Did Keyboards kill CVH?

[Vinnie Velvet]

Originally posted by Terry
Dunno about that.

Don't think EVERYONE loved Jump, far as Halen fans who had been into the band prior to 1984 went, anyway. Jump and I'll Wait were never anything that great to me, keyboard-wise.

Nah, think it had more to do with personality clashes, and Ed wanting to assert himself more. Willing to bet Ed was tired of feeling like he was being told what to do by Ted, Dave and Noel. Seems like Dave and Ed always has a certain amount of tension to their relationship, and maybe Ed felt he wasn't getting enough of his ideas across, or didn't want to have to battle to get what he wanted on the albums....I mean, I definitely get the sense that Ed was pissed since Dave was doing virtually all the press for CVH, and maybe he just got tired of feeling like he was being led around, so building 5150 studios was a way of having some control, or whatever.

Even though 1984 isn't my favorite VH album, I don't really think that musical differences drove CVH apart. Seemed like there was plenty of creative juice left in that lineup (as 1996 demonstrated). Think it was just ego and a lack of being willing to compromise - this includes Dave as well.

There obviously was creative juice left in the CVH tank after 1984.

However, Ed was so into keyboards back then that he would go some months without playing guitar.

I'm sure Dave hated the keyboard stuff for Why Can;t this be Love and Love Walks In, 'cause they were ballad-type songs.

He could've put another "Ill Wait" spin to those, but he didn't want to.

He felt the music that Ed was coming up with was too melancholoy.

There were some creative differences, but of course personality clashes is what broke the band apart (mostly Ed's drinking and drug problems).

[bueno bob]

Yeah.

I didn't mind the keyboards on Jump & I'll Wait - for the time, I was new to Van Halen, keyboards were the selling sound of the 80s. After hearing some other, older Van Halen that year, I thought that the keyboards, when used in limitation (like 1984, 2 tracks only) gave them a broader sound and it was fun.

Of course, 5150 came out and everything was utterly synthed to death which really killed the effect for me...plus I didn't really care for the new singer as much as I did the old one, but remember this was still before I learned to hate Sammy Hagar as much as possible.

By OU812, I was ready to puke and started hoping they'd get that first guy back.

[Hollywood Jesus]

And the Cradle will Rocks shows what keyboards can be.

And I love it when a hot blues band tickles the ivories. Bury the Casio and dig me up a juke-joint upright!


Stern says keyboards killed CVH because it's a quick quip on the whole screwed-up story.

[Vinnie Velvet]

Keyboards didn't kill CVH.

Keyboards for slow, melancholoy music, is one of the factors that did, yes.

[Grant]

Originally posted by Vinnie Velvet
There obviously was creative juice left in the CVH tank after 1984.

However, Ed was so into keyboards back then that he would go some months without playing guitar.

I'm sure Dave hated the keyboard stuff for Why Can;t this be Love and Love Walks In, 'cause they were ballad-type songs.

He could've put another "Ill Wait" spin to those, but he didn't want to.

He felt the music that Ed was coming up with was too melancholoy.

There were some creative differences, but of course personality clashes is what broke the band apart (mostly Ed's drinking and drug problems).

You're right. But I think in the end, it all boiled down to Dave's desire to play live through the summer of 1985. The brothers were primarily against it, they wanted to spend the following months in the studio working on the next album but Dave who up to that time was sick of waiting on Edward, so he did CFTH with the videos just to occupy his time he had. I think once the brothers refused to play live then Dave in his own mind had no choice but to bail. He probably thought it was gonna be just a temporary split from each other until the slaggings by Eddie in the press started and the hiring of Sammy ultimately spolied in any hopes of that.

[Panamark]

I dont blame the keyboards. There are so many great Rock songs
with keyboards, that it would be impossible to list them all..

I think the use of keyboards on all the Classic Van Halen albums
was done minimalistically, and fitted in great. 1984 was no exception.
It was great to hear the synth sound applied to Rock for a change.

Dreams sucks, and I guess chronologically that was on the successor
to 1984. So there could be an argument for keyboards ruining the
Van Hagar sound.

[Figs]

Re: Did Keyboards kill CVH?

Originally posted by The Godfather
Did Keyboards kill CVH?

yes

[Vinnie Velvet]

The reason "Jump" is different and much better than "Dreams" is because there's no GAYNESS applied to it.

Case in point:

Dreams: "Spread your wings...get higher and higher."

Jump: "Can't cha see I'm standing here, got my back against a record machine."

Okay, which is more GAY?

Yup, Dreams.

End of elaboration.