Might As Well Be On Mars // Motley Crue

Starry Eyes

Friday, June 9, 1981

It was the day of the big show: the band's second at the Whisky, and the one that Nikki was adamant Evie attended. Motley had a brand new song, and this night was the first time they were playing it live. Mick and Nikki refused to let her even read the lyrics or glance at the notes. "You'll just have to wait to hear it at the show, like everyone else," they teased her.

Nikki was equally adamant that Evie witnessed everything from the front row of the gig, so she left an hour earlier than she usually did and was one of the first in line outside the venue. It had been three or so weeks since Evie went to one of their shows, and she was pleasantly surprised by how the audience grew in size. Where there were once two hundred people, there were now five hundred, plus some others who stood outside the venue, listening from the street because they couldn't afford tickets.

No longer was she one of about twenty women in the place-- she found herself a little jealous that the women outnumbered the men. She guessed she wasn't the only one who found the bassist's appearance just as impressive as his playing.

The feelings of jealousy would melt away, though, when she realized why Nikki had insisted she be at the show.

The band went through three songs that Evie had already heard: Public Enemy #1, Take Me To The Top, and Piece of Your Action. The guys weren't lying when they said the audience loved them. There was nobody calling Vince a chick or throwing things; only people cheering and singing along. At the conclusion of the third song, the lights went off and there was a short instrumental intermission. Then, Vince's voice could be heard coming through the speakers.

"Now what you're about to hear, ladies and gentlemen, is something nobody else in this fucking world has heard before." Cue the cheering. "This is a brand new song, and you fuckers are gonna be the first ones to hear it. Are you ready?" They let the anticipation go on for a bit longer. When the lights came back up, Nikki was standing in front of Evie. Their eyes met at the same time Vince said, "This one is called Starry Eyes. Let's go, boys!"

Tommy was the star of the show for a first couple of beats, then the rest of the guys picked up.

"When she laughs, she's got the power of a child in her eyes.

But when you cry, now, she'll hold you like a man's supposed to be held.

I can't get in into words how it feels

Or get it right in this song, oh no, no, no"

Nikki kept looking at her with a smile on his face, but it didn't hit Evie why until the second verse.

"Standing alone in the light, you can see her cry

With a smile and a wink and a sparkle in her eyes

She calmly sighed, 'I will be alright'

Well, hey, child, you've had to take the pain of a man on the streets,

You've gotta let me in, you needed a friend even just for one night."

The world around Evie stopped. She felt like the only person in the venue. Vince's wails and her father's guitar solo sounded far away. She could only focus on Nikki and her pounding heart. By the time the song finished and Come On And Dance began, Evie felt weightless. For the rest of the show, she couldn't concentrate on the band; she only thought about what Starry Eyes meant for her and her father's bandmate.

After the performance was over, Evie lingered in the audience section of the Whisky. Normally, she would head straight to the backstage area as soon as there was a clear enough path to the door, but this time, she needed more time to think about what she was going to say to Nikki when she saw him. She knew what she wanted to say (and do), but some part of her was afraid that it was going to ruin everything.