WARF
09-09-2004, 07:26 PM
Roth, Hagar let the words roll on
Rock giants wage wacky war of one-upmanship
By GEMMA TARLACH
of the Journal Sentinel
One can't drive 55. The other's hot for teacher. Each man, on his own, is a hard rock legend. Together, well . . . now that's askin' for trouble.
David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, both former front men for Van Halen and successful solo artists, are co-headlining the "Heavyweight Champs of Rock 'n' Roll" tour, which rumbles into East Troy's Alpine Valley Music Theater Saturday.
The larger-than-life lead singers alternate who plays first each night of the tour - but don't confuse flip-flopping with friendship. Maybe it's manufactured, but this odd couple is at odds about everything, from who's got better hair to Pablo Picasso. Especially Picasso.
Don't believe us? Read it for yourself, in their own words, as two of rock's biggest mouths mouth off.
SAMMY
Sammy Hagar, 54, was already a rock star, first with the group Montrose and then on his own, when he replaced Roth as Van Halen's voice in 1985. Hagar's distinctive pipes are all over some of the band's biggest hits, such as "Dreams" and "Right Now." He split acrimoniously with Van Halen in 1996, however. Since then he has resurrected his solo career, opened a successful nightclub in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and is marketing his own Cabo Wabo tequila.
We chatted with Hagar by phone shortly before the tour's late May kickoff in Cleveland.
Q.Why are you touring with Dave?
A. When Dave called, my knee jerk reaction was "Yeah, let's do it." Then I thought about it and thought "This sucks, I'm not going out with that idiot." It's not an ego thing. I've never opened for anyone since 1976 and I'm not gonna open for him. It was my road crew, the old Van Halen road crew, people around me saying "Hey, you should do this for the fans. If they can't see you or Dave with Van Halen, Sam and Dave is the next best thing."
Q. Speaking of Van Halen, would you ever consider rejoining the band?
A. Quite honestly, I'm not interested. I had so many bad experiences that I don't want to go back to it. I've done 400 shows with the Waboritas (Hagar's current back-up band) since leaving Van Halen. You don't do 400 shows with the same people if you're not having a good time.
Q. So, how are things touring with Dave?
A. I want to break the guy's neck. He is not a very reasonable human being. This guy is impossible to deal with. The guy's crazy. I mean, the guy is stone crazy. But maybe it will make for a great show. I don't see how it could be bad for the fans. It could be hell for me, but I think the fans will have a great time.
I personally don't think much of the guy. I seriously wanna blow the guy off the stage every night I have to open for him. When I finish, I plan on people going, "Well, I guess it's time to go. Nothing can top that." But hopefully he'll be incredible. The best thing would be for him to be really great, the best he's ever been. The next best thing is to ruin him once and for all. This guy is as close to a living cartoon as I've ever met. . . .
It's on the edge, but it's rock 'n' roll . . . I'll probably regret it. The first time this clown makes work for me, I'm going to flip out.
Q. So you're not planning any duets with Dave then, are you?
A. He can't sing any of my songs. He doesn't have the range. It's like asking Tyson and Lewis if they're going to have breakfast before the fight.
Q. OK, then. Between you and Dave, who'd win in a fight?
A. Hard to say. Whoever got the first punch in. I've got a boxing background, but I'm too old to fight. I wanna knock the guy out with the first punch. I don't want to be rolling around on the floor with him, you know?
Q. A hundred years from now, how will Sammy Hagar be remembered?
A. If Sammy is remembered period 100 years from now, that would make me very happy and very proud. Twenty years from now, I'd like to be remembered as the guy who had the longest run in rock 'n' roll, who never went away even though he was never the darling of the decade or anything. I'd like to be remembered as a good songwriter. A group like Sha Na Na, you know how they do the '50s songs now? Well, a group like Sha Na Na when they come out 30 years from now is going to be doing Sammy Hagar songs.
Q. How will David Lee Roth be remembered?
A. I think Dave's stuck with being remembered from his Van Halen days. His star shined bright then, but it was all he had.
