Motor City Mayhem Review

Released: Jun 30, 2009
Genre: Classic Rock
Label: Eagle Records
Number Of Tracks: 23
Regardless of the right-wing views that Ted Nugent may have, the Motor City Madman proved at his 6,000th show that he still can entertain an audience of 20,000 people.

Sound:	8
Lyrics:	8
Impression:	8
Overall rating:	8
Users rating:	7.2
Comments:	33

overall: 8

Featured review by: UG Team, on july 01, 2009

Sound: When Ted Nugent performed his 6,000th concert on the very patriotic date of July 4, 2008, he gave his fans exactly what they had come to love about the Motor City Madman – namely lots of meaty riffs, patriotism galore, and of course, a bit of chatter about his favorite pastime, hunting. While there are plenty of classic rock artists who have lost their edginess (and energy) with the passing decades, Nugent is an anomaly. At 60 years of age, the guitarist/vocalist has somehow maintained both his wild, uninhibited persona and his playing skills. The main difference is the way he is deciding to focus his wild-and-crazy persona, which is now being a poster child for the gun-toting right wing. Even if your political views don’t click with Nugent’s, it’s hard to argue with the fact that he is still the consummate onstage performer when listening to the new live 2-disk CD Motor City Mayhem.

Setting the stage for the 6,000th concert at DTE Energy Music Theater in Detroit, Michigan, was many of the musicians that figured prominently in Nugent’s career throughout the years. With backing from Derek St. Holmes (the vocalist behind such classics as “Stranglehold,” “Hey Baby,” and “Dog Eat Dog”), Johnny Bee Bdanjek (drummer for Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels), and even former guitar teacher Joe Podorsik, Nugent had all the makings of a memorable event. And for the most part, Motor City Mayhem is an engaging, nostalgic venture. With 2 disks and 23 tracks (21 actual songs, an intro, and an outro), the concert release features all the big hits, into which Nugent still injects new life.

There is no question that Nugent still can engage an audience, particularly considering he is one of the most honest, outspoken rock artists around. That tends to be both a good and a bad thing during the 6,000th performance. If you came to hear the hits “Motor City Madhouse,” “Wango Tango,” “Cat Scratch Fever,” and “Stranglehold,” Nugent and his band delivered. It was especially effective with St. Holmes once again on vocals, and Nugent is still an amazing talent on the guitar. Between each song Nugent would shout with the enthusiasm of 20 or 30 men, and it’s hard not to be completely wrapped up in the performance because of that fact.

The main issue comes – and it’s probably not even an issue for a lot of people – with Nugent’s tendency to prattle on about topics like hunting and loving America. By now most people know Nugent’s political views, but do be prepared for a whole lot of talk about living “Independence Day every single day” and “celebrating freedom.” Again, there is nothing wrong with those comments, but he does return to the topic a bunch. When it comes time to perform “Great White Buffalo” and “Fred Bear,” Nugent goes into hunter mode and for what seems like several minutes repeats how he will “sacrifice and eat the buffalo.” What can you say? It’s Nugent. // 8

Lyrics and Singing: Nugent is an icon in the classic rock world, and he has never been apologetic about his lifestyle. Back in the day he was quite the ladies’ man, and songs like “Love Grenade” and “Wang Dang Sweet Poontang” certainly chronicle that era. There is nothing subtle about Nugent’s lyrical approach, and frankly, it works extremely well for the rock genre. With over 20 songs during the concert, you get plenty of material (much of which doesn’t even broach the topic of sex), and fans of the rock icon shouldn’t be disappointed. // 8

Impression: When you purchase a ticket to see a Ted Nugent concert, you probably know what to expect. The last time I had the opportunity to see the guitarist, it was during the Iraqi War and Nugent was all about taking down the terrorists and extolling the virtues of Bush. The Bush era has passed, but Nugent still loves his country, and that comes across quite clearly between each track. If you don’t care to hear his views on killing wildlife or the spirit of America, you always have the option of hitting the “next” button. Musically, however, Nugent delivers in full. After hearing the enthusiasm and musical chemistry on Motor City Mayhem, it wouldn’t be the least bit surprising to one day hear about Nugent putting on his 7,000th, 8,000th, or hell, 10,000th show a few years down the line. // 8

- Amy Sciarretto (c) 2009

Comments

[canvasDude]

first!

[rythymroach]

Ted Nugent is the bomb period!

[sambargun]

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

[Big Spender]

I think it's you who is the loser sambargun, this man is doing his thing and you come up hating all over his page. Sure, you're entitled to your opinion but what's the use in claiming one guitar player is better than another purely based on several incidents? Ted Nugent and Shawn Lane both made their marks for the individual talents, there is no definitive 'greatest'.

