Mars recalls 'insane' Motley years

Mötley Crüe legend Mick Mars has looked back at 1984 and described the band's heyday as "insane."

The interview comes as part of Metal Hammer’s 1984 special, also starring the likes of Metallica, Iron Maiden, Van Halen, Def Leppard and more – and as far as Mars’ memory of that amazing year goes, it was a time of excess, debauchery and shenanigans aplenty.

“There was quite a bit of drinking going on,” he admits. “We did the Monsters Of Rock tour. If you had that lineup today it would be insanity: us, Van Halen, and AC/DC…I think people would lose their minds. It was the first time we had gone abroad to see all these other cultures, castles, history, different foods. It was a great time. I miss those days.

“The Ozzy tour was the height of alcoholism,” he adds of that infamous trek in ‘84, during which Ozzy’s now legendary ant-snorting escapades took place. “Ozzy had this thing where he used to bite people; he was always playing pranks, shaving off someone’s eyebrows, you know. We were crazy bastards. The rest of the band would let off flare guns, take these big knives and cut mattresses in half, throw stuff out of hotel windows onto the most expensive car they could see - all kinds of mayhem. Then there were the drugs, the women, the alcohol…it was insane!”

Merlin was promoted to Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has written for Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He has also presented and produced the Metal Hammer Podcast, presented the Metal Hammer Radio Show and is probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.