Van Halen 1974 – 2004, RIP

[gslinger]

GSlinger’s Review of Van Halen’s 2004 New Tri-Tracks Release – June 7, 2004
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I am not being critical here or bashing Van Halen for any form of self-serving interest. Being a major fan since ’77, if VH's new material was great, I would be the first to emphatically state this fact. That said, these three new Van Halen releases, being “It’s About Time”, “Up For Breakfast” and “Learning to See” are some of the worst new material I have ever heard released from a Nationally established rock-band in my 35 years in this business. All three of these new tracks are poorly thought out, have atrocious lyrics, are structurally a mess, and are feebly represented by the band’s musicians. They are a total embarrassment to what this band once was.

This small composition of work released by Van Halen, along with my full video review of the Band’s complete June 1, 2004 live Dress Rehearsal at Sony Studios, clearly reflects that the last chapter to this band, in its present form, has been written. Ex-frontman, David Lee Roth should thank the Lord he was not involved in this band’s disgraceful, and frankly disgusting, final chapter. Van Halen 1974 – 2004, RIP

[lztom]

Originally posted by gslinger
GSlinger’s Review of Van Halen’s 2004 New Tri-Tracks Release – June 7, 2004
------------------------
I am not being critical here or bashing Van Halen for any form of self-serving interest. Being a major fan since ’77, if VH's new material was great, I would be the first to emphatically state this fact. That said, these three new Van Halen releases, being “It’s About Time”, “Up For Breakfast” and “Learning to See” are some of the worst new material I have ever heard released from a Nationally established rock-band in my 35 years in this business. All three of these new tracks are poorly thought out, have atrocious lyrics, are structurally a mess, and are feebly represented by the band’s musicians. They are a total embarrassment to what this band once was.

This small composition of work released by Van Halen, along with my full video review of the Band’s complete June 1, 2004 live Dress Rehearsal at Sony Studios, clearly reflects that the last chapter to this band, in its present form, has been written. Ex-frontman, David Lee Roth should thank the Lord he was not involved in this band’s disgraceful, and frankly disgusting, final chapter. Van Halen 1974 – 2004, RIP

Amen to that. Everyone should do themselves a favour, get the first six records, listen to them, love them, never get bored of them, appreciate them and accept the sad sad fact that it's now impossible for any addition to be made to this unrivalled collection of rock music. This Edward Van Halen is a fruitcake now pure and simple; he should retire from public life now like Reagan did and try to keep at least a tiny shred of dignity and some of his once invincible reputation.

[Warham]

I agree GS. I think Dave was wise to stay away from this abortion.

[Lou]

Wrong title. Should have been Van Halen 1974-1985 R.I.P., exhumed in 1996.

[ULTRAMAN VH]

Gslinger, you are right on, I tried to keep an open mind myself, but these tunes are terrible. And Roth is better off not being a part of this mess. True VH fans understand the chemistry that DLR and Ed had. The creative tension Roth brought to the band is gone and these new songs prove it. VH is in the comfort zone with Mr. Hagar. Ed has no one to push his creative buttons. Roth lit a fire under Ed's ass, just listen to Me Wise Magic. Hagar is a YES MAN. Your coverage of this Quote- unquote reunion has been great. Please keep up the good work. It is a pleasure reading your posts.

[lms]

Never give up hope you fans of Roth. Dave is looking better than he has in years. IMO.

Maybe once Ed gets out on the road and out of the fantasy land 5150 must have become for him these past years he has spent hiding from reality there he will realize that those three releases do not actually qualify as music. Maybe this tour will get his blood pumping hard enough to reach his brain again, and the dissappointment from this flop of a tour will fuel his drive to go out in a blaze of glory, and him and Dave will at last be able to resolve and reunite.

And maybe I will win the lottery tomorrow. Hey, it could happen. (If there is a thunderstorm though, I think I will play it safe and stay inside.)