[DOA12345]

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

oh wow, ted nugent got out of vietnam by faking an illness? I can't believe i've never heard about this ever. Sarcasm aside, ted nugent is and has always been a great entertainer and one of my personal favorite guitarists, gotta check this cd out

[zAg1619]

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

So, you dislike the guy so much, you really felt compelled to tell us all about it though? Come on.. And besides, who the hell "takes pot and booze"? If you really feel as though that is what can improve a musician, your logic is flawed severely. And as for his hunting, I'm pretty sure he eats most every thing that he kills, a practice that has gone on for thousands and thousands of years. I mean, I'm not one for hunting as a sport, but if you eat it, go right on ahead. Go back to PETA bro

[edbert]

Lol gotta love liberal bashing...and besides, during the war Nuge was doing what a lot of other musicians were, PLAYING MUSIC. Name me a famous musician that did go off to Vietnam...

Anyway I was at this show, definitely one of his best, Nuge was great as always and I busted when Derek St. Holmes sang Hey Baby, his voice has just as much power today as it did in the 70s. What an awesome 4th of July last year.

[The Shroom420]

DOA12345 wrote:

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

oh wow, ted nugent got out of vietnam by faking an illness? I can't believe i've never heard about this ever. Sarcasm aside, ted nugent is and has always been a great entertainer and one of my personal favorite guitarists, gotta check this cd out

He did something like sitting in his own filth for days so he would be too sick to be drafted, but still, I would've done the same thing if I was alive and could've thought of it. Maybe everyone should of, it was a horrible war. Not like WE were the ones being invaded and he ran in his cellar or something

[zAg1619]

The Shroom420 wrote:

DOA12345 wrote:

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

oh wow, ted nugent got out of vietnam by faking an illness? I can't believe i've never heard about this ever. Sarcasm aside, ted nugent is and has always been a great entertainer and one of my personal favorite guitarists, gotta check this cd out

He did something like sitting in his own filth for days so he would be too sick to be drafted, but still, I would've done the same thing if I was alive and could've thought of it. Maybe everyone should of, it was a horrible war. Not like WE were the ones being invaded and he ran in his cellar or something

Exactly.. Knowing what we know today, would any of you have honestly signed up, or have been willingly drafted into Nam? I sure as hell wouldn't.. Besides, it isn't like Ted denies the fact. Did he not go over to Fallujah and Afghanistan for a tour or something, just to show people that he wasn't yellow? The man is outspoken, and doesn't say shit just to make people like him, which I view as an admirable quality, while PETA made death threats to him and his children, over his hunting and eating of animals? That is just fantastic ****ing logic right there...

[boston1992]

i wish he would do the tarzan thing again, hes still a great musician
and im all for animals, but if hes eating them its ok by me. to criticize him for doing that would be like criticizing almost every culture in history,

oh, and f*** peta, there just completely errational

[Guitarmaster94]

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

Really? I mean who REALLY cares about this? So what if he did, he's a good entertainer and that's that. I agree with zAg1619. He doesn't say shit to get the people's admiration, he does it through talent.

[iksero]

I'm a huge fan of Ted. He's one of what 3 conservative rock stars? And one of what 2 clean rock stars? I have major respect that he says what he believes in and doesn't care.

[FearOfTheDuck]

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

I would've done that, it was a stupid war and it was lost.

[Ingsoc]

MAN he has a lot of crossbows.....

Pretty good on the guitar too.

[Uranutan]

FearOfTheDuck wrote:

sambargun wrote:

Conservative cocksucker, he talks big about the US army and its virtues, but he cant hide the fact that he faked an illness to escape the army draft. Maybe he should have taken some Pot and some booze, it would have straightened him out and made him channel all his energy into some decent songwriting instead of killing animals. He is supposedly good on the guitar but still managed to get embarrassed onstage by the late Great Shawn Lane. What a loser.....

I would've done that, it was a stupid war and it was lost.

You wouldn't have known that the war would have been lost back then.

Anyway, it's different when it's coming from someone who's a loud, obnoxious, warmongering redneck.

[muya]

lol i see in the EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS section 311 saying: "We're just glad we can still do it..."

and then i see ted nugent rockin 6,000th show and hes like 60 lmao just a badass and **** you haters

[the5thhorseman]

zAg1619 wrote:

Exactly.. Knowing what we know today, would any of you have honestly signed up, or have been willingly drafted into Nam? I sure as hell wouldn't.. Besides, it isn't like Ted denies the fact. Did he not go over to Fallujah and Afghanistan for a tour or something, just to show people that he wasn't yellow? The man is outspoken, and doesn't say shit just to make people like him, which I view as an admirable quality, while PETA made death threats to him and his children, over his hunting and eating of animals? That is just fantastic ****ing logic right there...