Q. You or Dave: Who's get better hair?
A. I do, definitely. I've got hair. Dave's hair isn't really hair. Up close, when I saw it, I was gagging. I was lucky to be born with a full head of hair.
Q. Does the fact that two of hard rock's greatest front men are touring together, despite their differences, signal that rock is back and teen pop is over?
A. I don't chase trends or pay that much attention. I don't mind it (teen pop). It's glamorous, it's entertaining. I've always considered myself a good entertainer. Dave is, too. I went to see Britney Spears in Vegas with my daughter, who was 5 at the time. I was completely mesmerized. It was like watching "Star Wars" for the first time. But afterward, I realized nothing touched my heart and soul because it was all eye candy. It was all lip-synched and artificial. It's like if you could go see Picasso paint, and all of a sudden he made a mistake and went (expletive) and broke the masterpiece in two. You'd rather be able to say "Wow, I witnessed that," than watch some guy painting by numbers. You want to see a real artist be on the edge and (mess) up.
DAVE
With his signature stage moves and ever-present spandex, not to mention ever-larger tales of hedonistic living and egomania, David Lee Roth's stint as Van Halen's first singer, from 1977 until 1985, is the stuff of rock legend. After quitting the band, Roth, 46, released a string of solo albums that included the hit covers "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody" and "California Girls." But lately, Roth has been focused on directing and starring in episodes of an untitled sur-reality show at DavidLeeRoth.com. Diamond Dave talked, laughed and even sang for us by phone the day after his co-headlining "Heavyweights" tour opened in Cleveland.
Q. How was opening night?
A. It's a walk-on. We've been ready since jingle bells . . . The crowd was ecstatic, through the roof. This is quintessential Americana, and half of the audience was under 30. But still, I'm as familiar as the McDonald's arches, as familiar as the Nike swoosh. Everybody was walking around glowing like the slow guy at Chernobyl.
Q. Uhm, OK. So why tour with Sammy?
A. I think it's an outstanding example of what two warring superpowers can (do) - I don't know if we're superpowers or just singers with microphones, but according to the Bible there isn't any difference between the two. It's about unity. Bono called me and told me to do this tour for world peace. Much like your favorite ethnic comedian, it's all about t-t-timing. Get it? (laughs more)
Q. Speaking of timing, will there ever be a right time for you to rejoin Van Halen?
A. Eddie is dysfunctional. Come on, my dear (hearty laughter).
Q. What about Sammy?
A. Most similarities between my reality and Sam's are coincidental. I'm like a Chinese restaurant. I'm like Capitol Hill. You don't really want to know what goes on behind the scenes because it might sour you. . . . I take Portuguese lessons three times a week, Spanish lessons twice a week, I have a Kendo instructor who comes by twice a week. I'm an academic. I've always been that way. Most of my buddies in the music biz are, how can I say it, one-dimensional. . . . As an action figure, I'm out here alone. When you hear about glory days - WAAAAAAAA! (begins sing-howling) hey, who let Bruce Springsteen in here? (maniacal laughter)
Q. A hundred years from now, how will David Lee Roth be remembered?
A. I think they're gonna remember me for my spirit, for the attitude with which I lived my life. . . . Most people today under a certain age can't tell you what Errol Flynn or Babe Ruth did exactly, but they can tell you what their personalities were.
Q. How will Sammy Hagar be remembered?
A. I'm not familiar enough with his catalog or videos but I think he'll be remembered for throwing a great party, and I'll be remembered for being a great party (laughs).
Q. Between you and Sammy, who'd win in a fight?
A. I started studying martial arts in 1966, on my birthday. To this minute it's something I do 15 to 20 hours a week. What I've learned, I've perfected into my own style, which I call Adidas jujitsu. I run. I'm too skinny to fight. (boisterous laughter)
Q. So which one of you has better hair?
A. I think we have different approaches. I'm windswept and handsome. Sam's got that "just-(had sex)" look, as they say up in Fulsom . . . (long pause filled with maniacal laughter). I know how to dream it up and show up. Like a hooker in Vancouver once told me, make it happen, cap'n.
