Van Halen!

MA sang the high harmonies.. Eddies are mid range

Christ. That's almost entirely in keeping with what I've heard he's been like since the height of their dame, but even still the bit about Quincy Jones was brutal -- the "hey, no offense, black sound guy" part included.

― Naive Teen Idol, Saturday, March 16, 2013 4:52 PM (2 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Eddie was a major alcoholic for years, so I'm guessing he was pretty trashed during this (not that that excuses any of it). There's also this interview which consists mostly of Eddie either not answering questions, promising to answer questions later, or demanding the interviewer turn off his tape recorder.

I exaggerated a it for sure, but EVH always had this boyishness to him, and that interview was the most grumbly old man-ish I'd ever heard him, Yes, years of smoking and drinking will do that. Though of course, it's not like I've been watching interviews with EVH over the years. Maybe he's sounded like that for the past 30 years.

he's definitely sounded like that since at least the '90s, he was pretty gravelly and cantankerous circa the first abortive DLR reunion

Eddie should just retire and give Wolfgang a more spry partner, thus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rV6SmY04WdE

They should put her in Slayer.

Tattoo! Tattoo!

uh that girl playing eruption above is great

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFjNvJv4iKA

Absolutely no idea what got into me, but I was suddenly struck by an interest in reading a Gary Cherone interview. What's up with that dude? Did he disappear, or did I, along with everyone else, just stop paying attention? So I find a good one on Rolling Stone, very honest and blunt, with Cherone in good spirits and thankful for his opportunity, talking about his tenure in Van Halen as well as getting back together with Extreme (when Nuno is not touring with Rihanna). Then I think, huh, I never heard a note that Cherone actually sang with Van Halen, nothing from that album, nothing live. I quickly find a clip of him singing "Panama" live with the band, and you know what?

it sucked.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4taG7bjvSI

That done, one of these days I need to seek out isolated Michael Anthony bass tracks and hear if he's actually playing anything.

Anthony is a serviceable bassist, but an indispensable background vocalist.

Also, that whole VHIII album stinks. I was gracious to it in 1998 because I'd waited a while for new VH material, but in hindsight it is absolute mush.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ewsHwVOyyE

I liked the single on VHIII, and some of the playing was really great. but there's a song called "once" that sounds grotesquely like that Mike Post dude that EVH was said to have been friends with…and "How many say I," a ponderous piano ballad sung by EVH must be heard to be believed.

I am listening to a Different kind of Truth for the first time…

1. when did DLR start doing this spoken, sotto voce, quasi-"ahm talkin' like a sexy black man" routine? I've noticed it on some of his solo shit and on this record, but do not recall it in 78-84 VH or Eat 'em and Smile.

2. They want to have Michael-style background vox, so they do…without Michael. and there are these discrete synth stabs, which sound old-fashioned, and not in the way you would think the band wants.

3. clearly, EVH wants to do the band now because he can do it with Wolfie… like now it's a family band, and maybe wolfie can take the edge off DLR for his dad. some EVH freaks I know think it's some of his best ever playing…I wonder if Los Bros VH ever cared about what DLR's lyrics are about…here, some of his phrasing and ideas are clunky, but that means he's trying, not phoning it in…

4. has anyone listened to this record since 2012? does anyone listen to records made by old rock guys made in the last decade after the first few weeks? seems to me they get left behind in the komputah churn with little regard to merits…or maybe that's just everything?

It's exceedingly easy to grab one of the original six albums instead of the most recent one, but I did play it about a month ago. Some of it still really holds up. Tattoo still sucks.

I'm not at all a fan of Tattoo, but I really think its the best I could have hoped for regarding a modern Van Halen album with DLR. I was very much afraid we would get the kind of tracks on the first greatest hits which just sound like Dave singing over Sammy era riffs and production. ADKOT doesn't have quite the live in the studio feel of the early records, but it's certainly loose and allows plenty of room for Dave to be Dave.

If they end up doing a new record (and it's rumored they will), I can only hope it's this good. Outside of 5150 I'll take it over ever Van Hagar album...I'm biased, of course.

when did DLR start doing this spoken, sotto voce, quasi-"ahm talkin' like a sexy black man" routine?

does the "ease the seat back..." bit in panama count?

