John 5 has denied accusations that he relies on pre-recorded guitar tracks during MÖTLEY CRÜE performances.
A number of YouTube videos had surfaced, suggesting that John 5 wasn’t actively playing during the song “Wild Side,” as his hands appeared motionless while the music played on.
However, in a recent Instagram video posted on Tuesday, June 24, John 5 directly addressed these claims and clarified the situation for non-musicians.
He stated, “I want to clear up some confusion. Somebody online or some website is claiming, ‘Oh, John’s playing to a backing track. His hand isn’t even on the guitar.’ But what I’m doing is just using hammer-ons and pull-offs. If you’re not a musician, you might not understand what’s happening.”
Demonstrating the hammer-on and pull-off technique he employs onstage, he further explained, “I believe there’s a part in ‘Wild Side’ circulating online where it looks like my hand isn’t on the guitar. I have this trick where I flip the pick around on my neck. It’s quite simple. Many things can be played with just one hand. Musicians are aware of this, so there’s no need for concern. No backing tracks involved. It’s really straightforward.”