fuse, where Nikki has made appearances on a number of the network's
shows. As multiple mega-bookstore chains continue to mass re-order
shipments at the fear of selling out, The Heroin Diaries is a top ten
seller at Barnes & Noble and Borders and is steadily rising to top
ten at Amazon.com. The book’s publisher MTV Pocketbooks/Simon &
Schuster says even though it’s in its first week of publication,
shipments of The Heroin Diaries have already exceeded the hardcover
totals of
Mötley
Crüe
’s infamous autobiography The
Dirt.
3/10/07
Along with producer Butch Walker and Joy Division's Peter Hook, Nikki
judges American rock outfit The Features as the unsigned winners in the
Rock/Indie category of the Diesel:U:Music awards 2007 held at Koko in
London.
CrashDiet's album titled The
Unattractive Revolution is released in Europe on Universal Records,
featuring a guest appearance on the tracks I Don't Care and Alone by
Mick Mars, who flew into Stockholm, Sweden in June to help CrashDiet
write some of the new material.
10/10/07
In celebration of its one-year anniversary, tattoo studio Vince Neil
Ink is throwing a month-long bash in true Las Vegas style. Beginning in
mid-October, the VNI Skin Show gives fans the chance to submit photos
of their hottest ink for a chance to win prizes including an
autographed Gibson guitar, a Vegas vacation and a grand prize trip on
Vince Neil's Motley Cruise. The VNI
celebrations will culminate on November 10 as Vince throws the ultimate
rock 'n' roll party on The Strip by transforming Harrah's Carnaval
Court into Tattoo Alley, featuring live entertainment, intriguing décor
and a free performance by Vince.
16/10/07
Clubplanet says that
after shows later this month in Costa Rica and Miami, Tommy and DJ Aero
will be taking some time-off from gigging to focus on their original
studio productions, due for release in late-November/early-December and
available on Beatport.com. The releases will be the first for Tommy and
Aero as electronic music producers, and it signals a new phase in the
couple's progress in the arena of electronic dance music.
During a
Seattle radio interview, Nikki says he's currently writing songs with
Mick for the next Mötley record before demoing them and cutting a
record sometime next year. He's not sure whether Tommy will be a part
of the music since he quit the band.
22/10/07
Nikki says Sixx: A.M. band rehearsals are sounding great. Following the
band's live performance during their press conference on July 16, he
says, "It's our first concert and we don't have too long to play and
had to break in a new drummer. As you all know we don't have a drummer;
it's just me, James and DJ, so we use whoever is available for live or
videos - we do it all ourselves when recording. I've been asked a lot
if we do any Crüe
live and at this time I feel we should stand on our own and not rely on
anybody's music but our own. We don't have any plans to tour, so this
is exciting for us to do this one show. The book is still on the New
York Times best-seller list and our single is Top 5 now. It feels so
nice to step away from my past and focus on the future with my best
friends - what a gift." Back-up singer Pearl Aday updated her fans
yesterday saying, "Rehearsals are rockin' as usual. We've added one
more Sixx: A.M. track to the set, plus a special surprise that will
have any proper fan go through the roof. I'm having a blast, of course.
I'm the little sister they let in the boys club. It rules. I love it.
23/10/07
Mötley Crüe releases the Carnival Of Sins double-live-CD featuring
twenty three tracks spanning the Crüe's entire career. The performance
was recorded 27 April 2005 at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI
and is a companion to the live DVD of the same name. The songs were
originally released exclusively at Walmart stores across North America
as individual Volume 1 and Volume 2 CDs. The tour, co-promoted by VH1
and VH1 Classic, drew record crowds around the world, with the group
eventually playing before an estimated one million in the U.S.
