Chris Best
CBS11TV.com
11,000 or so sweaty rock n' roll fans filed into the Superpages.com center for a good old fashioned rock show Saturday, and they weren't disappointed. Hair metal legends Motley Crue took the fans back 20 years for the anniversary of their best selling album "Dr. Feelgood."
Vince Neil, Tommy Lee, Nikki Sixx, and Mick Mars played the album from top to bottom in honor of the anniversary. There was a bit of irony when they reached the final song on the Feelgood album, "Time for change." Neil belted out the lyrics: "Now It's Time For Change, Nothing Stays The Same," while simultaneously proving those words wrong. To the casual observer at Saturday night's show, the only thing that has changed about the Crue in 20 years is the waistline on Vince Neil's stone washed jeans. And the fans couldn't have been happier about that. "Lots of things have changed for the good and the bad in the last 20 years," Neil told the crowd, "but one thing never has, the rock fan!"
Drummer Tommy Lee tells TXA 21 that he has been surprised by the show of support for fans on this year's Crue Fest tour. Dallas fans did not disappoint, a huge crowd sang right along to every word as the band wound its way loudly through the Feelgood album. From his backstage dressing area Lee also described how he and lead singer Vince Neil orchestrated the elaborate beginning of the show involving what looked like a scantily-clad 10 foot tall nurse pushing a giant wheelchair that could have been a prop in a "Saw" film. A curtain falls and the band appears in a padded cell which eventually separates and floats to the ceiling to give the crowd a full view of the stage.
The festival started in the heat of the 96 degree afternoon. Concert-goers struggled to stay cool in the shade and misting tents were popular throughout the day. Things cooled off a touch though by nightfall and about the time Godsmack took the stage there was an occasional refreshing breeze. The breeze had no effect on the loud, fiery Godsmack members who were pouring with sweat as the show climaxed. That's when lead singer Sully Erna's drum kit swung onto stage. He and drummer Shannon Larkin performed an intense drum duet.
Dallas' own Drowning Pool performed earlier, during just about the hottest part of the day. The perspiring throng of fans jumped up and down as the band yell/sang the lyrics "Let the Bodies Hit the Floor," and you thought bodies might actually just hit the floor from heat exhaustion. DP also told TXA 21 News in an interview on their tour bus that they are excited that a legendary Dallas music venue is set to re-open this week. They played at Trees in Deep Ellum when they were on the road to rock stardom, and say they'd love to play a New Year's Eve show there. According to postings online Trees will open August 14th.
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