The DLR Cast

[Nitro Express]

You guys are being quite harsh on Dave. He's an artist in my book. An artist can be multi-talented and their art can be reflected in multi-faceted ways.

We need more mushrooms. Even a bare wall is entertaining when you are on shrooms.

[Mushroom]

We need more mushrooms. Even a bare wall is entertaining when you are on shrooms.

Don't worry, we will have plenty of baby mushrooms after Kristy and I procreate

[Terry]

Kristy, did someone hack your account? You don't generally require an editor for your posts, but this is in need of one. I would do it, but frankly, I'm too lazy.

You are correct. "Diamond Dave" is a schtick. A stage persona. Most of us wish to believe that the Diamond Dave persona is really how DLR is in real life. We as human beings do this to a lot of larger than like characters. Only to somewhere along the way meet them in person and discover the truth, or see an A&E Biography on them, that generally exposes the ugly truth. Dave is no different. Dave however is one smart motherfucker, and has done an extremely good job of keeping his private life, the real Dave Roth life, private.

I will beg to differ with your claim that Dave possessed "little talent". Van Halen more than likely never makes it out of the Clubs without Dave. Without Dave, Van Halen wouldn't have been as diverse as they were. Nothing proves my point better on this subject, than Van Hagar. Van Halen with Dave could cover virtually anything. Van Halen with Dave had the ability and chemistry to exploit different genres not just on different albums and different songs, but within the songs themselves. Van Hagar never had that ability, and had Clichegar, or any other "singer" been in VH, it wasn't and wouldn't have been the same. Dave's issue with talent was when he tried to exceed his talent. But, he often refers to rock and roll as "sport", and Dave is a competitive guy. He had to push himself and try to go places that were beyond his capabilities. That helped him, but also hurt him in the long run. When Dave got it right though, he fucking got it real right. He benefitted from the gargantuan talent of Ed. But Ed benefitted from the larger than life persona of "Diamond Dave" too. Chemistry. That band was dripping with chemistry. We may not all like every piece of Dave's work, but he's a very talented dude. Nobody could have written and performed those songs the way he did.

Which brings me to my next point. Dave is anything but a "mediocre songwriter". The dude is a genius songwriter. Other songwriters will tell you this. Producers will tell you this. Other musicians will tell you this. I cannot even believe you put that statement into your diatribe. Dave may be a lot of things, but "mediocre songwriter" isn't one of them. Maybe you should listen to more Van Halen than what you hear on the radio.

Why the obsession with the guy? Because he's THE GREATEST FRONTMAN IN THE HISTORY OF ROCK AND ROLL! As far as Roth milking his fans, he's not forcing them to buy the tickets to the shows. They are doing it willingly. Roth has played huge festivals, stadiums, arenas, clubs, casinos, and fucking STATE FAIRS! He's never forced one person to buy those tickets. We all did it willingly! I choose not to go this time, because of my own personal way I want to leave the Van Halen legacy in my mind and my memory. If someone else wants to see Dave perform, even if he can no longer hit the high notes, good for them. They will more than likely have a good time, because those songs evoke good times and allow people to create and recreate good memories in their minds.

There is plenty to give Dave shit about. He quit Van Halen. (Wasn't "fired" as you suggest.) But his talent and contributions within Van Halen can NEVER be disputed or minimized. That music has and always will, stand the ultimate test. Time.

As to where Dave is at today career-wise and his demonstrated live abilities over the last 10-odd years, I haven't been unduly harsh in terms of the opinions I stated: I retract nothing, because everything I said was how I felt.

In terms of when Dave was fronting CVH and, well, certainly the first three full-length solo albums (sorry but I was never huge on the CFTH EP and from YFLM forward to present the output - DLR Band album excepted - was a bit dodgy at times)...Roth was the fucking bomb. Best rock front man for my money during those halcyon CVH days and the first 5 years of his solo career.

The best. To the point where post-1991 it didn't matter if the output was uneven: ain't nothin' ever gonna take those 13-odd years when he was the King of the Hill away from Dave.

[Terry]

Dave quit Van Halen because he didn’t think he needed them anymore. Sting quit The Police around the same time for the same reasons. Dave had a pretty good solo run. Grunge kill him though. Van Hagar was able to keep going because they became a pop band. Van Hagar was more commercial than Van Halen was. Unfortunately I went to a 0U812 show and it was full of gayness, glitter and unicorns. I had to take a long shower afterwards.

Gayness, glitter and unicorns...

Fantastic, in that it sums up Van Hagar perfectly.

Well done.

[Kristy]

I listened to a few episodes of this "DLR Cast" and it's not bad. It's a lot of classic rock hokey pokey which isn't my drift but I found it to be more cerebral than most podcast out there. I was expecting a frat boy reminiscing type where the "pod casters" sit around and tell stupid racist/sexist jokes, talk over each other and go on and on about how unimportant and utterly boring their miserable lives are and then do 6 minutes of shitty ads. These guys at least know something about the history of the people they interview, ask intelligent questions and allow for the person they interview to complete their thoughts.

So...four stars. I'd give it five but then again, I'm an asshole.

[Kristy]

Even Kristy made it through 3 good posts before her poor disposition made a return...

That's all on Von. I take no responsibility

[paltrowitz]

I listened to a few episodes of this "DLR Cast" and it's not bad. It's a lot of classic rock hokey pokey which isn't my drift but I found it to be more cerebral than most podcast out there. I was expecting a frat boy reminiscing type where the "pod casters" sit around and tell stupid racist/sexist jokes, talk over each other and go on and on about how unimportant and utterly boring their miserable lives are and then do 6 minutes of shitty ads. These guys at least know something about the history of the people they interview, ask intelligent questions and allow for the person they interview to complete their thoughts.

