Now back with  Mötley Crüe, drummer Tommy Lee undoubtedly garners the most headlines of all four bandmembers — due in part to two separate marriages to Hollywood actresses. Born in Athens, Greece, as Thomas Lee Bass on October 3, 1962, his family moved to California a year after his birth. Lee received his first drum set at the ripe old age of four, but didn't receive his first real kit until reaching his teenage years, upon his discovery of hard rock and heavy metal (Deep Purple, Kiss, Led Zeppelin, etc.). After drumming for his high-school marching band, Lee quit high school in his senior year, as he focused entirely on following his dream of joining a rock band. His first real band was called Suite 19, and played the Sunset Strip in L.A. during the early '80s. It was at a Suite 19 show that Lee bumped into his future bandmate, Nikki Sixx.

Sixx was a bassist looking to form a theatrical band that would specialize in anthemic heavy metal, and when he saw Lee play, he knew he had found his drummer. Sixx successfully convinced Lee to leave Suite 19 and form the nucleus of what would become Mötley Crüe.

 The drummer changed his name to Tommy Lee (also earning the nickname "T-Bone" from Sixx), and guitarist Mick Mars joined the fledgling band shortly afterwards. Lee recommended a singer from his high-school days, Vince Neil, and after several attempts to get him to try out for the band, Neil landed the gig during the first jam session. Mötley Crüe quickly built a fanatical local following, issuing their debut album, Too Fast for Love, on their own independent Leathur label. Elektra Records decided to sign the band shortly thereafter, reissuing their debut, as the band began a string of hit releases throughout the decade — 1983's "Shout at the Devil," 1985's "Theater of Pain," 1987's "Girls, Girls, Girls," and 1989's "Dr. Feelgood" — establishing the quartet as one of the biggest hard rock/metal bands of the '80s. The band took rock theater to a whole new level, especially Lee, whose drum solo centered around such crowd-pleasing gimmicks as his entire kit revolving and spinning, while he continuing to bash on the skins.