The DLR Cast

[Kristy]

What do you call David Lee Roth without Van Halen?

Desperate.

[Nitro Express]

What do you call a rock musician with no girlfriend? Homeless.

[Nitro Express]

You have to be a bit fucked up to want to be an EMT. Dave certainly was qualified.

[Nitro Express]

Bullshit. Smell-A is what it's always been: a festering shithole.

Naw. It was a fun place in the 70’s and 80’s. I used the spend my summers there.

[Nitro Express]

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.

[Kristy]

Bullshit. Smell-A is what it's always been: a festering shithole.

[Nitro Express]

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.

Both Ed and Dave were idiot savants. They did a few things extremely well and the world was ready for those things. Van Halen is an image. It sold the whole fun in the sun SoCal vibe. It spawned that whole 80’s Sunset Strip thing. It was fun for a few years and the vibe lingered on for awhile. Then grunge came and hip hop came and Disney whores came and then the internet destroyed the music industry and COVID has killed touring.

I was in LA not too long ago. It’s a lame fuck town now. Nothing is happening there. You couldn’t get any farther than the 1980’s LA.

[Kristy]

So you're finally taking my advice to lay off the dope? Now if we could just get Sesh to lay off the vodka...

slave SESH is a closet Snow Patrol fan. There is no hope for him and it was the edible that told me to lay off the weed.

Dave took that persona to the top. There was nowhere else to go.

But down.

I don't disagree about Dave being self serving. But they had a 6 pack of some of the greatest albums ever. The band was not ruined by the third album. Besides, you want these bands to hang it up while they're on top, then you chastise Roth for doing just that, as far as VH goes. He fucking QUIT after their biggest album and biggest tour. That's an unmitigated FACT!

I did not say that. Bands need to hang it up when they become a joke on stage and are preforming only for the money. Look at what I mentioned, Stones, Ki$$, U2. They all need to go. The original 6 were all great albums. Well, maybe Diver sucked dead dog balls. No, that record did suck dead dog balls.

Speaking of Templeman, I suggest you read his book. You obviously have not.

Now why would I ever read a book written by the Godfather of yacht rock?

How dare you compare Roth's stage presence to the gay parade Mercury put on. Roth didn't propagate his greatest frontman status. I did it for him! I saw all the great bands from that era, front and center. Dave was the greatest front man ever. that's a FACT!

No, that's your opinion. Roth barely cuts it as a frontman. He was a on-stage drunk, a testicle yelper and a 6 foot tall spandex wearing garden gnome.

What do you care what the ticket prices are, or if someone is willing to pay it?

Again, way to miss the fucking point, Von.

Ed himself said different. Case closed.

Ed was also most likely drunk at the time he said a lot of things.

[Von Halen]

I quit doing weed after a horrible experience with an edible. Fucked me up for about a week. Not going through that experience again. Now, if I get my hand on a tab or two that might change.

So you're finally taking my advice to lay off the dope? Now if we could just get Sesh to lay off the vodka...

I'm not saying Dave was never an unintelligent guy. The way in which he marketed Van Halen was genius like using photos from being an opening act for the Stones on Diver Down to his amusing interviews with Martha Quinn. Problem was Dave never took the persona to new levels or ever tried to ingrate it with the rest of the band instead opting to become the franchise face of Van Halen much in the way Rod Stewart did with Faces. That behavior only sows discontent.

Dave took that persona to the top. There was nowhere else to go.

I'm in 100% disagreement. Roth was (and still is) all about self-aggrandizement. He was all about outshining his band mates at their expense. His ego took over the band's unity around the third album.

I don't disagree about Dave being self serving. But they had a 6 pack of some of the greatest albums ever. The band was not ruined by the third album. Besides, you want these bands to hang it up while they're on top, then you chastise Roth for doing just that, as far as VH goes. He fucking QUIT after their biggest album and biggest tour. That's an unmitigated FACT!

Oh please. Roth's lyrical content was sophomoric at best. Plus how much of that shit was refined by Templeton and the suits at Warner Brothers? Why did they end up making an album that over 60% cover material and not only that safe cover material? Like I told you, they were a poor man's Montrose cover band. Their creative peak was on Fair Warning and much of that was Eddie and you so fucking know it. They only could have ascended to higher peaks but once agian, Roth's ego fucked it all up.

Speaking of Templeman, I suggest you read his book. You obviously have not.

That's arguable if not downright laughable. Roth "greatest frontman" was his own propaganda and believing in his own press. So much for Freddy Mercury, I guess. Roth's stage antics were theatrical and childish. But believe what you want.

How dare you compare Roth's stage presence to the gay parade Mercury put on. Roth didn't propagate his greatest frontman status. I did it for him! I saw all the great bands from that era, front and center. Dave was the greatest front man ever. that's a FACT!

And is this "nobody is forcing" argument is downright retarded. I'm wondering for al these fans with free will how much these tickets prices are. I'm guessing not cheap.

What do you care what the ticket prices are, or if someone is willing to pay it?

He was fired. Period. His ego killed his gravy train ride. Fuck, I've been fired and lied that I quit.

Ed himself said different. Case closed.

