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Neil rocks Palladium

Vince Neil is Motley Crue.

The singer's high pitched vocals, big blond hair and, don't forget, the make-up and spandex that all made Motley Crue the hard rock powerhouse it was. But after the band threw out Neil a few years back and replaced him with a new singer, the Crue failed miserably.

While Neil's solo career hasn't been any more illustrious than the Crue's since his departure, Vince Neil solo is the closest thing you can get to the original Motley Crue sound without a reunion.

In Motley Crue, as in most bands, it is the vocalist who makes the band. Neil was the voice of the band -- in his vocals and in his offstage banter. His blond hair separated him from the other black-haired greaseballs in the band, and his attitude gave the band the balls that made the Crue sell-out arenas for almost a decade.

At Neil's Thursday night performance at The Palladium in Roseville, it was evident that guitarists, bassists and drummers are replaceable -- but a good vocalist is not. Neil holds the aura to Motley Crue, even though his former bandmates hold the title to the name.

Opening with the Crue classic "Kickstart My Heart," Neil's energy and wild stage persona were in effect. In ripped blue jeans, a white V-neck T-shirt, a black Georgetown Hoyas button-down, a black headband and wristbands, Neil was ready to rock. He seemed happy to be playing to the mixed young and old audience, and continued to tell the crowd how happy he was throughout the show. "Detroit is like home to me," he said repeatedly.

Neil slammed through mostly Motley Crue songs with a few of his own songs mixed in, like "Sister of Pain" and "You're Invited But Your Friend Can't Come," in which he forgot some of the trite words. He also played some material from his recent studio album, "Carved In Stone," like the rather dull "Breakin' In the Gun."

But while Neil's solo material severely lacks any merit on record and sounds immensely better live, the audience, and Neil too, were clearly more interested in the classic Motley material. Neil and his band played through the Crue classics "Home Sweet Home," "Red Hot," "Dr. Feelgood," "Same Ol' Situation" and "Girls, Girls, Girls" in which he invited some of his new Detroit friends on stage to dance. The songs all sounded as good as if Motley Crue were playing them, and Neil's vocals were surprisingly solid.

For an encore, the band returned to play the Crue classics "Wild Side" and the glam rockers' first hit, "Live Wire," again tight and true to the originals.

Even though he didn't write any of the Motley Crue songs (they were all written by Motley bassist Nikki Sixx), Neil still carries them as if they were his own. He clearly marks his territory as the only person who should be singing Motley Crue's glam rock masterpieces.