Q. Uhm, right. How is your set different than Sammy's?
A. Sam does his whole Cabo Wabo thing, like a club, he's got people on stage with him and everything. . . . I'm competing with the guy in Limp Bizkit, with Bono. It's precision and fury. Nine moves that rule the world, and it would take you 20 years to learn them, dear. I like the sound of your youth. You may be able to keep up (more maniacal laughter).
Q. How do you feel about opening for Sammy every other night?
A. I never open for anyone. Either I'm the special guest star who goes on first or I'm the headliner who closes the show. He wanted to flip a coin, heads or tails. I wanted to flip a blonde and call it a tail (maniacal laughter). Yeah, you got that one but he didn't get it. The guy is . . . how can I say this? If you asked him who Picasso was, he'd say "the guy with two eyes on the same side of his face."
Q. Interesting you should mention Picasso. Sammy mentioned Picasso when I talked to him, too, but in a different context. Are you guys secretly hanging out at art museums together during your free time?
A. (Hearty laughter) No. What did Sam say about Picasso?
Q. He used him in a metaphor suggesting people probably would prefer to see a real artist like Picasso mess up rather than see an artificial entertainment event like a Britney Spears concert.
A. I see Sam has chosen this very special moment to humiliate himself in public again. Picasso himself would have loved Britney, because any artist of that period would tell you (that) of the two approaches, wild diversity is the easier. . . . To have a thread that's the same from vehicle to vehicle is very rare. Sam is fond of improvisation; he thinks it smacks of mystery and danger. If you want mystery and danger, take a handful of Percodan. . . . That's not what you paid to see me do. You want to see Diamond Big Daddy Dave rock the (expletive) out of you. It's like porno.
Q. Wait, what's like porno?!
A. The best kinds of entertainment are like porno. It all ends the same. You can't give the ending away because everyone knows it already.
http://www.q106rocks.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=41
Rock giants wage wacky war of one-upmanship
By GEMMA TARLACH
of the Journal Sentinel
One can't drive 55. The other's hot for teacher. Each man, on his own, is a hard rock legend. Together, well . . . now that's askin' for trouble.
David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, both former front men for Van Halen and successful solo artists, are co-headlining the "Heavyweight Champs of Rock 'n' Roll" tour, which rumbles into East Troy's Alpine Valley Music Theater Saturday.
The larger-than-life lead singers alternate who plays first each night of the tour - but don't confuse flip-flopping with friendship. Maybe it's manufactured, but this odd couple is at odds about everything, from who's got better hair to Pablo Picasso. Especially Picasso.
Don't believe us? Read it for yourself, in their own words, as two of rock's biggest mouths mouth off.
SAMMY
Sammy Hagar, 54, was already a rock star, first with the group Montrose and then on his own, when he replaced Roth as Van Halen's voice in 1985. Hagar's distinctive pipes are all over some of the band's biggest hits, such as "Dreams" and "Right Now." He split acrimoniously with Van Halen in 1996, however. Since then he has resurrected his solo career, opened a successful nightclub in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, and is marketing his own Cabo Wabo tequila.
We chatted with Hagar by phone shortly before the tour's late May kickoff in Cleveland.
Q.Why are you touring with Dave?
A. When Dave called, my knee jerk reaction was "Yeah, let's do it." Then I thought about it and thought "This sucks, I'm not going out with that idiot." It's not an ego thing. I've never opened for anyone since 1976 and I'm not gonna open for him. It was my road crew, the old Van Halen road crew, people around me saying "Hey, you should do this for the fans. If they can't see you or Dave with Van Halen, Sam and Dave is the next best thing."
Q. Speaking of Van Halen, would you ever consider rejoining the band?
A. Quite honestly, I'm not interested. I had so many bad experiences that I don't want to go back to it. I've done 400 shows with the Waboritas (Hagar's current back-up band) since leaving Van Halen. You don't do 400 shows with the same people if you're not having a good time.
