Motley Crue’s Vince Neil Tore Up Grand Prix Stage

When I was a kid I remember seeing dad’s and grandpa’s alike rocking the “Old Guys Rule” shirts and couldn’t help but snicker at the rather satirical phrase. I had the same sort of sentiment when I heard that Vince Neil, the lead singer of glam metal band, Motley Crue was headlining the Grand Prix this weekend in Long Beach. Fans who have seen the band’s biopic, The Dirt, know that the now 60-year-old singer has put a toll on his body over the years. And fans who have seen Vince Neil in the past decade can see that the lead singer has put on a few extra pounds since his prime Crue days.

With all odds against him, Neil came out as a fireball of energy for the massive Grand Prix crowd as the band opened up their set with Motlely Crue’s classic hit “Dr. Feelgood.” This gig was especially precious to Neil, who is a car racing fanatic. He had a motorsport career of his own in 1992 which led to his temporary hiatus from Motley Crue. The concert combined his passion for racing with his passion for rock and roll. He had performed here once before when he headlined the Acura Grand Prix Of Long Beach in 2015. He was extremely happy to be welcomed back to the unique stage.

The band was sure to deliver the fans with all the Motley Crue hits they could ask for: “Kickstart My Heart,” “Shout At The Devil,” “Smoking In The Boys Room” and “Girls, Girls, Girls” are all essential songs of their catalog and the band delivered them all. Neil was also ample in paying respects to servicemen. He dedicated their powerful ballad “Home Sweet Home” to the military and brought an active marine on stage which ignited a “USA! USA! USA!” chant from the crowd. He also brought two police officers on stage to help him sing the chorus to the quintessential Motley Crue tune, “Wild Side.”

Neil’s lyrics were echoed back to him by fans who seemed to know almost every word of the band’s set. He was accompanied by a solid backing band: bassist Dana Strum who failed to miss a note while simultaneously acting as the band’s hype man, guitarist Jeff Bland who despite his name is not bland at all, and the biggest star of the night, drummer Zoltan Chaney.

Chaney plays the drums with robotic-like perfection, but it isn’t his beats that left everyone in awe. It was his swagger that was the true spectacle of the show. During any given song, he would turn into a hybrid of half drummer half baton twirler and dazzle the crowd with a plethora of tricks. A few of my favorite moments from him are as follows: at one point he held one drumstick in his mouth like it was corn on the cob while balancing another drumstick on his head while still playing the drums, at another point, he balanced a stick vertically in one palm and showed his zen-like ability to play his instrument with only one hand, and for the final cymbal hit of the show, he climbed up a stack of amplifiers and jumped off in a spectacular fashion to deliver his final strike.

Neil will be joining his old friends in Motley Crue for “The Stadium Tour” with Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts next year. The lengthy 30 date tour was originally scheduled to take place last summer but ended up being pushed back to 2021, and then to 2022, due to the coronavirus pandemic. The bands will be playing SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on August 27, 2022.