When Tommy Lee sits behind the drums, the stage rarely remains still. In his most famous stage act, the drum kit rises above the audience, spins and travels through the hall like a roller coaster. Thus, the Mötley Crüe drummer turns the traditional solo into a rock show of his own.
Tommy Lee was born on October 3, 1962 in Athens, Greece, as Thomas Lee Bass. Today he turns 64. He grew up in the United States, and in 1981, together with bassist Nikki Sixx, he founded Mötley Crüe. They were joined by vocalist Vince Neil and guitarist Mick Mars.
The band that turned chaos into style
Mötley Crüe established themselves in the 1980s with a combination of heavy metal, glam rock, stage extravagance and songs that reached a wide audience. After the debut Too Fast for Love came Shout at the Devil, Theatre of Pain, Girls, Girls, Girls and Dr. Feelgood. The latter, released in 1989, became the band's first album to reach number one on the US charts.
Among the most recognizable songs in which Lee's drums are part of the band's characteristic sound are Kickstart My Heart, Dr. Feelgood, Girls, Girls, Girls and the ballad Home Sweet Home. According to Mötley Crüe, the band has sold over 100 million albums worldwide and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Lee understood early on that the drummer should not remain in the shadow of the other musicians. As early as 1986, he told Metal Edge about his ambition to reach the biggest stages: “I always said that by the age of 25 I would be playing the “Forum“ and I would sell out the “Garden“. Later, this ambition was also carried over into the visual side of the concerts. The "Crecifly" construction allowed Lee to perform his drum solo while hovering over the audience, spinning and briefly remaining upside down. The idea became one of the symbols of Mötley Crüe's concerts. Tommy Lee did not limit his work to Mötley Crüe. In 2001, he created Methods of Mayhem, where he mixed metal, rap and electronic elements. This was followed by the solo albums Never a Dull Moment, Tommyland: The Ride and Andro, released in 2020.
From the drum kit to the “train“
Solo projects and a new life for the story
His personal story and years with Mötley Crüe gained a new audience through the film “The Dirt“, which “Netflix“ released in 2019. The film is based on the band's memoirs and brings attention back to the time when four musicians from Los Angeles turned rock and roll excess into their own aesthetic.
Today, Tommy Lee remains the drummer who doesn't just play the beat, but carries it into the air. On his birthday, the most accurate greeting is the music, which continues to sound loud, noisy and without fear of heights.
Sources: Metal Edge, Los Angeles Times