ALAE. A relisten

[Sensible Shoes]

Yes, going through all the DLR solo stuff.

I've decided that this is my favorite of the bunch. Yes some of the stuff , ALAE in particular, is a little too pop, but there is some really nice energy on the disc. It just drives all the way through and for good or bad, I'm lovin Roth's voice on this. Yeah I know bunches of you hate brass, but I love Shoot it. And since I"m always a sucker for sexual innuendo, Hammerhead shark is a hoot. Tell the Truth is nice. I can live with out the Travis Tritt duet, and one or two others, but there aren't many I reach up to click past. And of course it contains my favorite, Sensible Shoes.

Discuss.

[ELVIS]

Re-listen ??

[kwame k]

When a saw this thread title I thought I'd pull up the album and give it a listen. Wow, I haven't listened to the entire album in ages........:beers8:

[Anonymous]

Yes, going through all the DLR solo stuff.

I've decided that this is my favorite of the bunch. Yes some of the stuff , ALAE in particular, is a little too pop, but there is some really nice energy on the disc. It just drives all the way through and for good or bad, I'm lovin Roth's voice on this. Yeah I know bunches of you hate brass, but I love Shoot it. And since I"m always a sucker for sexual innuendo, Hammerhead shark is a hoot. Tell the Truth is nice. I can live with out the Travis Tritt duet, and one or two others, but there aren't many I reach up to click past. And of course it contains my favorite, Sensible Shoes.

Discuss.

All good points, I also love the brass section in Shoot It. It KICKS ASS!

Travis is in Your Filthy Little Mouth, though. Er, so to speak.

Cheers! :bottle:

[kwame k]

All good points, I also love the brass section in Shoot It. It KICKS ASS!

Travis is in Your Filthy Little Mouth, though. Er, so to speak.


Cheers! :bottle:

That's the weakest track, IMO.

[binnie]

Not too sure that it's aged well - whilst quintessentially Dave, it feels very much of its time, maybe due to the 'Bob Rock' sound.

I still love it to bits though - next to EEAS, I'd say that it's Dave's most consistent solo record.

[kwame k]

As a complete album, I'd agree Binnie.......still, my fav of the month is DLR Band.

[sonrisa salvaje]

I hated Shoot It then and i still hate it now. I have to just skip it. Talking about a pop tune. To me the best song on the album is Lady Luck. I love the album but at times it just seems like Dave is trying too hard to follow the VH formula, -ie- Showtime sounding like Hot For Teacher and a lot of high vocals on the album that sound like Michael Anthony. I can't blame him for trying too hard in returning from the direction he went with in Skyscraper, though. I think the greatest thing about all of Dave's solo work is that no two records sound the same. All of them went in different directions and had a different sound.

[Sarge]

DLRBAND is my favorite. I like ALAE. The videos were decent. Sensible shoes and 40 below are great songs.
Way better than YFLM by a mile.

[SNIPER]

ALAE gets played in full at least once a month by me. I dig that cd alot. To me its a great cd with no filler. Daves voice is prime at that time.

[joe d'amato]

... but of course a little ain't enough. killer subject. killer dlr album ...

... isn't it odd that the spelling of the title song is different from the spelling of the album's title? what's that all about? and i still believe, and always will believe, the thunderous breakdown in lady luck is a shining peak moment for both david lee roth and for his producer bob rock as well ...

[hambon4lif]

I'm partial to this one because "Drop In The Bucket" is my favorite Dave solo tune....

....cranked at maximum volume, the last 3 minutes of it is pure rock'n'roll bliss!

Becker slays the fucking dragon on that one...

[knuckleboner]

drop in the bucket is a great tune. among others...

[Sensible Shoes]

That's the weakest track, IMO.

Oh you're right, I forgot I had that one out this week too. That's the one I couldn't get my ears to work for. Songs I used to love to sing along with - it just didn't cut it all with me this time. Even YFLM which I always loved sounded weak. Just not a consistant sound throughout that one.

(Jesus, I was responding to the Travis Tritt correction - I"m not awake.)

[Sensible Shoes]

Re-listen ??

