Kickstart My Heart – Mötley Crüe

Get ready to crank up the volume and ignite your fretboard with "Kickstart My Heart" by Mötley Crüe, a high-octane rock anthem that blends speed, attitude, and fiery technique. At LickLibrary.com, our note-for-note guitar lesson for this legendary track breaks down every riff, lick, and solo, teaching you how to harness the power and precision behind one of the most adrenaline-fuelled songs in rock history.

Whether you're a classic rock lover, a glam metal fan, or a player looking to boost your lead guitar skills, this lesson delivers everything you need to master the techniques that made Mick Mars an iconic guitarist. Danny Gill breaks down this classic track in this exclusive Lick Library video tutorial.

About the Song and the Guitar Style

Originally released on the 1989 album Dr. Feelgood, “Kickstart My Heart” showcases Mötley Crüe at their peak — loud, fast, and technically on-point. The track opens with a revving guitar effect created using the whammy bar and pick slides, immediately setting the tone for a thrilling ride through intense rhythms and soaring lead work. The song is built on powerful riffs, aggressive leads, and clever use of harmonics, reflecting the raw energy of glam metal with a dose of blues-inspired flair.

Guitar Techniques Explored in the Lesson

Our LickLibrary lesson for "Kickstart My Heart" focuses on a range of techniques that form the backbone of expressive and energetic rock guitar playing. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll learn:

Whammy Bar Tricks

From revving motorcycle sounds to subtle pitch warbles, the whammy bar is used creatively throughout the song. Learning to control this expressive tool improves your ability to add personality and excitement to solos and effects-based passages.

Pinched Harmonics

Mars uses pinched harmonics to punctuate riffs and make them scream with attitude. Mastering this technique will give your playing a more aggressive edge and teach you how to emphasise certain notes with extra bite.

Power Chords

The rhythm section leans heavily on power chords, driving the song forward with raw, punchy energy. Getting comfortable with these will strengthen your rhythm playing and lay a solid foundation for rock and metal guitar.

Palm Muting

Palm muting is used to build tension and add dynamic control. It’s essential for creating groove and variation in distorted rhythm parts, allowing you to move seamlessly between chugging and open sections.

Dive Bombs

Executed via the whammy bar, dive bombs are a staple of ‘80s metal. They create dramatic pitch drops that enhance solos or act as bold punctuation within a riff.

Slides

Used for transitions and expressive phrasing, slides make your playing smoother and more fluid. They also help link notes in a melodic way, mimicking vocal phrasing.

String Bending

This song is packed with string bending, a technique that adds soul and emotion to your lead playing. Perfecting your bends improves pitch control and helps you inject feel into every note.

Alternate Picking

To keep up with the track’s rapid-fire riffs and solos, you’ll need precise alternate picking. This technique boosts your picking efficiency and overall speed.

Hammer-ons & Pull-offs

The solo section features blistering hammer-ons and pull-offs, ideal for building legato runs that flow effortlessly across the fretboard. Learning these will help you increase speed while minimising pick movement.

Vibrato

Mars’s lead lines are laced with vibrato, adding sustain and emotion to held notes. Mastering vibrato deepens your musical expression and gives your lead work a professional polish.

About Mick Mars and His Influence

Mick Mars, Mötley Crüe’s longtime guitarist, brought a distinctive, blues-infused edge to the band’s otherwise sleazy glam metal sound. Known for his inventive use of effects, aggressive vibrato, and surgically precise solos, Mars’s playing on "Kickstart My Heart" is both raw and refined. He often mixed classic blues phrasing with the modern flair of metal, influencing generations of guitarists across hard rock and metal genres. His tone and technique continue to inspire players to this day, from stage-ready shredders to bedroom riff-makers.

Why This Lesson Is Worth Your Time

By learning "Kickstart My Heart," you’re not just learning a song—you’re building a toolkit of essential lead and rhythm guitar techniques that are applicable across countless styles. From improving your speed and accuracy with alternate picking to developing a more expressive touch through vibrato and string bending, this lesson enhances your versatility and gives you deeper insight into dynamic rock guitar playing.

Whether you’re preparing for a gig, jamming with friends, or adding to your practice routine, our step-by-step lesson will ensure you nail every lick just like the original. Plus, the energy and excitement of the track make it a fun and rewarding challenge to tackle.

Guitar Techniques Covered in This Lesson

• Whammy Bar Tricks
• Pinched Harmonics
• Power Chords
• Palm Muting
• Dive Bombs
• Slides
• String Bending
• Alternate Picking
• Hammer-ons
• Pull-offs
• Vibrato

Ready to ignite your playing? Dive into the Kickstart My Heart guitar lesson and give your fretboard the adrenaline shot it deserves.