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Generation Swine is the seventh studio album by the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, released on June 24, 1997. The album marks the return of lead singer Vince Neil following his last appearance on 1989's Dr. Feelgood and the last album to include drummer Tommy Lee until his return for their 2008 album Saints of Los Angeles.

Album

Background

Following the commercial failure of the Mötley Crüe album and tour, the band was under pressure by executives at Elektra Records to return Mötley Crüe to the level of commercial success that the band enjoyed in the 1980s.

The band, then officially consisting of vocalist/guitarist John Corabi, bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee and guitarist Mick Mars, were so frustrated with the failure of the previous album and tour sales that they fired numerous people around the group, including their accountant, manager Doug Thaler, and their producer Bob Rock. The band then hired Allen Kovac as their new manager and started looking for another producer to work with for their next record which was originally titled Personality #9.

After the mass firing, the band was called to a meeting with Warner Bros. CEO Doug Morris to discuss the current state of the band. At the meeting, Morris tried to convince Sixx and Lee to get rid of Corabi, as he wasn't a "star," and reunite with original singer Vince Neil. Sixx and Lee were not interested in the idea of working with Neil again, and insisted on keeping Corabi in the group. With some additional convincing from Elektra CEO Sylvia Rhone, Morris agreed and the band continued with their work.

Recording

Mötley Crüe had returned to the studio with the intention of recording a straight rock record that was to be more aggressive than the Mötley Crüe album was, and with Rock producing they had recorded material such as "The Year I Lived In a Day" and "La Dolce Vita." The band was so excited about the new music, that according to Corabi; "At the end of each day we'd walk around the studio carrying our huge cocks in our hands because the music rocked so hard."

After Rock was fired for being "Too expensive and overproduc the music," the band eventually chose Scott Humphrey to take Rock's place, with both Sixx and Lee agreeing to serve as co-producers on the album. After Humphrey, Sixx and Lee took over as producers, the recording process became very disorganized, as Humphrey and Sixx regularly argued over ideas for the album. Mars' role in the band was greatly reduced due to an ongoing feud between him and Humphrey, and Corabi grew increasingly frustrated with the sessions as well, as he would learn and write material only to find it completely changed by the time he returned to the studio.

As the recording of the album continued, the band was still being pressured to reunite with Neil, and Corabi decided that he had had enough of the frustration of working under the pressure that the band and Humphrey were putting on him. With Corabi out of the band, the door was now open for Neil to return.

Neil, meanwhile, had been busy with his own solo career and the untimely death of his daughter Skylar, when Kovac had approached him with the same idea of reuniting with Mötley Crüe as Morris had presented to Sixx and Lee earlier. Neil, like Sixx and Lee, was against the idea of working with the band again, but Kovac had planted the idea of a reunion in Neil's head that eventually changed his mind. After meeting with Sixx and Lee, Neil agreed to rejoin the band and finish the album whose title had now been changed to Generation Swine.

Musically, the album shows Mötley Crüe trying to update their image and sound, and shows the band experimenting with current sounds such as electronica and alternative rock throughout the record. Most of the album was written while Corabi was with the band, and as such Neil (whose voice is higher and cleaner than Corabi's) had difficulty adjusting his voice to the new material and sound.

Even with Neil back in the band, the album proved to be a departure from traditional Mötley Crüe albums. Besides the aforementioned experimentation with various types of music, the album featured Sixx and Lee on lead vocals for the first time. Sixx was featured on lead on the song "Rocketship," which was written as a love song to his new romance with model Donna D'Errico, and sang lead on parts of "Find Myself" and "Beauty". Lee was featured on lead vocals on the song "Brandon", which was a namesake song to his first-born son, and his then-current wife, model Pamela Anderson.

Lyrically, Generation Swine ranges from songs about drugs and prostitution such as "Find Myself" and "Beauty," to the anti-suicide stance on "Flush," and familial love on "Rocketship" and "Brandon."

Reaction

Generation Swine debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Gold by the RIAA on August 27, 1997. Despite the strong charting debut, the album failed to return the band to the level of critical and commercial success that had been hoped for with the reunion, and according to Nielsen SoundScan the album has sold about 306,000 copies in the U.S. to date. Rolling Stone gave the album two stars, noting that "...Fans who like to be rocked to pieces crave consistency, and Generation Swine is more schizophrenic than Wesley Willis."

