Mötley Crüe surged back on four Billboard charts this week. But the band doesn’t have a new album. The record getting all the raves is the 35-year-old classic Dr. Feelgood.
What’s behind the rally? A new special-edition release of the 1989 hard-rock multi-Platinum seller that put the Crüe at number one on Billboard‘s Top 200 back in the day. Dr. Feelgood delivered five massive hit singles: “Kickstart My Heart,” “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away),” “Without You,” “Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)” and — the cut that got the party started — “Dr. Feelgood.”
But as former Crüe guitarist Mick Mars revealed years ago to Guitar World, his timeless electric guitar riffs from that album managed to make it onto another hard-rock classic: Aerosmith’s multi-Platinum smash Pump, which was being recorded in the same studio — Little Mountain Sound in Vancouver — at the time.
“Steven Tyler was doing vocals with producer Bruce Fairbairn next door,” Mars recalled, “and I remember them yelling at me, ‘You’ve gotta turn your stuff down, Mick! It’s leaking into our vocals.’ I didn’t turn down, though. I just told them, ‘Hey, that’s the way I play — loud.’ [laughs]
“I didn’t turn down. I just told them, ‘Hey, that’s the way I play — loud.’ ‘
— Mick Mars
“So yeah, I’m all over the record they were doing. Somewhere in the mix, you’ll hear me.”
As many guitarists agree, Mars’ guitar tones on Dr. Feelgood are among the best in hard rock. While his main amplifier was a 1973 100-watt Marshall Super Lead modded by José Arredondo, Mick has said he used multiple amps, including an unspecified Mesa/Boogie in combination with a Garnet amp for “low-end stuff.”
Garnet Amplifiers was a Winnipeg, Canada, company founded by Thomas Garnet “Gar” Gillies. He was repairing amps for bands like the Guess Who before he branched into making tube amps himself. Although the company had a U.S. distributor, and even signed a licensing deal to build solid-state amps for Gibson, Garnet wasn’t well-known in the U.S.
Dr. Feelgood producer Bob Rock knew of the brand simply because he’s from Canada. Mars says Rock pushed him to use the amp, but the guitarist was reluctant at first.
“The Garnet amp was something Bob Rock brought in for me to use,” Mars recalled. “I said, ‘This sounds like crap!’ But Bob liked it because it sounded real trashy. I used it mostly for low-end stuff.
“I said, ‘This sounds like crap!’ But Bob liked it because it sounded real trashy.”
— Mick Mars
“Originally, I was using Mesa/Boogie amps for most of the low-end stuff, and that’s all I wanted to use, but Bob thought the Garnet would make for a nice blend.’ At first, I didn’t think so — I really didn’t like its sound at all; it was just so horrid.
“But in the end, Bob was right. The Mesa and the Garnet work well when mixed together. I never owned the amp, though. It was always Bob’s.”
As for Mick’s modified Marshall, the amp has become the stuff of legend. Richard Fortus of Guns N’ Roses bought it from Mars in 2003. Prior to selling it in 2021, Fortus sent it to amp maker Dave Friedman for a tuneup. Friedman reported in a 2023 Tone Talk podcast that he may release a clone of the amp for a limited run.
Fortunately for fans of the Crüe, Guns and Marshall, Pete Thorn put the amp through its paces in a 2021 video on his YouTube channel.
As for the 35th anniversary Dr. Feelgood release, it’s offered in several editions, including a deluxe three-disc boxset that includes the remastered album, demos and live tracks, and a 24-page replica tour book with previously unpublished live and behind-the-scenes photos, plus loads of souvenir items.
As of this writing, the 35th anniversary release has reached number 12 on Billboard’s Top Hard Rock Albums, the closest the LP has come to the top 10 on that chart; and number 29 on Top Album Sales, marking yet another a new high.
In addition to those two charts, Dr. Feelgood made its debuts on the Vinyl Albums and Top Rock & Alternative Albums charts, where it placed numbers 18 and 40, respectively.