[lztom]

Originally posted by lms
Never give up hope you fans of Roth. Dave is looking better than he has in years. IMO.

Maybe once Ed gets out on the road and out of the fantasy land 5150 must have become for him these past years he has spent hiding from reality there he will realize that those three releases do not actually qualify as music. Maybe this tour will get his blood pumping hard enough to reach his brain again, and the dissappointment from this flop of a tour will fuel his drive to go out in a blaze of glory, and him and Dave will at last be able to resolve and reunite.

And maybe I will win the lottery tomorrow. Hey, it could happen. (If there is a thunderstorm though, I think I will play it safe and stay inside.)

Agree with you on Roth, he has a modern image that works well for him now.

As for Eddie, I think the best thing that he could do, and this is no joke, is play that guitar festival with Clapton that's coming up. Maybe then Clapton would get him checked into that Crossroads Rehab centre he has going. I think something like that is his only hope at the moment. He shouldn't be going out on the road in the state he's obviously in at the moment.

[RogueHorseman]

Originally posted by gslinger
...This small composition of work released by Van Halen, along with my full video review of the Band’s complete June 1, 2004 live Dress Rehearsal at Sony Studios, clearly reflects that the last chapter to this band, in its present form, has been written. Ex-frontman, David Lee Roth should thank the Lord he was not involved in this band’s disgraceful, and frankly disgusting, final chapter. Van Halen 1974 – 2004, RIP

Me Wise Magic kinda takes on a new light these days, doesn't it?

Can't Get This Stuff No More too, for the matter.

[L.S.D.]

Originally posted by Warham
I agree GS. I think Dave was wise to stay away from this abortion.

You mean he chose to stay away? Not that they didnt want him?

[gslinger]

We are not dead!!!!!!! Cast a spell on that asshole, please Wicked Witch, pleaseeeeeeeeeeee

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Pic courtesy of Wooda:

[lms]

I like Eric Clapton.

[gslinger]

Originally posted by lms
I like Eric Clapton.

Geeeeeee, what can you say! But people bash Dave re bad shows, I have seen Eric put on some real stinkers, from the Cream days on.

Hey, if you have not seen "Concert for George" (11/29/2002) that Clapton put together and also played, you have missed a historic treat. That thing is just awesome! I have never been a Beatles fan, but he and Jeff Lynne together do some killer stuff.

Check out the on-line video of Clapton here:

www.georgeharrison.com/concert/

[RogueHorseman]

Originally posted by L.S.D.
You mean he chose to stay away? Not that they didnt want him?

Inside track is that Sam was second choice, or really last choice, for this whole deal. Not that you give a damn about the truth, but it all ties back to the 2000 sessions with Dave... the later issues of it all falling apart over the brothers screwing him over royalties coming to light, etc.

Dave built the franchise and won't come back for peanuts, bottom line, unlike the hired hand front man on this drizzling sh*ts of a "tour".

[gslinger]

Originally posted by RogueHorseman
Inside track is that Sam was second choice, or really last choice, for this whole deal. Not that you give a damn about the truth, but it all ties back to the 2000 sessions with Dave... the later issues of it all falling apart over the brothers screwing him over royalties coming to light, etc.

Dave built the franchise and won't come back for peanuts, bottom line, unlike the hired hand front man on this drizzling sh*ts of a "tour".

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This ol' boy always cares about the truth!

Yelp, I know exactly what is going on here, not to be caviler. Funny how things work.......Roth is sitting "high and dry" and in the best spot possible.

Just counting down the days when Diamond Dave gets that $1 million phone call from CCC/WMG and the Van Halen boys can't do squat about it!

I can hear Diamond now when he gets the mercy/bailout call.....wellllllll I'm kinda of business, Trixie's here and I gotta go check the air in my big wide whitewalls on my '51 Merc.....can I call you back laterrrrrrrrr! LOL

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PS: Of course RogueHorseman your avatar is near and dear to my heart! Took me nine years before I would go and see Stevie's grave.

