"Misunderstood" is a song by the American heavy metal

Heavy metal music

Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...

 band Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe

Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981. The group was founded by bass guitarist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, who were later joined by lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil...

, released on their 1994 eponymous album

Mötley Crüe (album)

Mötley Crüe is the eponymous sixth studio album by heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. It was released on March 15, 1994, their sixth studio album. It was the band's first and only album released with singer John Corabi, and was the first album of new material released by the band since their 1989 album,...

. The lyrics were written by vocalist/guitarist John Corabi

John Corabi

John Corabi is a heavy metal singer and guitarist who has worked with such bands as Angora, The Scream, Mötley Crüe, Union and ESP , Ratt , Twenty 4 Seven , Zen Lunatic, Brides of Destruction, and Angel City Outlaws John Corabi (born on April 26, 1959 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a heavy...

 and bassist Nikki Sixx

Nikki Sixx

Nikki Sixx is an American musician, songwriter, author, fashion designer, radio host, and photographer, best known as the co-founder and bassist of the band Mötley Crüe. Prior to forming Mötley Crüe, Sixx was a member of Sister before going on to form London with his Sister band mate Lizzie Grey...

, while the music was written by Corabi, Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee

Tommy Lee

Thomas Lee Bass , best known as Tommy Lee, is an American musician and founding member of glam metal band Mötley Crüe. As well as being the band's long-term drummer, Lee founded rap-metal band Methods of Mayhem, and has pursued solo musical projects...

 and guitarist Mick Mars

Mick Mars

Mick Mars is the lead guitarist for American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe.-Career:After his family relocated from Indiana, to California, Bob Deal dropped out of high school and began playing guitar in a series of unsuccessful blues based rock bands throughout the seventies, taking on menial day...

. The song charted at number 24 on the Mainstream rock

Mainstream rock

Mainstream rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada.-Format background:...

 charts.

Release

"Misunderstood" was released as a maxi-single that included three other tracks; a remix of the song, "Hooligan's Holiday

Hooligan's Holiday

"Hooligan's Holiday" is a song by American heavy metal band, Mötley Crüe, released on their 1994 eponymous album. The lyrics to the song were written by vocalist/rhythm guitarist John Corabi and bassist Nikki Sixx, while the music was written by Corabi, Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee and guitarist Mick...

" (Extended Holiday Version), the non-LP track "Hypnotized," and the album version of "Hooligan's Holiday." "Hypnotized" was later included on the Crücial Crüe edition of the album in 2003.

Music video

A video was made to promote the single, and was directed by Brian Lockwood

Brian Lockwood

Brian Lockwood was a Rugby League World Cup winning footballer of the 1970s and 80s. He played for Canterbury-Bankstown, Balmain, Widnes, Hull KR, Castleford, Wakefield Trinity and for the Great Britain national side...

. The video, which featured the band playing in front of an old house while showing clips of the characters mentioned in the song, first aired in May 1994. MTV

MTV

MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

 refused to air the video as there was a suicide reference in the lyrics and a gun sitting on a table in one of the scenes. This is widely believed to be a smokescreen for what was punishment for an interview with the band when the album was first released, earlier in the year. Bassist Nikki Sixx felt insulted by the MTV interviewer's line of questioning and walked out of the interview. Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee later appeared on the MTV program, Headbanger's Ball, when a third video, for the track, Smoke The Sky, was filmed. This video was aired, but only a few times.

Background

"Misunderstood" was one of the first songs that the band wrote with Corabi when he joined Mötley Crüe, working out the acoustic part of the song during one of their first rehearsals together. Lyrically, the song tells a story describing the lives of several people who are dealing with the fact that life has passed them by. Glenn Hughes is featured on background vocals.

Track listing

All songs written by John Corabi

John Corabi

John Corabi is a heavy metal singer and guitarist who has worked with such bands as Angora, The Scream, Mötley Crüe, Union and ESP , Ratt , Twenty 4 Seven , Zen Lunatic, Brides of Destruction, and Angel City Outlaws John Corabi (born on April 26, 1959 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is a heavy...

, Nikki Sixx

Nikki Sixx

Nikki Sixx is an American musician, songwriter, author, fashion designer, radio host, and photographer, best known as the co-founder and bassist of the band Mötley Crüe. Prior to forming Mötley Crüe, Sixx was a member of Sister before going on to form London with his Sister band mate Lizzie Grey...

, Mick Mars

Mick Mars

Mick Mars is the lead guitarist for American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe.-Career:After his family relocated from Indiana, to California, Bob Deal dropped out of high school and began playing guitar in a series of unsuccessful blues based rock bands throughout the seventies, taking on menial day...

 and Tommy Lee

Tommy Lee

Thomas Lee Bass , best known as Tommy Lee, is an American musician and founding member of glam metal band Mötley Crüe. As well as being the band's long-term drummer, Lee founded rap-metal band Methods of Mayhem, and has pursued solo musical projects...

.

1. "Misunderstood" - (6:53)
2. "Hooligan's Holiday
   Hooligan's Holiday
   "Hooligan's Holiday" is a song by American heavy metal band, Mötley Crüe, released on their 1994 eponymous album. The lyrics to the song were written by vocalist/rhythm guitarist John Corabi and bassist Nikki Sixx, while the music was written by Corabi, Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee and guitarist Mick...
   
   " (Extended Holiday Version) - (11:06)
3. "Hypnotized" - (5:29)
4. "Hooligan's Holiday" (LP Version) - (5:40)