Yeah, like I hadn't listened to it for a few years so I listened again......why?

[conmee]

Brethren and Sistren,

Listening right now... It sounds a bit dated even for 1991 standards... at least in retrospect given the whole alt/grunge movement... should have come out with this album a couple years earlier... oh wait, he did, it was called Skyscraper then. ;)

A Lil Ain't Enough is one of my favorite singles, though I could do with less keyboard filler in Skyscraper and ALAE mainly because it reminds me of Bon Jovi. I think ALAE single would have been a little tighter/stronger without the keys. But overall I like the album. Dave's voice is excellent.

Yes, right now, I'm skipping Shoot It...

Agree with Sarge, my post-VH favorite is in my opinion also his best solo effort DLR Band. He really tried on that album to show the VH brothers what they were missing by going with Cherone instead after the 1996 fiasco. Some great classic lines by DLR and a strong set of songs.

That is all.

Icon©®™

[Smooth]

Speak of the devil. I did a "re-listen" of this CD a few weeks ago myself. And, like you, Shoes, I think it his best solo album. Lady Luck is a great song, and Drop In The Bucket is my favorite DLR solo track. I never understood why Drop IN the Bucket was the last song. It took me weeks to discover the song because I never got to it, and let's face it, everyone knows the last song on a record is the worst. LOL.

Many of you commented on Dave's voice being good on the album. I disagree there. I liked the sound of his voice less and less as it started to really "deteriorate" from Skyscraper on. In fact, by the time DLR Band came out it grated on me when he sang in a higher register. Interestingly, I don't know what Dave did, but his voice now sounds better than it has in years and years, in my opinion.

[GAR]

Not too sure that it's aged well

It doesn't age well in my player either, for example the last disc lasted 3 years, and the one before that ran for about 5 years before the sun warped it.

But that's fine, when this copy wears out I'll just get another.

[Sensible Shoes]

The album aging well for me - well that's never a concern. I am so stuck in the 80's that I hear things from the 90's and they sound new and scary for me. I guess I have a problem with finding new music (OK post 1986 music) that I like. It's not like anything other than rap or pop shit gets played on terrestrial radio. The last time I tried to venture into "new" rock, I picked up an Evanessence disc and listened to it once. Flash in the pan.

I've become my parents. I remember once I wanted to have some music for a kid's party - we were maybe 9 or 10 and she gave me a Glenn Miller 78. No shit.

[sonrisa salvaje]

I really like the title track to ALAE but i think everyone would agree there were better songs on the album to release as the first single. I often wonder how much control Dave had as to what song was the first single and if that was his choice or not. ALAE was radio friendly versus Drop In the Bucket which would have been way too heavy for your average radio listener back at that time. But then again, Metallica's Black album wasn't too far after that. When i think about it, Drop In the Bucket may be heavier than Enter Sandman. Am i just crazy from the heat here?

[ZahZoo]

I've become my parents. I remember once I wanted to have some music for a kid's party - we were maybe 9 or 10 and she gave me a Glenn Miller 78. No shit.

Few here would understand the cultural significance of a Glenn Miller 78... most wouldn't get the 78 part...

[Sensible Shoes]

Few here would understand the cultural significance of a Glenn Miller 78... most wouldn't get the 78 part...

Thanks Zah. That made me feel all young and chipper.

[Smooth]

No u aren't crazy. Drop in the Bucket is heavier than Sandman. And if it isn't heavier it definitely doesn't sound as "smooth". As much as I love Drop in the Bucket, I never cared for the mix much. I don't like the two electric guitars playing over each other at the beginning. It's too messy. Almost grates on the nerves.

[heartbreaker]

That's the weakest track, IMO.

I agree with the thought that "Shoot It" is the weakest track, along with "Sensible Shoes". Still, I think it's a masterpiece of an album. It's not overly "pop" sounding like "Skyscraper" and it's definitely aged better as well. It rocks harder than "YFLM" and "Skyscraper" and I often consider the title track of "ALAE" to be one of my personal theme songs. Bob Rock was a great production alternative to Ted Templeman. The only downside is that we're left wondering with what a DLR/Jason Becker combination could have really been like in the long run.

