In a revealing conversation on the This Is Metal podcast, Alan Niven, former manager of Guns N’ Roses, didn’t hold back when discussing his early dealings with Mötley Crüe—labeling their sound a “sonic trainwreck” while still admitting he saw commercial potential in them.
Niven spoke candidly about the moment he first encountered the band’s music during the release of their 1981 debut album Too Fast for Love:
“The first band I signed was called Mötley Crüe. Are they my favorite band in the world? No. Am I thrilled with the way that they went through life, which, from my opinionated point of view, is as brutish entertainers? I feel ambivalent about that, for who they are, and the way that they treat people, women in particular.”
Despite these personal reservations, Niven revealed what made him reconsider when a demo tape landed on his desk:
“On the other hand, when a tape was put into my hand and somebody said, ‘Would you please evaluate it and see if we should get involved?’, I went home and listened to it. I went, ‘This record is something of a sonic trainwreck. It’s not that well recorded and produced, and it’s not that well arranged. But it’s got an attitude, and on top of that, it has a great little rock ‘n’ roll song on it, ‘Piece of Your Action.'”
That raw edge, according to Niven, hinted at something more—a commercial spark.
“And for me, at that moment, that was like manna from heaven where I was working. That, to me, was like, ‘Yes, this is a possibility of being involved in something that will reach a wider audience.'”
For Niven, the music business was about reach and resonance.
“Survival, as a record distributor or whatever you’re doing in the music business, [is in] how many people you reach, how many people vote with their wallets, and actually buy your record or go to your performance.”
Even though Mötley Crüe wasn’t his ideal signing, Niven made a strategic move.
“So, I wouldn’t necessarily have picked Mötley Crüe as my optimum signing, but they were there, and no one else wanted them, so I went, ‘Guess what? I’m going to take them on. I’m going to sign them, and I think we can get somewhere.'”
