Former Mötley Crüe vocalist John Corabi recently sat down with Andrew Daly for an interview with Ultimate Guitar. Following is an excerpt from the chat.

UG: In the wake of you leaving Mötley Crüe and Bruce Kulick leaving KISS, you formed Union. How did it initially happen?

Corabi: "What a fucking great band, man. So, Bruce and I knew each other through Nikki, which is fucking ironic. The way I recall it is that I had just been given my walking papers from Mötley, and Nikki had a barbecue at his house. And supposedly Bruce was there, and he and Nikki got to talking about this and that, and at some point, I came up. So, Nikki knew Bruce was just out of KISS, and I think he was like, 'You should call Corabi and do something. You guys have a lot of the same influences.' Bruce must have agreed because he reached out, we talked, and I decided to go down to his house to hang out and see if there was anything there.

And the first day we were together, we wrote this song called 'Around Again,' which ended up on the first Union record. It was very therapeutic for us because we were going through the same things. Bruce has lost his gig with KISS, and I had just lost mine with Mötley. And then Bruce's relationship with his wife broke down, and my girlfriend had just left, so we were on the same wavelength. We'd get a cup of coffee, sit down and bullshit about our day. And then, once we'd chilled out, we'd put pen to paper and write about everything that was going on in our lives."

UG: What was the final nail in the coffin for Union?

Corabi: "We weren't getting any radio play, and we weren't getting on MTV. We were just this entity that nobody really wanted to touch. So, we were out doing our own thing, touring in a van with a trailer and next to no crew guys. But the crazy thing is we almost had a shot, man. When did The Blue Room album, we put out a single called 'Do Your Own Thing' ahead of the album, and it was getting some great press. It was getting good buzz, and we thought we had a real shot. But then we got fucked again. Just as we were starting to make some noise, the record label did what it was supposed to do and sent out a preview of our album to all the magazines and a lot of the radio stations. And some mother fucker either unknowingly or whatever leaked it onto the internet. And somehow, Napster got a hold of the entire Blue Room record. And once they had it, they put the entire Blue Room record on Napster three months before it came out, and we were fucked. So, here we fucking are trying to sell records - which at that time is where we made our money - and before the thing is even out, everybody just went on Napster and downloaded the entire record for free. One of the things that nobody talks about is luck. You aren't going anywhere unless the stars line up and allow you to."

Read more here.

Originally released in 1999, Live In The Galaxy was recorded during Union’s first tour in support of its self-titled debut album. Union featured the pairing of guitarist Bruce Kulick and singer/guitarist John Corabi. Kulick had spent 12 years as the lead guitarist in KISS during their non-make up era and was featured on several multi-platinum albums, including the powerhouse band Revenge. Corabi fronted the Scream, and more recently, Mötley Crüe on their now cult following, eponymous 1994 release.  They teamed up with drummer Brent Fitz (Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & the Conspirators, Alice Cooper, Vince Neil, Theory of a Deadman) and bassist Jamie Hunting (Roger Daltrey, David Lee Roth, Vince Neil) to record two studio albums before disbanding.

On the heels of selling out Union and The Blue Room in 24 hours, Deko and Blackbird Entertainment are at it again. Live In The Galaxy will be available for the first time as a 180 gram vinyl double album that comes with a bonus 7” vinyl. The double album totals 15 songs, with renditions of “I Walk Alone” from Kulick’s time with KISS and “Power To The Music” from Corabi’s time with Mötley Crüe. It comes in three color variations: Black/Milky White (limited to 500 copies pressed), Purple/Yellow (limited to 250 copies pressed), and Silver/Violet (limited to 250 copies pressed).  The bonus 7” vinyl includes the additional live tracks “Let It Flow” and “Empty Soul.” The album is set to go on pre-sale October 13 at noon (EST). Product is expected to ship early February.

The options are as follows:

The Premier Edition – comes with a SIGNED 10”x10” band photo; limited edition Union T-Shirt; 180 gram vinyl double album, completely remastered, featuring all new artwork for a beautiful gatefold sleeve; and a bonus 7” including 2-extra live tracks.

The Royal Edition – comes with a SIGNED 10”x10” band photo; 180 gram vinyl double album, completely remastered, featuring all new artwork for a beautiful gatefold sleeve; and a bonus 7” including 2-extra live tracks.

The Standard Edition – comes with 180 gram vinyl double album, completely remastered, featuring all new artwork for a beautiful gatefold sleeve; and a bonus 7” including 2-extra live tracks.

Pre-order here via dekoentertainment.com/union.

Union band members are enthusiastically promoting Live In The Galaxy.

John Corabi had this to say about the live release, “Union’s Live In The Galaxy exemplifies Union in a nutshell. It’s no frills, no backing tracks, no overdubs, no sound check!  Just straight ahead kick-ass rock and roll from a veteran rock band. Much like their ‘70’s classic rock heroes.  All recorded at one show at the Galaxy Theater in Anaheim.”

Bruce Kulick continues, “Supporters of Union, always loved our live shows. We played intensely, and our raw powerful performances made a lasting impression on our fans. This recording proves it!”

From Jamie Hunting, “The band once did 13 cities in 13 nights...runs like that allowed the band to get some flow to the show which can be heard in this concert.”

Brent Fitz doesn’t hold back, “Live In The Galaxy was recorded at the perfect moment in our tour, we had been working hard on the road for a year, the band was tight, and we were a strong live act.  It’s an amazing snapshot of the band at full power on that first tour!”

Deko Entertainment president, Bruce Pucciarello, comments on their follow up release with Blackbird Entertainment, “Sometimes a live performance brings emotional revelation, allowing us to share feelings with the artist in a way that drives music to higher highs.  This amazing Union performance is the definition of exactly that.”

Tracklisting:

Side A
“Old Man Wise”
“Around Again”
“Heavy D…”

Side B
“Jungle”
“Love (I Don’t Need It Anymore)”
“Man In The Moon”

Side C
“I Walk Alone”
“Surrender”
“Pain Behind Your Eyes”

Side D
“Power To The Music”
“Tangerine”
“October Morning Wind”
“You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away”