[ZahZoo]

Thanks Zah. That made me feel all young and chipper.

Sorry... I've gotten too old to act like a punk, so I've settled for wise old sage... well er... old wise ass will work too!! ;)

[Sensible Shoes]

I agree with the thought that "Shoot It" is the weakest track, along with "Sensible Shoes". Still, I think it's a masterpiece of an album. It's not overly "pop" sounding like "Skyscraper" and it's definitely aged better as well. It rocks harder than "YFLM" and "Skyscraper" and I often consider the title track of "ALAE" to be one of my personal theme songs. Bob Rock was a great production alternative to Ted Templeman. The only downside is that we're left wondering with what a DLR/Jason Becker combination could have really been like in the long run.

Well I've now found somebody with the exact opposite taste than I have.

[binnie]

Would everyone agree that whilt Dave has made some very good records as a solo artist, he's never made a great one?

[Seshmeister]

EEAS was a great record when it came out but it's maybe not aged brilliantly well.

[Anonymous]

Would everyone agree that whilt Dave has made some very good records as a solo artist, he's never made a great one?

I disagree.

Simply because his great one album was not, is not, and will hardly ever be accepted by his fans.

Your Filthy Little Mouth.

The music is diverse & brilliant, his lyrics are the best & wittiest ever, he never sang so well in his life (even if his voice has sounded better, what he pulled in YFLM is NOT for amateurs) -, the only thing he lacked was a kickass band. Then again, not having a supergroup may have been the reason he recorded this album.

I will always maintain that the second you've got nothing to lose, your true self and/or brilliance will appear.

Dave had nothing to lose.

It's my favourite all time album. Fuck you all.

Cheers! :bottle:

[Sensible Shoes]

LOL. Disagree! I don't dislike it, but it's not the best. Most creative maybe, but not the best.

[sonrisa salvaje]

Depends on the definition of great. There's a great record as in there is no filler, and cover to cover it has killer tracks. Then there is great, as in legacy great, such as a Van Halen I or a Back in Black. Only Eatem and Smile, to me, meets the criteria for category 1.

[Anonymous]

LOL. Disagree! I don't dislike it, but it's not the best. Most creative maybe, but not the best.

Well, since "best" is extremely relative, we'll have to settle with creative.

Thus, it's his one great album. ;)

Cheers! :bottle:

[Sensible Shoes]

Where the hell have you been anyway?

[Anonymous]

Wrasslin'. Four matches recorded on Saturday after driving 700 kms, setting up the ring & recording promos. Afterwards, dismount the ring, drive back with no sleep. Went to bed Sunday 10 AM, woke up Monday morning, off to my real job selling wine.

All in all, I have job piled up sky high. And I STILL don't make enough money.

Cheers! :bottle:

[Sensible Shoes]

Nobody makes enough money. Just did a budget yesterday, and with bare essentials, I have determined, I will never be able to cover my bills. Nothing else to cut out.

[joe d'amato]

... of course eat 'em and smile is the obvious solo dlr album for great veneration, so it's interesting to see the massive respect the underdog a little ain't enough gets on this board ...

... the insane energy, the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink production sound and dave's most sage and fun lyrics ever make a little ain't enough a killer album. listening to shoot it is the equivalent of snorting a line of blow -- it jacks you up into sheer euphoria. and in terms of capturing the essence of classic van halen, you could take sensible shoes and put it on any ted templeman-produced vh record and it wouldn't sound out of place at all ...

... love it ...

[jero]

EEAS was a great record when it came out but it's maybe not aged brilliantly well.

That was the alblum Classic Van Halen should have made!

[SNIPER]

"Shoot It" sounds to me like it could be a current country single if it was released today with a big name male country artist. I think it is a great song even with that being said.

[Sensible Shoes]

Cuntry? I don't get that at all.

[Anonymous]

"Shoot It" sounds to me like it could be a current country single if it was released today with a big name male country artist. I think it is a great song even with that being said.

You need to have your ears cleansed up, then. Urgently.

Cheers! :bottle:

[SNIPER]

"Last Call" sounds like the idea came from "Walk This Way"