So...four stars. I'd give it five but then again, I'm an asshole.

Thanks for listening to the show. Much appreciated.

[Kristy]

It's a good show. Not my style in terms of music but it's a lot better than most of the crap that's out there. Just listened to the Stephen Pearcy episode and have to commend the guy being well over 60 and still active in writing songs which seems to be a rarity these days.

[Mushroom]

I see Kristy is trying really hard to be on her best behavior. Respect for DLR!

[Kristy]

That's it. I'm going back on the weed.

[Nickdfresh]

biya

[twonabomber]

old and decrypted.

wait...what?

[DFVH5150]

Hardly. There are already too many podcast out there that stand as being nothing more than fronts for corporate advertisements with most being more depressing than an family funeral. As for Roth himself...I have zero respect for the guy but am fascinated how he has maintained strange currency of popularity when he has pissed away career more than once. Maybe in the classic Van Halen heyday he modernized the whole rock star personification of sex, drugs and alcohol living the wanton dream of self-indulgence until it became a parody for him. Roth to me is nothing more than a Midwestern kid who moved to California and found himself at the right place at the right time. Eddie made Roth's success for it was Eddie's wizkid phenomenal guitar playing that attracted so many to be VH fans, not Roth. The whole "Diamond Dave" shtick was clever marketing on Roth's part simply because he possessed little talent to his own. He was never a strong vocalist often noted for going off key due to having a lack of register, a mediocre songwriter who yelped and screamed between lyrical breaks in the songs.

Roth sold himself on being Diamond Dave. He was an attractive guy in the early 80's and women fawned over him and every repressed male (like Von) had homoerotic fantasies about being him. Roth saturated Van Halen with so much self-gloss to the point the rest of band grew tired off his ridiculous antics. I can see why Eddie fired him out of disgust then creative difference and direction. Roth didn't even know he had it so good until he well ran dry. Yes, you can make for arguments there there are plenty of frontman who soiled their career for the sake of egotism but nobody fucked it up like Roth. Now look out the guy. He's a pitiable wreckage of a human being. He can no longer hit any high notes without his bronchial pipe cracking like Rosanne on thin ice his stage athletics are like a nursing home arthritic yoga shuffle and wardrobe is an obvious cry for help.

So here's my question to you: why the obsession with this guy? He surely stopped being relevant back in what what I can guess is mid-1988. Can't be that is a poor man's nostalgia traveling act or that even his reunion with Eddie resurrected his sad career. Whatever Roth's alleged health issues I'll give him credit for choosing to hang for good although it stands as a decision he made to be entirely about himself and not for his most devoted followers. Roth's last hurrah to milk his fans for every red cent hew can get and then fuck off into the sunset of regret is shameful. Fans such as yourself deserve better.

Well it's a good thing I guess that you don't type up novels about him on a website forum dedicated to him.

[Terry]

In defense of the "false" rumor, I'm sure Ed's health issues contributed to that ultimately not coming to fruition.

I have a couple of buddies going to the last Dave shows. I was invited, and politely declined. Yes, I can be polite at times. My first Van Halen show was in 1978. My last show was 2015. Even though Mike wasn't with VH in 2015, it was Ed and Dave. I prefer my last live memory of my favorite band, to be as Van Halen. I have zero interest in a VH cover band, even if it is being fronted by Dave, and even if the guitarists are phenomenal. I am very comfortable with this decision.

You CAN be polite? Well, please...don't. I can't handle a polite Von...nor do I particularly want to ; )

I'd have to agree with that decision in terms of live stuff to, as a fan, call it a day if Dave wasn't playing with the Van Halens. Caught Dave live, what...4 times between 1999 and 2006 fronting various solo bands essentially doing The Classic Van Halen Experience Featuring David Lee Roth. I accepted that because at the time it looked like Roth and the Van Halens weren't going to get together.

Once they did, those first two reunion tours had moments where even without Michael Anthony the band was able to conjure up the excellence that attracted me to them in the first place. By the second tour, it was clear Dave wasn't up to it anymore. I was comfortable with not bothering with the 2015 tour because of [Dave], but I do have a slight regret in not just going anyway, because the Van Halens in 2015 were still knocking it out of the park live, and I kinda think going to a 2015 gig would have been worth it just for that.

But, yeah, after the activities of 2007-2015, going to see Roth return to fronting a group of nobodies churning out the CVH catalog...a step backward I'm not interested in investing any effort toward. I will say that the backing group Roth had with him in 2020 sounded fine and played well, and I assume that'd be the case for the gigs this month as well, but...forget about it, Dave!

[Seshmeister]

Glad the show is on your radar at the very least.

Totally open to guest ideas. Pitch away.

And I'll be at 7 of the Vegas shows -- hope to see some of you there.

-Darren

I've enjoyed the recent interview with Melissa Reiner. After you both trying to date the filming of the BBQ video it started me thinking about it because I remember there was a story here at the time about deliveries of truckloads of sand to his house over a two day period which I think was to make the tennis court into a beach so the actual filming dates were known to the day at one point but that thread was lost in the great server disaster of the early 2000s.

Maybe someone reading this will remember more.

If you are chasing Animal I guess you will obviously have already thought of 'Big' Ed Anderson and Pete Angelus who would probably be the two who know the most and have spoken the least.