Q. So, how are things touring with Dave?
A. I want to break the guy's neck. He is not a very reasonable human being. This guy is impossible to deal with. The guy's crazy. I mean, the guy is stone crazy. But maybe it will make for a great show. I don't see how it could be bad for the fans. It could be hell for me, but I think the fans will have a great time.
I personally don't think much of the guy. I seriously wanna blow the guy off the stage every night I have to open for him. When I finish, I plan on people going, "Well, I guess it's time to go. Nothing can top that." But hopefully he'll be incredible. The best thing would be for him to be really great, the best he's ever been. The next best thing is to ruin him once and for all. This guy is as close to a living cartoon as I've ever met. . . .
It's on the edge, but it's rock 'n' roll . . . I'll probably regret it. The first time this clown makes work for me, I'm going to flip out.
Q. So you're not planning any duets with Dave then, are you?
A. He can't sing any of my songs. He doesn't have the range. It's like asking Tyson and Lewis if they're going to have breakfast before the fight.
Q. OK, then. Between you and Dave, who'd win in a fight?
A. Hard to say. Whoever got the first punch in. I've got a boxing background, but I'm too old to fight. I wanna knock the guy out with the first punch. I don't want to be rolling around on the floor with him, you know?
Q. A hundred years from now, how will Sammy Hagar be remembered?
A. If Sammy is remembered period 100 years from now, that would make me very happy and very proud. Twenty years from now, I'd like to be remembered as the guy who had the longest run in rock 'n' roll, who never went away even though he was never the darling of the decade or anything. I'd like to be remembered as a good songwriter. A group like Sha Na Na, you know how they do the '50s songs now? Well, a group like Sha Na Na when they come out 30 years from now is going to be doing Sammy Hagar songs.
Q. How will David Lee Roth be remembered?
A. I think Dave's stuck with being remembered from his Van Halen days. His star shined bright then, but it was all he had.
Q. You or Dave: Who's get better hair?
A. I do, definitely. I've got hair. Dave's hair isn't really hair. Up close, when I saw it, I was gagging. I was lucky to be born with a full head of hair.
Q. Does the fact that two of hard rock's greatest front men are touring together, despite their differences, signal that rock is back and teen pop is over?
A. I don't chase trends or pay that much attention. I don't mind it (teen pop). It's glamorous, it's entertaining. I've always considered myself a good entertainer. Dave is, too. I went to see Britney Spears in Vegas with my daughter, who was 5 at the time. I was completely mesmerized. It was like watching "Star Wars" for the first time. But afterward, I realized nothing touched my heart and soul because it was all eye candy. It was all lip-synched and artificial. It's like if you could go see Picasso paint, and all of a sudden he made a mistake and went (expletive) and broke the masterpiece in two. You'd rather be able to say "Wow, I witnessed that," than watch some guy painting by numbers. You want to see a real artist be on the edge and (mess) up.
DAVE
With his signature stage moves and ever-present spandex, not to mention ever-larger tales of hedonistic living and egomania, David Lee Roth's stint as Van Halen's first singer, from 1977 until 1985, is the stuff of rock legend. After quitting the band, Roth, 46, released a string of solo albums that included the hit covers "Just a Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody" and "California Girls." But lately, Roth has been focused on directing and starring in episodes of an untitled sur-reality show at DavidLeeRoth.com. Diamond Dave talked, laughed and even sang for us by phone the day after his co-headlining "Heavyweights" tour opened in Cleveland.
Q. How was opening night?
A. It's a walk-on. We've been ready since jingle bells . . . The crowd was ecstatic, through the roof. This is quintessential Americana, and half of the audience was under 30. But still, I'm as familiar as the McDonald's arches, as familiar as the Nike swoosh. Everybody was walking around glowing like the slow guy at Chernobyl.