"Afraid" was released as the first single from the album. The video featured Hustler publisher Larry Flynt, who also put the band on the cover of an issue of Hustler that year. "Afraid" reached #10 on the US mainstream rock charts, but that too did little to generate interest in the album. The second single released was "Beauty" which reached number 37 on the mainstream rock charts. The band felt that the album's sluggish sales were due to Elektra not promoting the album properly, claiming that the label was only interested in promoting R & B acts. Rhone discredited this claim though, stating that Mötley Crüe was a major priority for Elektra and that the label had spent a large sum of money in order to get the band to perform "Shout at the Devil '97" on the American Music Awards in January 1997.

Speaking of the album in 2008, singer Vince Neil states that the album was "terrible" due to "too much experimenting".

Generation Swine would be the group's final release on Elektra Records, as the label and Mötley Crüe would break their relationship off in early 1998. Future releases from the group would come from their own Mötley Records.

• To promote the album, Skeleteens Beverages in Pasadena, California created a soft drink for the band called, "Motley Brue." The drink came in bottles which featured the new, "Pig logo" and consisted of large amounts of blue #1 which turned everything blue. The intentions were to have people that drank the soft drink urinate green fluid. Mötley Crüe helped design the bottles that featured lyrics from Generation Swine songs on the reverse of each label.

Lawsuit

On July 7, 1997, Corabi filed a $4-million lawsuit against the band for alleged breach of contract, fraud, and slander. Corabi's claim was that he had not received royalties or credit for his work and contributions while he was in the band.

Corabi was only officially credited for two songs on the original pressing of Generation Swine, "Flush" and "Let Us Prey," but claimed that he was responsible for at least 80% of the material on the album.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Nikki Sixx, except where noted

• The back cover of the CD was printed upside down. This was the band's intention.
• Nikki's son Gunner can be heard on "Find Myself."
• Robin Zander and Rick Nielson of Cheap Trick play on "Glitter."

Singles

• "Afraid"
• "Beauty"

Personnel

Recording and producing

• Produced by Scott Humphrey
• Co-produced by Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee
• Recorded by Lenny DeRose, Brian Dobbs, Dave Ogilvie, Steve MacMillan, Marty Ogden
• Assistants: Barry Moore, Mike Geiser, Patrick Thrasher, Patrick Shevelin, David Bryant, Brandon Harris, Bill Kinsley, Gary Winger, John Nelson, Dave Hancock
• Head Programmer: Paul DeCarli
• Mastered by Tom Baker at Future Disk
• Photography: John Eder, William Hames, John Harrell, Dean Groover
• Creative and Art Direction: Duke Woolsoncroft, Duke Design Co.

Certifications

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Generation Swine - Mötley Crüe". Allmusic. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
2. Chicago Tribune review
3. Entertainment Weekly review
4. Sputnikmusic review
5. ^ Rolling Stone review
6. ^ Lee, Tommy, Mick Mars, Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx and Neil Strauss. The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band, Regan Books, 2002. ISBN 0-06-039288-6
7. Author unknown. "Crue to Be Kind". Rolling Stone. November 22, 1996.
8. Scott, Linda. 1995. INTERVIEW: Nikki Sixx, Motley Crue
9. Crücial Crüe Remaster liner notes
10. Billboard Charting History - Mötley Crüe
11. "Gold and Platinum Database Search - Generation Swine". Retrieved 2009-11-20.
12. Peters, Mitchell. April 15, 2008. "Motley Crue Roars Back With New Album, Tour" billboard.com. April 17, 2008.
13. Soeder, John. "Motley Crue Gets Back to Rock 'n' Roll Basics for New Album, Tour". www.cleveland.com/entertainment. Aug 15, 2008.
14. ^ Layne, Anni. "Motley Crue Breaks From Elektra". Rolling Stone. April 17, 1998.
15. Author unknown. "Corabi Files Lawsuit Against Motley Crue, Elektra Records". Rolling Stone. July 9, 1997.
16. ^ Parker, Lyndsey. "And Justice For All...Heavy Metal Lawsuits". Yahoo! News. July 10, 1997.

• Pages with empty short description
• Mötley Crüe albums
• 1997 albums
• Elektra Records albums
• Albums produced by Scott Humphrey