4. no :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ewsHwVOyyE

http://www.theonion.com/articles/cia-admits-role-in-1985-coup-to-oust-david-lee-rot,37570/

My wife just asked me if David Lee Roth was ever a sex symbol. I'm not sure! Was he? I think of him as more of this party animal wild man than a Rock Sex God, but I'm sure he had plenty of Sunset Strip groupies.

http://img5.bdbphotos.com/images/orig/c/3/c3y2bxxno7ee7oex.jpg?djet1p5k

Inara says yes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wxuQ9szJ3A

I just started this, so I don't know how good it is, but if you want to hear EVH talk for an hour then here you go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl59RPs7PiI

Looks cool, can't wait!

Really fascinating story behind the Helmut Newton photo of DLR that was included with Women and Children First.

Listening to the new remaster of 1984 right now. They STILL haven't added that little DLR ad-lib that's in the video but not on the record. I guess I understand the inclination to keep the album as it was originally presented, but I kind of like that ad-lib.

In "Jump," that is.

But it wouldn't be an adlib on the record!

I get up!
And nothing gets me down

CANT YOU SEE ME STANDIN HEAH I GOT MY BACK AGAINST THE REKKID MACHIIIIII-IIIINE
I AINT THE WORST THAT YOUVE SEEEE-EEEEEN
AW CANT YA SEE WHAT I MEEEEEEEEEEEEEAN

Yowza!

nothin' beats the Legion of Rock Stars version

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1JjHVE4Uco

ain’t talking bout

"DLR Band means Dave, Lowery, and Ray. I named it that because it sounds more like a band than David Lee Roth, which just sounds like a person. When you hear David Lee Roth - you think of a person. When you hear DLR Band - you think of a band. Just like when you hear Eddie Van Halen you think of a person, and when you hear Van Halen - you think of David Lee Roth!"

hahaha

lord strike that poor boy down

HAVE YOU SEEN JR’S GRADEZZZ???

Summer reunion rumors in full effect.

You know, there's a reason VH never put out a live album in their heyday - they were raggedy as fuck live, always. I mean, every time I watch a clip on YouTube from the glory years ('78-'83) Roth is out of breath by the middle of the first verse of the first song, missing lines, letting the crowd take over...I mean, he's not as bad as, say, Vince Neil, and the other three mostly kept the songs hanging together, but they were not an amazing live act IMO. I can't imagine what they must be like now. Oh, wait, yes I can, because I've heard that godawful live in Tokyo album they put out a few years ago.

Eh I saw then with David 10 years ago? And they were great. Eddie makes them great.

“Secrets” could be a Zenyatta Mondatta b-side

https://variety.com/2019/music/news/van-halen-michael-anthony-no-reunion-1203249956/

Wolfgang...

Your father did business with David Lee Roth

He respected David Lee Roth

But he never trusted David Lee Roth

When you’re runnin’ with the devil, sometimes you need to stop for a McMuffin or something to keep up with that bastard. pic.twitter.com/mhu3d5Zs6N

— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) May 2, 2020

lol

eddie doesn't seem to have liked his bite very much

hey last week I was driving home and I had on the best classic rock station in town, KGB 101.5 FM, and they put on this super cool noisy feedbacky big room drum instrumental thing, like a proto-Radio Friendly Unit Shifter, and it totally stuck out as rad after all the bullshit Five Man Electrical Band and Eagles they'd been playing. anyway I eventually recognized the drum sound as Alex Van Halen's, and then after a while the noise jam congealed into a cover of Pretty Woman and by that point I was like ohhhhh shit this is a Van Halen jam I've never heard before!!!

so yeah Diver Down (1982), yessir in fact eleven years prior to Nirvana's pathetic Intruder-ripoff Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. thank you KGB 101.5 FM for enriching my life.

That intro is called "Intruder" and was recorded and segued with Pretty Woman just to get the timing of the video right!

well see now I gotta go watch the video

well. don't blame me for pointing you in that direction.

ooh cool they open it with the Life of Brian/Land of the Lost font. this is gonna be interesting