Q. Uhm, OK. So why tour with Sammy?
A. I think it's an outstanding example of what two warring superpowers can (do) - I don't know if we're superpowers or just singers with microphones, but according to the Bible there isn't any difference between the two. It's about unity. Bono called me and told me to do this tour for world peace. Much like your favorite ethnic comedian, it's all about t-t-timing. Get it? (laughs more)
Q. Speaking of timing, will there ever be a right time for you to rejoin Van Halen?
A. Eddie is dysfunctional. Come on, my dear (hearty laughter).
Q. What about Sammy?
A. Most similarities between my reality and Sam's are coincidental. I'm like a Chinese restaurant. I'm like Capitol Hill. You don't really want to know what goes on behind the scenes because it might sour you. . . . I take Portuguese lessons three times a week, Spanish lessons twice a week, I have a Kendo instructor who comes by twice a week. I'm an academic. I've always been that way. Most of my buddies in the music biz are, how can I say it, one-dimensional. . . . As an action figure, I'm out here alone. When you hear about glory days - WAAAAAAAA! (begins sing-howling) hey, who let Bruce Springsteen in here? (maniacal laughter)
Q. A hundred years from now, how will David Lee Roth be remembered?
A. I think they're gonna remember me for my spirit, for the attitude with which I lived my life. . . . Most people today under a certain age can't tell you what Errol Flynn or Babe Ruth did exactly, but they can tell you what their personalities were.
Q. How will Sammy Hagar be remembered?
A. I'm not familiar enough with his catalog or videos but I think he'll be remembered for throwing a great party, and I'll be remembered for being a great party (laughs).
Q. Between you and Sammy, who'd win in a fight?
A. I started studying martial arts in 1966, on my birthday. To this minute it's something I do 15 to 20 hours a week. What I've learned, I've perfected into my own style, which I call Adidas jujitsu. I run. I'm too skinny to fight. (boisterous laughter)
Q. So which one of you has better hair?
A. I think we have different approaches. I'm windswept and handsome. Sam's got that "just-(had sex)" look, as they say up in Fulsom . . . (long pause filled with maniacal laughter). I know how to dream it up and show up. Like a hooker in Vancouver once told me, make it happen, cap'n.
Q. Uhm, right. How is your set different than Sammy's?
A. Sam does his whole Cabo Wabo thing, like a club, he's got people on stage with him and everything. . . . I'm competing with the guy in Limp Bizkit, with Bono. It's precision and fury. Nine moves that rule the world, and it would take you 20 years to learn them, dear. I like the sound of your youth. You may be able to keep up (more maniacal laughter).
Q. How do you feel about opening for Sammy every other night?
A. I never open for anyone. Either I'm the special guest star who goes on first or I'm the headliner who closes the show. He wanted to flip a coin, heads or tails. I wanted to flip a blonde and call it a tail (maniacal laughter). Yeah, you got that one but he didn't get it. The guy is . . . how can I say this? If you asked him who Picasso was, he'd say "the guy with two eyes on the same side of his face."
Q. Interesting you should mention Picasso. Sammy mentioned Picasso when I talked to him, too, but in a different context. Are you guys secretly hanging out at art museums together during your free time?
A. (Hearty laughter) No. What did Sam say about Picasso?
Q. He used him in a metaphor suggesting people probably would prefer to see a real artist like Picasso mess up rather than see an artificial entertainment event like a Britney Spears concert.
A. I see Sam has chosen this very special moment to humiliate himself in public again. Picasso himself would have loved Britney, because any artist of that period would tell you (that) of the two approaches, wild diversity is the easier. . . . To have a thread that's the same from vehicle to vehicle is very rare. Sam is fond of improvisation; he thinks it smacks of mystery and danger. If you want mystery and danger, take a handful of Percodan. . . . That's not what you paid to see me do. You want to see Diamond Big Daddy Dave rock the (expletive) out of you. It's like porno.
Q. Wait, what's like porno?!
A. The best kinds of entertainment are like porno. It all ends the same. You can't give the ending away because everyone knows it already.
http://www.q106rocks.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=41