25/10/07 As Vince plays a solo
show at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Orlando, Nikki's new band Sixx:A.M. plays their first
live concert at Halloween Havoc 2007 in West Valley City, Utah with
Korn, Operator, Airbourne and Five Finger Death Punch. A week later,
Nikki says, “The live recording from our first show sounds like we’ve
been on tour for ten years. James mixed it and as usual, with all
things James, it sounds brilliant.”
The
six-bedroom, Spanish-style house in Agoura Hills, California of Nikki
and ex-wife Donna D'Errico is sold for $1.9 million, after being
re-listed in April for $2,495,000 as a reduction from its initial
listing of just under $3 million a year ago. The couple purchased the
property at 31978 Hidden Highland Road in early 1999 for $985,000 and
extensively refurbished, which included fitting out one bedroom as
Nikki’s home studio. Other features included a gourmet chef's kitchen
with granite counters, a built-in cappuccino machine, a pool area, spa
tub, steam shower and redwood sauna, a meditation garden, and a
vegetable garden.
30/10/07
Clark County district attorney David Roger confirms Kid Rock will not
face misdemeanour battery charges over his scuffle with Tommy at the
MTV Awards in early September, after Tommy requested no prosecution
relating to the incident.
2/11/07
Sixx:A.M. gets set to film a video for the song Accidents Can Happen in
three days. Nikki says, “My new book is coming along great... so many
layers to it. It will be a joyride through hell. James, DJ and myself
are already talking about ideas for the album to come with it. But
we're at least a year out... so enjoy this one for a while."
2/11/07 Vince's third-annual Off
the Strip Poker Tournament takes place inside The Joint in Las Vegas,
where celebrities, poker pros and Las Vegas' hottest dancers join Vince
for a wildly entertaining evening, hosted by adult film stars Tera
Patrick and Taylor Wayne. Proceeds from the poker tournament and
charity auctions raise about
$175,000 to benefit the T.J. Martell
Foundation via the Skylar Neil Foundation. Some items auctioned
included a day with Tera Patrick, an all-expenses-paid trip for two on
the sold-out Vince Neil's Motley Cruise, and a selection of signed
sports, music, and movie memorabilia.
7/11/07 Tommy performs a free
live set with DJ Aero at Pacha in New York City that is sponsored by
Pioneer Pro DJ as they unveil the manufacturer's new, state-of-the-art,
SVM-1000 audio/visual mixer.
8/11/07 James
Michael says, "The
video shoot for Accident's Can Happen was amazing. Paul Brown was back
in the Director's chair for this one. I have to say that I have never
been so impressed and amazed with a person's talent and vision as I am
with Paul. He is a true artist. Nikki, DJ and I had a great time and I
think I can speak for all of us when I say we fell in love with this
song all over again during the shoot. It was a long day, but one I'll
never forget. We got to the set around 7am and the entire San Fernando
Valley was covered in a heavy layer of fog... rare for L.A. but in many
ways a gift, as it created an eerie but beautiful setting for the first
few hours of the shoot. As with all video shoots, there were many, many
takes from every imaginable angle, but as the day wore on and the fog
burned away we began seeing playbacks, and at that point it became
clear that Paul's vision had exceeded anything we could have
anticipated. We ended our final shot right as the sun was setting and
we all stood there staring as it disappeared... feeling grateful for
everything."
Bones Elias of Julien-K
featured in the previous Sixx:A.M. video for Life Is Beautiful but is
unable to contribute this time around due to his band's support slot on
the current Evanescence tour. His childhood friend who sings in Never
Enough suggests their drummer could do it, so Trevor Friedrich ends up
being the drummer featured in the Accidents Can Happen video.