[lms2]

So, gslinger, thursday or friday you were saying you were going to fill us in on all the gossip about the memorial day party insinuating that Dave was up to something. I have been waiting. Are you gonna fill us in? Do you really think Dave will be joining VH again?

[RogueHorseman]

Originally posted by gslinger
...PS: Of course RogueHorseman your avatar is near and dear to my heart! Took me nine years before I would go and see Stevie's grave. [/B]

I know, I have heard you mention that you got to know Stevie really well. I can just imagine... I'll never forget how I felt when I first heard the news. One of a kind. Beyond compare.

I only met him in person once, just before he broke big nationally when I MC'd an Allman Brothers show he opened for. One of the few times I was truly in awe of someone in the biz. I do still know this gal out in Loma Linda, CA who was/is best friends with his ex, too...

To me, while I could/can appreciate guys like Eddie (at his best), Vai, Satriani and that style to a great degree -- NO ONE compares to SRV in my book. Not a single ONE, and that includes Clapton, Page or whoever... In the early days of MTV Unplugged, they had both Joe S. and SRV on... unplugged, SRV totally blew him away. No contest. From that day forward, what I always "kinda" knew was confirmed beyond any shade of a doubt.

It's all about heart and soul, man. SRV had it... even his vocals, which the hagarites would foolishly bash, as they do Dave's. Dave has it too, in abundance and in his own way, heart and soul.

[ALMOSTsaved]

gslinger, no offense, why are you crossposting with the links?

http://www.vhlinks.com/forums/showfl...&Number=556511

[gslinger]

Originally posted by ALMOSTsaved
gslinger, no offense, why are you crossposting with the links?

http://www.vhlinks.com/forums/showfl...&Number=556511

Thanks for the honest headsup bro!! That's not me....I don't know who the hell "Shaquille O'Neal" is over their. Guess I should be honored someone would steal my RA post, call it their own, and post it on VHLinks "for the cause", without reference. Interesting that most of the time here, approx 45-55% of the people on this forum are not Roth Army members.

Be cool and keep up the fantastic work!....gs

[ALMOSTsaved]

We're all just a stroke away from having our words stolen.

[gslinger]

Originally posted by Lou
Wrong title. Should have been Van Halen 1974-1985 R.I.P., exhumed in 1996.

You are exactly right!!!!

[gslinger]

Originally posted by ULTRAMAN VH
Gslinger, you are right on, I tried to keep an open mind myself, but these tunes are terrible. And Roth is better off not being a part of this mess. True VH fans understand the chemistry that DLR and Ed had. The creative tension Roth brought to the band is gone and these new songs prove it. VH is in the comfort zone with Mr. Hagar. Ed has no one to push his creative buttons. Roth lit a fire under Ed's ass, just listen to Me Wise Magic. Hagar is a YES MAN.

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Yelp, Roth was the creative genius and “glue” for VH and yes Ed is so gone that he just wants the easiest deal with Spammy so he can then go back to his booze/drugs.

>>>Roth lit a fire under Ed's ass. Yes, but in fact Ed really lit a fire under Dave’s ass, too. Ed was always an OCD perfectionist to a fault. All great legend musician are this way. Roth was more of a showman/playboy and would get lazy. Some of Ed & Dave’s biggest fights was over Dave getting lazy or drunk and “mush-mouthing” lyrics on stage. Ed felt like he was over there making every note count and Roth was jerking off and singing 1/5 of the song lyrics sometimes. Ed would also go ballistic when Roth would get lazy and turn the Concert into the “Roth Comedy Hour” in between every song. Roth has admitted this several times, and also admitted way back that Eddie’s focus & “mommy nagging” really did help him “stay on track” in the early years. Hell, Roth is so damn funny none of his stage antics every bother me at VH concerts.

