Bart,
I saw David on the Diver Down tour and Sammy on
the 5150 tour, both here in Seattle.
Sammy did better than I expected him to, but
he wasn't the showman that Dave was.
I remember Dave working the crowd with between
songs, telling about fishing from out of
the hotel room window, and a slow-building teaser
story about a groping groupie.
(He stole that from Zeppelin)
Really though, I don't think I'd want to see either
of them these days.
Doug
Sammy rules!
Have seen them live with Dave twice and Sammy
once and the band was tighter
and better onstage with Sammy. The songs that
Sammy wrote are in the main better too.
ToW
As happenstance would have it, I took my family
- with teens - to a couple festivals this past year.
David Lee Roth was one of the shows at Summerfest
in Milwaukee, and we saw Sammy Hagar as
one of the acts here at the Superbowl Party.
Hagar's set is THE beach which he dresses for
with lots of tequilla drinking. He is energetic, charismatic
and rocks. The high point of that show was when
he brought out Ted Nugent (now a Texan) for a set
of three Led Zepplin crankers. Ted did not seem
to be armed at the time. It was a good rock show
but with no Van Halen tunes. The next day when
I asked the teens how many ways there were to rock,
they had no idea, so they werent paying
attention.
The Roth show was better. It was almost like being
at a Van Halen concert. Two screaming guitars,
a high eneregy hair show with lots of Van Halen
songs. I got carried away, and when I jumped to
kick my hand, I about broke my neck.
Roth would be the better choice but I doubt that will happen.
Rack Jite
Rack, good to hear from you, Dude.
Bart,
I'm not even a fan, and even I know that David
Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen are Van Halen.
Bringing in Sammy Hagar is like replacing Seinfeld
with Richard Lewis and still calling it Seinfeld.
Pointless.
Ricky Zee
Bart — as an LA native who literally grew up seeing
VH live as a kid (pre-teen, even! --
I lived just a few miles from their Pasadena
home and used to see them play backyard gigs!!!)
I can tell you that despite the fact that Sammy
Hagar seems to be a very nice man AND he digs tequila,
he is nowhere the front man that Diamond Dave
(David Lee Roth to the rest of the world) was and is!
True, Dave is a little space out these days from
way too much blow, nitrous, and long-legged girls
in nurse uniforms — but what the fuck! we should
ALL be so godamned lucky!
The truth is, VH was always about the band, but
Alex and Edward resented the attention Dave
got as front man — which resulted in him being
booted way back in 1985.
If you want to know more about VH, I suggest you check out this low-budget but informative documentary on VH’s early years:
I used to hate Sammy pre-VH and was rightly horrified
when he stepped in for Dave in 1985. I’ve come
to respect him, particularly after hearing him
speak after being similarly screwed by Alex and Edward.
So these days, I’m just happy for him when he
gets a gig — even if it means being nice to the guys
who robbed him of his livelihood years early
after his own unceremonious dumping.
In any event — DAVE ROCKS!
Jim in LA
hagar was/is a joke. dlr truly rocked.
Mike W
DLR is the man.
I eat cows !
Van Hagar SUX !!
mobud less bush
David Lee Roth was the greatest singer, lyricist, dancer, and supermodel of his generation.
Sammy Hagar was good when he was in Montrose.
Van Halen was a fine band with Dave. Best
in their weight class, for a while. I also remember
the first time I heard "You Really Got Me", sitting
in my car, while my best bud Jim was sitting
in his car facing the other way, both of us with
our radios blasting, "Check this out!"
Once Sam joined, they were pretty much fluff.
Ed's obsession with keyboards took him away from his
true skill, banging the guitar. Sam (after 1985)
is one of the worst lyricists in the history of the music.
Here's some classic Sammy:
"Only time will tell if we can stand the test of time."
That's so true, Sam. He was much better in Montrose ("Make It Last" "Rock Candy")
I liked two of Sammy's VH songs, "Best of Both
Worlds" and "Finish What Ya Started".
But I loooooove every one of Dave's cuts, epecially
the overlooked album "Fair Warning".
Most of VanHagar was mushy pap, to my ears.
I can also recommend with special prejudice Dave's
terrific autobiography, "Crazy From The Heat",
with a great detailed description of his final
conversations with Ed.. Almost as good as Brian Wilson's
harrowing "Wouldn't It Be Nice?"
And whatever happened to Gary Cherone? Extreme was a great band, and Nuno's solo album rocked, too.
How come I'm always writing to you about rock and roll these days?
Rock Out,
Mark G
David Lee Roth was indeed the man.
Good call!!
Kali B
I agree with you about David Lee Roth being a
better front man for Van Halen.
He can scream a song with the best of them.
Lisa D
Hagar or Roth? Let's see. . . Hagar was
actually a musician. He could write.
He pulled VH back closer to the blues roots of
Rock & Roll. He has a great set of pipes.
He has the longest track record of any VH frontman
. Anybody who could work with that
group of egos for that long certainly deserves
some recognition.
Roth, um. . . had great stage presence and was kinda sexy.
Sorry--Hagar, even with the goofy getup, wins in my book.
"I may not agree with what you say, but I'll defend
to death your right to say it."
--Voltaire, I believe, said this sometime in
the 18th Century. We need another "enlightenment" and guys like you
are making it happen.
Great site!
Thanks for being a bold, strong voice against
the madness.
Lynne H
Sammy's great on his own, but for Van Halen, David
Lee all the way.
No question.
Also, if I had kids I wouldn't mind them swearing
that Shirley was the Goddess of Rock
every morning at school, either.