Vince participates in the
Rock & Roll Fantasy Camp held in Las Vegas. While at the event,
Vince gives a few interviews where he says Tommy was never actually out
of Mötley Crüe, explaining that there was a press release stating Tommy
resigned, which everyone jumped on. However when Tommy subsequently
issued his own press release saying that wasn’t the case, no one paid
attention to him. Vince says he talked to Tommy yesterday and he talked
to Nikki a couple of days ago and they plan to head into the studio in
January to record a new Crüe album and hopefully have a single out by
March, followed by the album in April or May with a tour beginning in
June. He says they currently plan to call the album The Dirt like their
best-selling autobiography, and he hopes each song on the album will
tell a story from their lives. Whilst Mötley is his main priority,
Vince also says he plans to record a solo album in January, while
continuing to expand his Dr. Feelgood restaurant business. The first is
set to open next month in Palm Beach followed by one in Atlantic City
opening in the spring, then another in Fort Lauderdale. His new cantina
recently opened up across the street from his Las Vegas tattoo studio
Vince Neil Ink.
9/11/07
Former Skid Row singer Sebastian Bach says he's lent chorus vocals to a
cover by rapper DMC of Ram Jam's rock classic Black Betty. “DMC has
Joey Kramer from Aeorsmith on drums and he's got Mick Mars on guitar.
I'm singing the chorus and he's rapping," says Bach.
During the
trial to determine how assets should be split up in her divorce from
Nikki, his former wife Donna D'Errico collapses in a Los Angeles
Superior Court courthouse restroom. Although paramedics are called, she
manages to stand before they arrive and eventually walks out unassisted
looking pale, saying her breathing difficulties are related to her
asthmatic bronchitis aggravated by recent wildfires near her home.
Heavily medicated yesterday, she asked that the court hearing be
delayed because she was medically unfit to go forward due to her health
condition, and because she does not have a lawyer after firing her most
recent one, but Judge Thomas Trent Lewis denied the request, forcing
her to represent herself. Her voice both days has been so hoarse she is
barely audible in court. The trial, which began in late September, is
being conducted in stages rather than on consecutive days to
accommodate the parties and the court. Following the collapse, Judge
Lewis tells them proceedings are over for the day and will resume later
this month.
10/11/07 Vince performs live at
the Vince Neil Ink Anniversary Show in Las Vegas. The event sees
Harrah's Carnaval Court transformed into Tattoo Alley, featuring live
entertainment, intriguing décor and an evening performance by Vince.
11/11/07 A new Queen tribute
album entitled Rock n' Royalty: A Very Special Tribute To Queen is
released and features Vince singing Calling All Girls.
15/11/07 Tommy guests at the
Morgan Rose Celebrity Golf Classic 2007 at the Heritage Golf Club in
Tucker, Georgia. The event benefits the Atlanta Children's Shelter.
26/11/07
A scheduled performance by Vince of the U.S. national anthem prior to
kick-off as the Pittsburgh Steelers host the Miami Dolphins at Heinz
Field for ESPN's Monday Night Football is cancelled because of
lightning. Steelers officials were to lead Vince onto the field to sing
the Star Spangled Banner as the players came out of the locker room to
warm up. However, they wait because the fans also take cover when
lightning strikes and by the time the crowd returns to the stands, ESPN
and the league don't want the anthem interfering with the broadcast.
28/11/07
Nikki and his ex-wife Donna D'Errico reach a settlement on the division
of assets in their divorce to bring proceedings to an end. Los Angeles
Superior Court Judge Thomas Trent Lewis signs a judgment making the
settlement terms official, although details of the accord - other than
that both sides agreed to waive spousal support - are not made public.
29/11/07
Author Alan Parker flies to Las Vegas where he conducts interviews with
Vince at both The Red Rocks Hotel and Vince's home. While in Vegas,
Vince shouts Alan a tattoo at his Vince Neil Ink tattoo studio.
3/12/07
To kick-off a new collaboration between Eleven Seven Music and iLike,
the Web’s leading social music service, Sixx: A.M. is exclusively
debuting their new music video for Accidents Can Happen on iLike and
iLike’s popular application on Facebook Platform for four days prior to
its wide release. This is the first time a major act has debuted an
official music video on iLike before it has been made available
anywhere else. The band will also provide iLike users with an exclusive
series of weekly videos, entitled 24/7/SIXX: A.M., which will show fans
what goes into launching a new band and supporting a new single.
