Former MÖTLEY CRÜE singer John Corabi has completed work on his autobiography. Titled “Horseshoes And Hand Grenades”, it was written wih the help of MÖTLEY CRÜE historian/author Paul Miles, and is tentatively due in early 2021.
In a new interview with the “Thunder Underground” podcast, Corabi stated about his book: “It literally goes from my birth — back to the very beginning. It talks about my side of the family — and my mom’s. My dad’s side of the family came from Italy; my mom’s side of the family came from somewhere in Ireland. And the neighborhood I lived in. And just everything. It goes all the way back. It explains the Uncle Jack. If you’re familiar with the MÖTLEY record [I sang on], you know that [the song ‘Uncle Jack’] was about my uncle, and it goes through all of that shit. Marriages and divorces and infidelities, and then the bands as well. What I was going through trying to get a record, and once I got the record deal. So it’s not just focused on MÖTLEY or one band; it’s literally my life from front to back, right up until now. [It covers] THE DEAD DAISIES — leaving the DAISIES to [going] back to pursuing my solo career, making John Corabi a brand or a household name. And there’s no punches [being pulled]. I know I’m being honest. I know there’s a few people I’m probably gonna piss off — a few ex-wives and whatever. But fuck it. It is what it is. It’s honest.”
Corabi also confirmed that he is working on his first electric-band album of original solo material, which he hopes to release early next year. The effort is a collaboration with producer and songwriter-for-hire Marti Frederiksen, who has previously worked with AEROSMITH, DEF LEPPARD, Jonny Lang and Sheryl Crow, among many others.
“Most of it is stuff that [Marti] and I worked on together,” he said. “I do have a song that I worked on with a buddy of mine, Dan Karkos, who actually co-wrote with me for my acoustic record.”
As for the musical of his new solo LP, Corabi said: “All I can say is ’70s… This is the shit that I love, I grew up with. So I’ve got some stuff that’s very [LED] ZEPPELIN-esque. I’ve got stuff that’s just swampy, acoustic dobro blues. And then I’ve got some stuff that’s very ’70s pop — old [Peter] Frampton or QUEEN. And I’m just throwing it all together.
“I think the coolest thing about the music industry right now is nobody’s selling any records, so you pretty much have fucking free rein to do whatever the fuck you want,” he explained. “A guy like me, I’m never gonna get on the radio — ever. I’m never gonna get on MTV. So I’m, like, fuck it. I might as well just do what I want. So if it’s really eclectic, or too eclectic for people’s tastes, it doesn’t really matter at this point. So I’m just doing what I want.”
Corabi joined CRÜE in 1992 as the replacement for the group’s original singer, Vince Neil, who was dismissed due to personal differences. With Corabi on vocals, MÖTLEY CRÜE released one critically acclaimed full-length CD, which ended up being a commercial failure in the wake of grunge despite a Top 10 placing on the album chart. When Neil returned to the fold in 1997, Corabi was left on his own and formed the band UNION with ex-KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick.
In February 2018, Corabi released a live album of his performance of MÖTLEY CRÜE‘s entire 1994 self-titled album, recorded on October 27, 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee. “Live ’94: One Night In Nashville” documents the album in its entirety along with the bonus track “10,000 Miles”, which was originally released as a bonus track on the Japanese version of the “Quaternary” EP.
