Back in October 2022, it was confirmed that former Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 would be stepping in as the new live guitarist for Mötley Crüe. John 5 came in as the replacement for Mick Mars who, around that time, announced that he was retiring from touring with the band.
In the time that’s passed since Mars made that announcement and John 5 was onboarded, there has been a hell of a lot of drama involving the band; specifically, in April 2023, Mars shared that he was suing Mötley Crüe. Given the drama between Mars and the other members of the band, it’s understandable to assume that John 5 may be in an awkward position of sorts – something that former Mötley Crüe vocalist John Corabi can relate to.
During a recent appearance via the On the Road to Rock podcast, Corabi spoke about Mötley Crüe bringing on John 5 and how he can “relate” to the awkwardness of the guitarist’s position. Prior to talking about John 5 though, Corabi is asked if the band has plans to release their 2004 self-titled record, which Corabi sang on; the record celebrates its 30th anniversary next year.
Per Corabi, he says (as transcribed by Loudwire):
“I try not to get involved in anything Motley. I get asked questions, I answer them, move on. But honestly from where I’m standing, Motley’s gone out of their way to remove [Corabi’s] part of their history from their history, so it is what it is.”
It’s after expressing this point that Corabi goes on to talk about John 5 and how he can relate to the guitarist’s position in Mötley Crüe:
“John’s got big shoes to fill, and he’s kind of stuck in this — and trust me, I get it, because I was stuck in this shitty place as well — between Motley Crue and whoever was being replaced’s fans. I had to deal with the fans that were massive Vince Neil fans, and I get it. And it was awkward, at times, to sit and listen to the guys do interviews where they went out of their way to slag Vince. I didn’t even know the guy, so I had nothing shitty to say about him.”
Concluding his points in regard to John 5, Corabi adds:
“They offered him a great gig and he’s doing it, so trust me, I can relate.”