Mötley Crüe’s longtime guitarist Mick Mars is suing the band for allegedly kicking him out as he struggles with ankylosing spondylitis.
“It is beyond sad that, after 41 years together, a band would try to throw out a member who is unable to tour anymore because he has a debilitating disease,” Mars’ attorney Ed McPherson said in a statement shared with USA TODAY. “Mick has been pushed around for far too long in this band, and we are not going to let that continue.”
In a 29-page lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles, Mars’ attorneys allege that the band planned to oust him, “to fire him as a director of the corporation, to fire him as an officer of the corporation, and to take away his shares of the corporation.”
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In October, Mötley Crüe announced that Mars, 71, was retiring for medical reasons.
The band said in a statement that they “accept Mick’s decision to retire from the band due to the challenges with his health” as Mars struggled with ankylosing spondylitis.
Mayo Clinic describes ankylosing spondylitis as an inflammatory disease that can cause some of the bones in the spine (known as vertebrae) to fuse, making the spine less flexible, resulting in hunched posture and difficulty breathing.
“We have watched Mick manage his ankylosing spondylitis for decades and he has always managed it with utmost courage and grace,” the band said. “To say ‘enough is enough’ is the ultimate act of courage.”
The band added that it would “carry out Mick’s wish” by moving forward with its 2023 tour, with guitarist John 5 in Mars’ place.
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However, in his lawsuit, Mars alleges that he “made it very clear that he was not retiring, and that he would make himself readily available for recording,” residencies in Las Vegas or other locations, “and any other band-related activities.”
Mars’ lawsuit outlines years of legal trouble and drug addiction related to other band members. It also alleges that the guitarist was the only one who played live for all of his final tour dates, while other members used recordings.
Mötley Crüe’s rep Sasha Frid called the lawsuit “unfortunate and completely off-base” in a statement Saturday provided to USA TODAY.
The representative included a 2008 agreement signed by all band members that said “in no event shall any resigning shareholder be entitled to receive any monies attributable to live performances (i.e., tours).” The agreement also outlined reduced compensation for things like merchandise sales or use of a band member’s likeness if they decided to quit.
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“After the last tour, Mick publicly resigned from Mötley Crüe. Despite the fact that the band did not owe Mick anything – and with Mick owing the band millions in advances that he did not pay back – the band offered Mick a generous compensation package to honor his career with the band,” the statement said. “Manipulated by his manager and lawyer, Mick refused and chose to file this ugly public lawsuit.”
The band addressed the claims about using recordings, writing, “Mötley Crüe always performs its songs live but during the last tour Mick struggled to remember chords, played the wrong songs and made constant mistakes which led to his departure from the band.”
“The band did everything to protect him, tried to keep these matters private to honor Mick’s legacy and take the high road,” they said. “Unfortunately, Mick chose to file this lawsuit to badmouth the band. The band feels empathy for Mick, wishes him well and hopes that he can get better guidance from his advisors who are driven by greed.”
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In Mars’ lawsuit, he claims Nikki Sixx “continually ‘gaslighted’ Mars by telling him that he (Mars) had some sort of cognitive dysfunction” and repeatedly told Mars “that fans were complaining about his playing.”
Mötley Crüe gathered several statements from crew members who supported their claims that Mars would often play the wrong chords, different arrangements from other songs or play the wrong solos.
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Contributing: Charles Trepany