This is all fine and good, and I don't care that Nugent decided to get out of the draft by faking illness, but because of that he sure does sound like a hypocrite when he criticizes other Americans for not supporting the wars overseas. I'm actually more pissed off about some of the stuff he's said about Phil Lynott and other musicians that used drugs. He said he'd like to piss on Lynott's grave when the man's body wasn't even cold in the ground...days after he died. Nugent is no saint himself anyway. He needs to grow up and realize he's only Fox News' puppet.

[TenaciousDrT]

nice guitar player and everything but otherwise...a dickhead. But that shouldn't matter - as long as the music is good.

[Jersey1]

look were all on this site because we love music...i am a huge fan of ted nugent.Dont go off on the guy cause he dodged a draft..actually pretty smart..but if you look at his music, its quite remarkable..look at great white buffalo and stranglehold..his care free wild man attitude is what made ted nugent, ted nugent. Personally top guitarist in my book..Thats my opinion.."Ya cant grill it, till ya kill it."wether u hate him or like him jus take some time to listen to some of his riffs.He's a true person, he's not scared to say what he thinks. People want to hear the truth but really there afraid of the truth..People now get to offended by the truth and thats the prob.

[Perpetual Burn]

Didn't he hate Pantera's cover of Cat Scratch Fever? I for one thought Phil did a better job on the vocals.

[Melodic_Rocker]

Ignorant, racist tool is what Ted Nugent is.

[Do Re Mi]

Perpetual Burn wrote:
Didn't he hate Pantera's cover of Cat Scratch Fever? I for one thought Phil did a better job on the vocals.

Haha agreed. I thought Pantera's version was much better all around.

[twomintomid]

ted nugent for president lol

[flame843]

Melodic_Rocker wrote:

Ignorant, racist tool is what Ted Nugent is.

overly patriotic =/= racist

he's very conservative but I've never heard of him saying or doing anything racist. he just is who he is and isn't ashamed of it.

[DiveRightIn63]

Perpetual Burn wrote:

Didn't he hate Pantera's cover of Cat Scratch Fever? I for one thought Phil did a better job on the vocals.

He mostly hated it just because the fact Pantera sort of promoted alcohol and drug use.

And like the article says, "If you don’t care to hear his views on killing wildlife or the spirit of America, you always have the option of hitting the “next” button." If you don't want to hear him, turn off the TV, turn off the radio.

[BassGuitar Hero]

the5thhorseman wrote:

This is all fine and good, and I don't care that Nugent decided to get out of the draft by faking illness, but because of that he sure does sound like a hypocrite when he criticizes other Americans for not supporting the wars overseas.

Not supporting a war and not going and participating in a war are completely different things. I don't think he wants everyone in the U.S. to sign up for the army and head overseas, but I do think he wants them to at least help out the soldiers who are having a hard time fighting over there.

[pyritmann]

The people of your country should ALWAYS support your troops, but should question every war. accepting what your country tells you without questioning is retarded, but when people are dying to keep you safe, respect that no matter what your political views are. Nugent is a great guitar player and does seem to go overboard a little, but at least he believes what he believes even though conservatism is so "uncool" these days in the music scene.

[dannydesktop]

not a fan of his politics, tho i do think it's kinda dumb he's still trying to rep michigan even tho he moved, i'm sure he'd actaully get more of a crowd elsewhere too.

[Hammerheaded]

I'm a Vietnam Vet and I don't blame him one bit for not wanting to go there. It Sucked!!! The reason we fought in Vietnam was for personal freedom and that includes the decision to not go to war. Ted Nugent is a true patriot regardless of his past. He does more on stage in one performance to promote patriotism than you can do in your lifetime. Give him a break will ya! Long Live Ted!!!

[guitarplayer292]

flame843 wrote:

Melodic_Rocker wrote:

Ignorant, racist tool is what Ted Nugent is.

overly patriotic =/= racist

he's very conservative but I've never heard of him saying or doing anything racist. he just is who he is and isn't ashamed of it.

i wouldn't say he's racist because being somebody as big in the blues as Ted can be, that's just hypocritical. you can't be racist AND like the blues.

[avengedchicken]

Racism is too much of an issue today...if people would stop trying to meld black and white culture and just accept our differences (while mantaining equal rights) then there wouldnt be all of this sh*tty racist squabbling going on about everything.

Never been a big fan of Teds music...but love his values.

Conservative rockers are a relief...Ted Nuegent and Avenged Sevenfold are the only 2 on my ipod. And I have a lot of artists.

[blackened5150]

Back in the day he was quite the ladies’ man, and songs like “Love Grenade” and “Wang Dang Sweet Poontang” certainly chronicle that era.

Love Grenade was released in 2005 not 'back in the day.'

[IggyMorrison]

If I could take all the things I hate and put them in one person the result would be... Ted Nugent.