Regina B
Being a little younger than you 41. I remember
seeing VH open up for Black Sabbath
(Ozzy's last tour with them?) in Cinci just after
the Who had the people crushed in line,
lucky me, I opted for Sabbath over the Who. I
think I was 16 or so.
A lot of the person I have become was shaped while listening to VH1 and VH2.
I like both equally, I think to look at it realistically,
Eddie's playing had peaked, and there
was nowhere left to go really, at least with
David. From the interviews I remember at that time,
it was obvious that Eddie was wanting to do some
more keyboard oriented stuff. I think by
bringing in Hagar they added several sucessful
albums (and a few good tunes I might ad),
to the VH line that otherwise might not have
been. By the time Diver Down rolled around
it was ovious to anyone with ears it was over.
Being like most, I of course had to protest the
change initially, but after listening,
I have an equal amount of songs I like from each
era.
Right off hand I can only think of AC/DC and VH as bands that have sucessfully brought in a new singer.
Later,
Tyler
Wouldn't every rocker agree that Van Halen was one of the best debut albums ever?
David Loin Cloth was only about 1 thing...himself.
I saw the band a total of 9 times between the tour
when they opened up for Black Sabbath til the
second Sammy tour. Sammy was a far more "accessable"
front man. He was more about the audience. Plus
he doesn't gush narcissism when he speaks.
dave from joliet
I gotta say I agree with you, Bart.
David Lee Roth was by far a better front man
than Sammy Hagar ever was.
And did you know they have yet a 3rd singer now?
Who knew?
The last album they released was in 1998. Poor
guys.
Senator Robert C. Byrd (D-W. VA.)
I'm young enough (19) that I can vaguely remember
Hagar's days in the band,
but can't remember Roth's days. From my
POV, though, Roth was just plain cheesy.
Next to Rob Halford and Bruce Dickinson, Hagar
has the best vocal range in rock.
Hands down, Red Rocker wins.
Sweet Tooth
In their prime, it was no contest. David
Lee Roth was always the most charismatic,
soulful, and damned FUNNIEST frontman Van Halen
ever had.
But let's fast-forward to the new millennium.
Remember that tour a couple of summers ago
where David & Sammy decided to bury the hatchet
and share a double-bill without the Van Halen boys?
Well, ol' Diamond Dave, with his cocaine &
hard living, has permanently fried his voice (not to mention his brain).
He sounded like shizzle on a shingle.
Whereas Sammy, with his energy drinks & physcial
fitness regimen, has held up pretty well voice-wise.
By all accounts, Sammy blew Dave off the stage
in 2002. (And Dave, true to his reputation, acted like
a world-class a-hole the entire time.)
Although I'd be the first to agree that Van Halen
was best with Dave at the helm in the late 70's,
I can't say I blame Eddie for picking the the
guy who would put on a better show THIS YEAR.
Mark T
Hell yeah, Dave was better than Sammy in almost
every way.
He put on a better show and the band made much
better music with him.
I think Eddie once said "I'm a musician, Dave's
a rock star."
But the thing is, what's wrong with that?
"Rock star" was an ingredient
that really worked with VH. It's entertainment.
Sammy was great on his own, but once he joined
VH the quality of both went down.
Van Halen just didn't have the same kick once
Sammy joined.
If you ask me, the rest of VH have just as many
ego problems as Dave,
seeing as they can't seem to keep a singer around.
Chow
I have always been utterly baffled by the regard
in which Hagar,
the flatulent, dull, frat-boyish one, has been
held by so many.
At least Roth kept his tongue firmly in cheek
throughout his tenure.
SAL
They sucked with Sammy Hagar. Or whatever his
name was.
If you don't believe me just crank up "...and
the Cradle will Rock."
Paul C
I thought Hagar was like replacing Robert Plant
with
the guy who played Schneider on One Day At A
Time.
Carson
Interesting metaphor, since Eddie's wife was on that show.
Don't get me wrong. I like Hagar solo, and "Roth's
Eat em and Smile" album is kickarse.
AND Van Halen,The band, is nothing sans Eddie,Alex
and Mike.
But It seemed to me that with Hagar the VH songs
started sounding like Pepsi Ads.
Sorry for the long answer, but I agree.
Oh, yeah, I enjoy your work.
I don't just read Bartcop for the latest music
news, I read it for the truth.
Rolo
Dear BartCop,
Of course you are right. David Lee Roth
was in on the ONLY listenable Van Halen.
Sammy was just a sad afterthought. But
I don't blame Sammy Hagar.
Hell, I like some of his early solo stuff
(Before he was dick-sucked into VH).
I blame that HUMONGOUS PRICK Eddie Van Halen.
Pissy little Eddie just can't stand
when singers are getting more press than him
so starts over - and writes miserable tunes while he's at it.
Version 3 of Van Halen with Gary Cherone was
just laughable. A sad, sick joke played on music fans
worldwide. Again, not Cherone's fault.
He's a fine singer - got a good voice and can carry a tune.
What he couldn't carry was Eddie Van Halen's enormous
ego. I bet even Gary is embarrassed that he
let himself be pulled into that black hole of
Eddie worship that is the Van Halen brothers. (Michael Anthony,
an adequate bass-player, is simply along for
the ride. He won't do anything to interrupt that steady flow of
beer money. And he's just smart enough
to know that he's not good enough to get it anywhere else.
That's what Eddie loves about MA - bass players
don't get the press and they'll do what they're told as long
as you keep pouring beer down their throats.)
Mannnnnnn, screw a bunch of Eddie Van Halen.
He personally ruined a perfectly good rock band AND
defiled the sweeeeeeeeeeeeet Valerie Bertinelli.
I hate Eddie, not Valerie.
Thanks for letting me vent. I feel much better now.
Your Old Pal,
Lee
:o)