This IS THE problem going on now! Nobody is leading this band and it is totally rudderless. Eddie doesn’t run the band any longer and is living in a bottle. Your right, Sammy is a total hack yes man, Alex has had his own serious booze/drugs problems, and IS TOTALLY responsible for not allowing a Van Roth Reunion, and Michael is nothing but a yes man, Sammy clone, now.

Hagar was a total unfocused ego driven hack before he joined Van Halen. Nobody in the biz thought that marriage would last six months. If you remember when he joined VH, for six months afterwards he bitched that the band should be called Van Hagar, blah, blah, and all his Red Rocker BS until Ed & Warner Brother execs finally took a ball bat to the guy and he settled down. Even today, I have never seen a male ‘women bitch’ all the time like Hagar.

To be honest, I and many others, were actually impressed with Sammy after he settled down. The guy did a little work for a change, after about four years VH was tight on stage again, and put on some damn decent concerts in the early ‘90’s. Yeah, there were nothing compared to Van Roth, but after the Nirvana grunge wave destroyed the rock music business, it sure beat nothing and EVH still had the “gift” on stage, which is all musicians cared about anyway.

Then Sammy got the bighead, caused VH-II’s breakup, and went back to being an unfocused ego driven hack still to this day. Sammy’s got a good stick now - selling his booze, being a drunk, and a 2-bit club band. He does well in that kind of environment and makes decent money. It was total stupidity to pull him out of that “pond” and try to put him back in a National Touring act, particularly with the problems Eddie is having!

Anyway……..thanks, appreciate your thoughts.

[Switch84]

It was wise for Dave to stay away. I can't imagine Dave singing that shitty 'Up For Breakfast' anyway! I could see him giving the Van Halen sisters an astonished look and ask them, "Do you REALLY expect me to sing this shit?"

When they say 'Yes', Davy Baby would walk out of the session and come back later with new songs for the group.


BUWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!

[gslinger]

Originally posted by Switch84
It was wise for Dave to stay away. I can't imagine Dave singing that shitty 'Up For Breakfast' anyway! I could see him giving the Van Halen sisters an astonished look and ask them, "Do you REALLY expect me to sing this shit?"

When they say 'Yes', Davy Baby would walk out of the session and come back later with new songs for the group.


BUWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!

CCC/WMG can have Roth fronting this VH Tour tomorrow if they want and the VH sisters can't do squat to stop them. It's like Hager and the sisters made this new tri-track release so stinky they knew even for a $million, Roth would never sing them and front this Van AfterBirth Tour. Kind of like taking a corporate poison pill.

I mean Hagar is a total paranoid flake regarding Roth, and it has gotten substantially worse since the 2002 joint bill Tour. Alex has also continued to make his strong feeling against Roth well known.

Of course, their careers are finished it they did something like this, or if this Tour fails, so what the hell.

[lztom]

Originally posted by gslinger
CCC/WMG can have Roth fronting this VH Tour tomorrow if they want and the VH sisters can't do squat to stop them. It's like Hager and the sisters made this new tri-track release so stinky they knew even for a $million, Roth would never sing them and front this Van AfterBirth Tour. Kind of like taking a corporate poison pill.

I mean Hagar is a total paranoid flake regarding Roth, and it has gotten substantially worse since the 2002 joint bill Tour. Alex has also continued to make his strong feeling against Roth well known.

Of course, their careers are finished it they did something like this, or if this Tour fails, so what the hell.

Great post again, Gslinger. What confuses me is that as I understand it, it is CCC/WMG who are taking all the financial burdens on this tour and paying the Dutch liars upfront. That being the case and also the obvious lack of ticket sales and buzz about this appalling 'reunion', if they can do so at a whim why don't they insist on getting Dave back immediately as probably the only feasible way of getting any return on their investment? It's a no brainer to anyone in or outside the music industry who doesn't have a vested interest in Hagar being in the band that a Roth fronted reunion would generate WAY more interest (read profit).