6/12/07
Attorneys for Carl Stubner argue in court and in papers filed with the
court that Mötley Crüe's proper claim should not be against Stubner,
but rather should be made against Stubner’s client, Tommy Lee. Skip
Miller of Miller Barondess, LLP, representing
Mötley Crüe
,
states in court, "This band is not going to sue Tommy Lee; this lawsuit
is not about Tommy Lee. It is about Carl Stubner’s tactics that we
contend harmed
Mötley
Crüe
and cost the band millions of
dollars." Nikki says, "There are witnesses to Carl Stubner’s threats
and demands for more money for himself. Managers have to be held to
higher standards in the music business just like they are in other
industries." Mick adds, “Tommy Lee has been my and Nikki’s friend for
longer than anyone. This band is not going to sue Tommy Lee. We will
hold Carl Stubner and Sanctuary accountable." At the hearing, Los
Angeles Superior Court Judge Richard L. Fruin directs
Mötley Crüe
to go back and specify the threats made by Stubner in detail, when they
were made and to whom they were made. The band's attorneys say they
will do so.
7/12/07
Vince performs the Aerosmith classic Chip Away The Stone with Steven
Tyler on stage at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood,
Florida as part of the Fort Lauderdale Harley-Davidson Bikers Bash.
9/12/07
Vince rides his custom chopper with more than thirty-thousand,
toy-bearing motorcyclists in the three-hour Christmas Toys in the Sun
Run event. Organised by the South Florida President's Council, an
umbrella organisation for motorcycle clubs and associations, the
traffic-stopping procession from Pompano Harness Track to Markham Park
is greeted by waving spectators who pull up lawn chairs to watch the
morning parade. The toys are distributed to needy families across
Broward County. Most of the money raised through the run benefits Joe
DiMaggio Children's Hospital, a Hollywood facility known for
successfully treating paediatric cancer patients. Vince says, "Anytime
I can do something for the charities, I do it." His tricked-out, Girls,
Girls, Girls bike, as he calls it, will eventually be displayed in his
new Dr. Feelgood's Rock Bar in West Palm Beach, Florida.
13/12/07
Mick performs Dr.Feelgood and Girls, Girls, Girls on stage with Tom
Morello during his final Nightwatchmen concert for the year in
Hollywood's Hotel Cafe. Other guests who jam for hours on inspired
covers tunes and collaborations include Slash, Serj Tankian, Alice in
Chains' Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, Perry Farrell and his
Satellite Party, Jon Foreman of Switchfoot, Filter front-man Richard
Patrick, Wayne Kramer of MC5 and Academy Award-winning actor Tim
Robbins. To end an unforgettable night of music, Morello calls the
entire night's eclectic group of music legends back to the stage for a
ten-minute-plus jam on Woody Guthrie’s definitive American anthem This
Land Is Your Land.
22/12/07
The Sixx: A.M. track Tomorrow is to be the fourth song on the Saw IV
soundtrack, alongside other artists such as Saosin, Drowning Pool,
Avenged Sevenfold, and Ministry. The movie trailer of the haunting new
thriller One Missed Call features Life Is Beautiful by Sixx: A.M.
29/12/07
T
ommy is among the celebrities
attending the grand opening of CatHouse club at Luxor in Las Vegas.
31/12/07
Tommy spends his New Year's Eve DJing at Spin nightclub in Minneapolis
with DJ Aero. The pair releases the first music from their WTF?
electronica project, making the tracks Redic, Chicken, CEABA55555, and
You Can't Afford This available online. Toronto-based friend and dance
music star Deadmau5 stayed at Tommy's home recently so he could
contribute
to the music making. Tommy has also contributed some electronic
drumbeats to the production work of breakbeat star Adam Freeland.
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