29/5/83
Mötley plays the huge 3 day US Festival on the outskirts of Los Angeles in San Bernardino,
enduring scorching spring heat. Mötley arrives at the festival by way
of their first helicopter ride. Day 2 is Heavy Metal Day and Mötley play second on the 435 foot wide stage
at 12:30 after Quiet Riot, in front of 300,000 people. They see it as a great
chance to test some of the new material they had just begun recording,
and they get a huge response from the crowd. After leaving the stage,
they head back to their dressing room trailer and Mick's girlfriend
punches him in the face for no apparent reason, without saying a word. Vince
then makes out with Tom Zutaut's date, much to Nikki's disapproval. Ozzy,
Judas Priest, Triumph, Scorpions and Van Halen follow Mötley's set on
stage. The festival attracts 130 arrests and one murder over a drug deal.
Acts
like The Clash, Men At Work, David Bowie and The
Pretenders play on the other two days. In time, Mötley's performance
at this festival goes down as one of their most important and influential of their
career.
© Paul Miles & Chronological Crue. Used with permission.