10 Banned Hard Rock Music Videos
6. Mötley Crüe - You’re All I Need
In the late 1980s glam metal act Mötley Crüe were on a roll - firing on all cylinders, finding commercial success and, uhm, pissing people off with their music videos. Previously they had to reshoot parts of the accompaniment for strip club banger Girls, Girls, Girls before it could make air, swapping out nude ladies for those dancing in bikinis.
It was the next single that caused more concerns though. You’re All I Need is a power ballad with a violent edge to it and it needed a music video to tell its story appropriately. The black and white short film shows us the disturbing moments of a man who has just committed acts of domestic violence against his partner.
Whilst the murder is never shown, we do see him grabbing a knife then pulling photos off the wall to burn with his bloody hands. The most chilling shot is his girlfriend in a body bag. It was all too much for MTV, who refused to let it air.
Bassist Nikki Sixx said in a statement that followed that “‘You're All I Need' doesn't condone or exploit this tragedy [of domestic abuse]. It clearly shows how one life is destroyed and another ruined forever. And it's probably a lot less graphic than much of what we see on the 6 o'clock news every night.”