Vince Neil: "I wasn't ever really a drug guy; I just like to drink."

Vince: 'MÖTLEY CRÜE Isn't MÖTLEY CRÜE Without The Four Of Us'

VINCE NEIL: 'MÖTLEY CRÜE Isn't MÖTLEY CRÜE Without The Four Of Us' - July 28, '08
Larry Rodgers of The Arizona Republic recently conducted an interview with MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow.

The Arizona Republic: You seem to have as much energy as ever onstage.

Neil: Playing live, you feed off the audience. You just out there and rock . I don't feel any older when I'm onstage. We could be playing Whisky A Go Go, for all I know.

The Arizona Republic: Has the recording process changed through the years?

Neil: With technology these days, you don't really go to a recording studio and sit around like you see in the movies. This record, I never even saw the guys in the band. I did all my vocals at the producer's house.

The Arizona Republic: THE ROLLING STONES once did that when they weren't getting along. Should we read anything into this with MÖTLEY CRÜE?

Neil: No, not all. It's just easier. We all travel on separate buses because we can afford it. People like to read stuff into it. You make your life easy and make the things you have to do enjoyable.

The Arizona Republic: You left the band twice but always returned. Is it similar to working on a marriage or relationship?

Neil: That's why a lot of bands don't make it. Once they hit a bump in the road, they quit. We took some time off from each other at one point — but MÖTLEY CRÜE isn't MÖTLEY CRÜE without the four of us.

The Arizona Republic: Back in the band's wildest days, did you ever look at yourself in the mirror and say, "I'm pushing things too hard?"

Neil: I tried to be sober back then, but it was tough because there was no support system. After I got into the accident in '84 (which left a passenger in Neil's car dead) and I did some jail time, I was ordered by the court to be sober. . . . You have to stop when you want to stop, and back then, I didn't want to stop. I wasn't ever really a drug guy; I just like to drink.

The Arizona Republic: What is the key to being a rock front man who lasts for decades?

Neil: You have to really enjoy what you're doing and try to deliver the songs to the people out there the way they want to hear it. I try to stay as close to the records as possible because I hate going to see a singer who sings it differently. It drives me crazy.

Read the entire interview at The Arizona Republic.

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