The Last Word on Van Halen
It’s an age-old discussion, (well, really more of a 21-years-old discussion.) When talking about Van Halen front-men, who’s the better: David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar? (I’ll leave Gary Cherone out of it since he seems more of an apocryphal Van Halen member.)I’ll let you know that I am of the Roth school, I dig that music more because of its overall happy go-lucky vibe as opposed to the aching drama of Hagar’s voice. Which is not to say that Van Hagar didn’t come up with some stuff that affects me, most of it kind of ballady love songs, but I’m a sucker for that every now and then. “Why Can’t This Be Love?” “Love Walks In” And I guess there’s a rocker here and there that I like—“5150”, some stuff off For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge. As always, I’m a bit of a centrist.
But Roth was the voice of my childhood so I have to go with him for the final vote.
What say you?
posted by Mike @ 2:25 PM
4 Comments:
Somebody's on a Van Halen kick.
I love "5150" and "OU812", but my love for those two albums is completely trumped by my love for "1984." Talk about childhood memories. Who doesn't remember the video to "Hot For Teacher" with Waldo. I think "1984" was foreshadowing the type of "dramatic" direction Van Halen was looking at taking. It still had the happy-go lucky rock style with the DLR era, but the synthesizer sounds were a prelude to the Hagar era. I honestly don't have a real preference.
I went to elementary school with a kid who looked exactly like the kid on the front cover of 1984. His name was Scottie Hager. I like most of the songs on 5150 and OU812, but the production on those is a little too slick and controlled for my tastes. You're right about 1984, a lot of guitarist fans jumped ship becuase of the synths on that album, but actually the synth appeared before that on the last two songs on the album Fair Warning-definitely their darkest album.
I like 1984 as an album it's a nice balance of radio-ready stuff like "Hot for Teacher" and "Jump," but the last two songs are pretty "out-there" for a VH record--I think it's "Girl Gone Bad" and "House of Pain."
Roth...but man, did he lose it after Van Halen gave him the boot.
Mike...you picked the best post-Roth songs on your blog. The intro to "5150" is engrained in my memory...and it's always 1986 in my dad's Audi 5000 in my head when I hear it.
Diver Down.. yes.. and what was the first big one?? Hell I am getting old.. but YES!!! (You know the one with Eruption?)
I had a friend in High School that could play Erruption note for note, harmonic for harmonic, hamer-on for hammer-on.. it was mind blowing!
I liked Hagar as a solo act b4 VH, and like him with VH.. but the Roth days were what it was all about..
(Van Halen fans, and geeks unite)
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