𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐏𝐓𝐒 - 𝐂𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐏𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐋𝐁𝐔𝐌 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐒 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐊 & 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐕𝐘 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐋…
August 20, 1982 — Mötley Crüe officially released their debut studio album, “Too Fast for Love” via Elektra Records. (Listen)
The band had previously self-released the first edition of 900 copies on November 10, 1981 via their own label, Leathür Records.
Background:
Elektra Records signed the band the following year, at which point the album was remixed and partially re-recorded.
This re-release, with a different track listing and slightly different artwork (e.g., red lettering on the cover and a different interior photograph of the band), has become the standard version from which all later reissues derive.
The re-recorded album also removed the song "Stick to Your Guns", though it is featured on a bonus track version of the album.
(𝙻𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚔𝚢, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟷)
The original mix of the album remained unreleased on CD until 2002, when it was included in the “Music to Crash Your Car to: Vol. 1” box set compilation.
(𝙻𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚔𝚢, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟷)
While the album only reached No. 77 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States, it would ultimately reach platinum status.
(𝙻𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚆𝚑𝚒𝚜𝚔𝚢, 𝟷𝟿𝟾𝟷)
The songs Stick to Your Guns was previously released as a single under the bands Leathür Records label. Toast of the Town, which did not make it onto Leathür Records or the Elektra Records release was the single B-side.
Toast of the Town was later recorded and released by L.A. Glam Rockers Pretty Boy Floyd for their album, Leather Boys With Electric Toys. (Listen)
Merry-Go-Round was released by Elektra Records as single for the album.
The cover is an homage to The Rolling Stones' 1971 album Sticky Fingers. (Listen)
Some sources say that the song Live Wire was released as a single, but I have found no official releases for the song, promotional or otherwise.
The first recording session was in October 1981, a half year after the band first played the Starwood nightclub.
They recorded for a few days with engineer Avi Kipper at Hit City West, a small studio in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles.
There are three known vinyl pressings of the Leathür Records version, along with one known cassette.
The first vinyl pressing had white lettering on the cover and the record label was white with black lettering. The back cover photo of Vince Neil shows him with a large airbrushed hairdo.
The second pressing has red lettering on the cover and the record label is again white with black lettering. The second pressing has a slightly different photo insert of the band.
The third pressing has red lettering on the cover and the record label is black with white lettering.
The album was remixed under the supervision of Roy Thomas Baker and rereleased on August 20, 1982, by Elektra Records, with whom the band signed its first recording contract.
The Elektra version had a different track order and omitted Stick to Your Guns, as well as the first verse from the title track.
However, the initial release of the album on Elektra in Canada (on both vinyl and cassette) was not the remixed version, but instead the original Leathür version with an Elektra label on it, and it included Stick to Your Guns.
This was released two months before the remixed version was released by Elektra worldwide, because Mötley Crüe was about to embark on a Canadian tour and Elektra wanted to ensure a product was available while the band was in the country.
When the remixed version was completed, later Canadian pressings were the same as the Elektra version everywhere else. "𝙸𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚖𝚊𝚣𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚜𝚎 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚙𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚘𝚗 𝚞𝚜 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍…" Neil observed in 2000.
Neil continued; “𝚆𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚙𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚙𝚛𝚎𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚊𝚜𝚜-𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚍𝚞𝚌𝚎 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚠𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚐𝚘 𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚘𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕 𝚝𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜.“But
In 1996, Mötley and Elektra split. The band once again formed their own record company, Mötley Records, and rereleased all the albums before New Tattoo.
The 2002 version of Too Fast for Love adds the Leathür version of Too Fast for Love, Stick To Your Guns (omitted from the Elektra release), Toast of the Town (b-side to Leathür's Stick to Your Guns single), the Raspberries cover song Tonight and a live version of Merry-Go-Round.
Watch the Official Music Video for Live Wire.
Notice: Any reviews shared here are for historical reference. The views and opinions expressed within are not always supported (in full or in part) by Into the Wells. — E.N. Wells
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