Wild Side (Mötley Crüe song)
Encyclopedia
"Wild Side" is a single by the American heavy metal
band Mötley Crüe
from their 1987 album Girls, Girls, Girls which charted at #2 on the Billboard 200
.
described "Wild Side" as more complex compared to some of the simpler songs on the album. "Wild Side" is one of the few Mötley Crüe song that changes in time signature.
Nikki Sixx had written the song during the most dangerous part of his heroin addiction. He mentioned this in The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rockstar.
The song's tempo is 118 beats per minute and the main riff uses a chord progression of A minor 7th, D sus, and D minor, on a guitar using distortion
.
The time signature of the song is a basic 4/4 time signature. In the intro it switches from 4/4 to 2/4. The chorus the time signature changes from 4/4 to 2/4 on the chorus. For the verse the time signature is 4/4 which uses power chords A5, D5, G5, and C5. In the chorus, for the lyric, "Take a ride on the", the time signature changes to 2/4. For the bridge and outro, the time signature changes to 12/8 which uses Power chords C5, A5, and D5.
. The video contained footage of drummer Tommy Lee's spinning drum cage.
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe
Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...
from their 1987 album Girls, Girls, Girls which charted at #2 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
.
Composition
Nikki SixxNikki Sixx
Nikki Sixx is an American musician, songwriter, author, fashion designer, radio host, and photographer, best known as the co-founder and bassist of the band Mötley Crüe. Prior to forming Mötley Crüe, Sixx was a member of Sister before going on to form London with his Sister band mate Lizzie Grey...
described "Wild Side" as more complex compared to some of the simpler songs on the album. "Wild Side" is one of the few Mötley Crüe song that changes in time signature.
Nikki Sixx had written the song during the most dangerous part of his heroin addiction. He mentioned this in The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rockstar.
The song's tempo is 118 beats per minute and the main riff uses a chord progression of A minor 7th, D sus, and D minor, on a guitar using distortion
Distortion (guitar)
Distortion effects create "warm", "dirty" and "fuzzy" sounds by compressing the peaks of a musical instrument's sound wave and adding overtones. The three principal types of distortion effects are overdrive, distortion and fuzz. Distortion effects are sometimes called “gain” effects, as distorted...
.
The time signature of the song is a basic 4/4 time signature. In the intro it switches from 4/4 to 2/4. The chorus the time signature changes from 4/4 to 2/4 on the chorus. For the verse the time signature is 4/4 which uses power chords A5, D5, G5, and C5. In the chorus, for the lyric, "Take a ride on the", the time signature changes to 2/4. For the bridge and outro, the time signature changes to 12/8 which uses Power chords C5, A5, and D5.
Live performance
The song has been a staple at live concerts and has not been left off the setlist since its release. It is usually accompanied by a tremendous amount of pyrotechnics, and is always a crowd pleaser. The video for this song was recorded in Indianapolis, Indiana on Saturday, July 18, 1987 at the Market Square ArenaMarket Square Arena
Market Square Arena was an indoor arena, located in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. Completed in 1974, at a cost of $23 million, it seated 16,530, for basketball and 15,993, for ice hockey.-History:...
. The video contained footage of drummer Tommy Lee's spinning drum cage.
In other media
- It appears in Like Father Like SonLike Father Like Son (1987 film)Like Father Like Son is a 1987 comedy film starring Kirk Cameron and Dudley Moore. This film is a remake of the 1976 classic Disney film Freaky Friday. The film is one of four body swap comedies to appear in the space of a year; the others were the Italian film Da grande , 18 Again! and Vice Versa...
. - It appears in Rock StarRock Star (2001 film)Rock Star is a 2001 American comedy-drama film directed by Stephen Herek and starring Mark Wahlberg and Jennifer Aniston. It tells the story of Chris "Izzy" Cole, a tribute band singer whose ascendance to the position of lead vocalist of his favorite band was inspired by the real-life story of Tim...
. - It appears in Friday Night Lights.
- It appears in episode Performance Review of The OfficeThe OfficeThe Office is a popular mockumentary/situation comedy TV show that was first made in the UK and has now been re-made in many other countries, with overall viewership in the hundreds of millions worldwide. The original version of The Office was created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. It...
. - It appears in Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and DamnedGrand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and DamnedGrand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned is the first of two episodic expansion packs developed for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC versions of Grand Theft Auto IV, developed by Rockstar North. It was first released for the Xbox 360 on 17 February 2009 and on PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows...
. - It appears in the second trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and DamnedGrand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and DamnedGrand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned is the first of two episodic expansion packs developed for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC versions of Grand Theft Auto IV, developed by Rockstar North. It was first released for the Xbox 360 on 17 February 2009 and on PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows...
. - It appears in the documentary DaleDale (film)Dale is a documentary film about the life and career of NASCAR race car driver Dale Earnhardt. The film follows his career all the way to his death in the 2001 Daytona 500. Produced as a collaboration between CMT Films and NASCAR Images, the film premiered in theaters in selected cities in February...
about Dale EarnhardtDale EarnhardtRalph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
. - Mötley Crüe performed it on a 1998 episode of WWF Raw is War,along with the stable D-Generation X.
- The song is the official theme of WrestleMania XIWrestleMania XIWrestleMania XI was the eleventh annual WrestleMania pay-per-view event held by the World Wrestling Federation at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut on April 2, 1995...