This 1981 Classic Ranked 'Best Hair Metal Debut Album'
- - This 1981 Classic Ranked 'Best Hair Metal Debut Album'
Jacqueline Burt CoteDecember 31, 2025 at 8:00 PM
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While the so-called "hair metal" genre has been somewhat scoffed at by critics over the years, there's no question that bands like Twisted Sister, Warrant, and Skid Row were massively popular in the '80s...and fans are still listening today (which explains why so many groups from back then are still touring live).
Of course, some of these albums and songs are more highly regarded than others. Earlier this year, Ultimate Classic Rock ranked the 11 best hair metal debut albums, highlighting standout initial offerings from some of the era's most popular bands. Longtime hair metal fans likely won't be surprised by many of the records to make the cut: Night Songs (1986) by Cinderella, which included the power ballad "Nobody's Fool," nabbed the #8 slot; Poison's Look What the Cat Dragged In from the same year — featuring hits like "I Want Action" and "Talk Dirty to Me" came in at #6. The aforementioned Skid Row's 1989 self-titled album, known for such tunes as "18 and Life" and "I Remember You," made it all the way to #2.
So which hair metal debut album was ranked at the very top of the list?
Taking the #1 spot was Mötley Crüe's 1981 classic, Too Fast for Love.
"They did it first, and they did it best," wrote UCR's Bryan Rolli.
"Recorded on a shoestring budget in 'three drunken days' (according to Nikki Sixx), Mötley Crüe’s Too Fast for Love is a feral blast of punk-metal that combines the bombastic hard rock of Kiss and Van Halen, the sloppy glam-punk of New York Dolls and the fizzy power-pop of Cheap Trick and the Raspberries," Rolli continued, adding, "Songs like 'Live Wire,' 'Take Me to the Top' and the title track remain some of the band's rawest and most enduring tracks, and Too Fast for Love set the stage for an entire decade of chart-busting pop-metal pretty-boys. Hard rock would never be the same."
Nikki Sixx rejected the 'hair metal' label
In an interview with Guitar World earlier this year, bassist Sixx opened up on the early days of Mötley Crüe.
“Now I look back on it, I was really nailing my influences," he explained. "I was pretty much blending early AC/DC and Aerosmith with the Buzzcocks, the Sex Pistols and all my pop influences. The s—t I loved about Mott The Hoople, lyrically, and Slade — all the stuff that I thought was pretty f—king cool.”
During the same interview, Sixx said the band never wanted to be lumped in with the whole hair metal scene in the first place.
“I thought it was wrong, and we fought it. I still don't appreciate that, to this day, because we were, and are, different, and we always will be," he said, adding, “The thing is, we were real. It was the real deal. It was doom, gloom, destruction, girls 24 hours a day, the fastest cars, the loudest guitars, it was all the s—t that makes Spinal Tap wonderful.”
Whether you call it hair metal, hard rock, or something else entirely, it sure sold a lot of records.
Related: Founding Motley Crue Member Accuses Former Bandmate of 'Betrayal'
This story was originally published by Parade on Jan 1, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