[Kristy]

As we can probably go back through these threads and confirm, I had planned to come to that Red Rocks show. I even offered to come bang you since I knew you'd probably be disappointed in the show itself. But, I will agree with you, Dave wasn't performing well on that tour, and I decided not to waste the money seeing VH play the greatest concert venue on the planet, for the first time in their careers. In hindsight, I should have showed up. At least you'd have only had one disappointment that night. :D

Same old Von.

[Kristy]

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.

I quit doing weed after a horrible experience with an edible. Fucked me up for about a week. Not going through that experience again. Now, if I get my hand on a tab or two that might change.

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'm not saying Dave was never an unintelligent guy. The way in which he marketed Van Halen was genius like using photos from being an opening act for the Stones on Diver Down to his amusing interviews with Martha Quinn. Problem was Dave never took the persona to new levels or ever tried to ingrate it with the rest of the band instead opting to become the franchise face of Van Halen much in the way Rod Stewart did with Faces. That behavior only sows discontent.

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.

I'm in 100% disagreement. Roth was (and still is) all about self-aggrandizement. He was all about outshining his band mates at their expense. His ego took over the band's unity around the third album.

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.

Oh please. Roth's lyrical content was sophomoric at best. Plus how much of that shit was refined by Templeton and the suits at Warner Brothers? Why did they end up making an album that over 60% cover material and not only that safe cover material? Like I told you, they were a poor man's Montrose cover band. Their creative peak was on Fair Warning and much of that was Eddie and you so fucking know it. They only could have ascended to higher peaks but once agian, Roth's ego fucked it all up.

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.

That's arguable if not downright laughable. Roth "greatest frontman" was his own propaganda and believing in his own press. So much for Freddy Mercury, I guess. Roth's stage antics were theatrical and childish. But believe what you want. And is this "nobody is forcing" argument is downright retarded. I'm wondering for al these fans with free will how much these tickets prices are. I'm guessing not cheap.

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.

He was fired. Period. His ego killed his gravy train ride. Fuck, I've been fired and lied that I quit.

[paltrowitz]

Thanks for your quick reply.

I'm with you on some of this, but not all of this. For example, I interviewed Dave's EMT instructor -- not yet released -- and his move into that world definitely wasn't anything to do with a personality crisis.

For better and for worse, Dave's on-going pattern is that he gets interested in something, he does it to the best of his ability (possibly hiring the greatest coach or teacher possible), then he often moves on without comment or announcement. And us fans sometimes feel confused and/or annoyed because we didn't get an explanation. His never-made movie from the 80s, his radio show, EMT stuff, the followup book, the John 5 album, the mid-90s Vegas show, the YouTube show, the late 90s webcasts, the tattoo skincare company, etc etc. And then there's problem of "released but buried" projects (e.g. the Japanese-language short film, The Roth Project) also. He does it, he moves on, and we're puzzled.

The Vegas 2020 shows I saw were good. I watched some phone-filed videos of those 2 shows after the fact and the same shows sounded awful. In the room, it was fine. He was doing "alternate" melodies (not singing the recorded normal melody line 100%) but he wasn't straining heavily on every song or anything. He also was doing some kicks and bends. It wasn't top-notch by DLR standards, but it was fine.

It may not be the overwhelming majority of Van Halen fans -- definitely a small percentage -- but some of us are very excited for the Vegas shows and still think DLR is great. I, for starters, love the "A Different Kind Of Truth" and "DLR Band" albums.

[Von Halen]

I'm not buying it especially in Roth's case where his only reasoning for doing a final farewell is out of this sense of being vague and ambivalent about his health. If this is such of a concern as Roth purports it to be then why perform at all? Dave's best days are long, long behind him. There was a while there when he was not only disillusioned with his career but the music industry itself turning his back on completely out of a sense of spite. Fame and and sudden lack of it can fuck a lot of people up in mysterious ways. His decision to become a New York EMT was a severe personality crisis knowing he could have had the commercial (as in total sell out) peaks that S P A M M Y took the band. When I saw them perform live at Red Rocks in 2015 no one look more out of place than Roth like he was an Alzheimer's nursing patient. There wasn't much fan camaraderie as there was confusion towards Roth's presence. People cringed when Roth's vocal shrieked and at a place like Red Rocks where the sound is crystal clear is was really nerve racking. Eddie stole the show and gave flashes of brilliance but there were times when he looked at Roth with discontent. It was far from entertaining when you discount Eddie's soloing.

Must be me then. I stridently believe there is a time when these fucking aging rock stars need to hang it up and by hang it up walk away from any type of performing for good. Look the examples of KISS, The Stones, even U2. The muzak is beyond stale, beyond boring, beyond self-parody. From what I've and heard of Roth's Vegas show before COVID it's certainly wasn't Roth in terms of a nostalgia act. More of a sad, wretched man doing his damnest to soothe his ego at the expense of his fan base. I'm sorry, but he's a embarrassment now and not only to himself - although the same goes for Jagger and Fuckhead Bono. Even in recent interviews Roth does not seem to have his heart into doing this. Maybe Eddie's death affected him in a way that he is not ready to process what is over is over.

As we can probably go back through these threads and confirm, I had planned to come to that Red Rocks show. I even offered to come bang you since I knew you'd probably be disappointed in the show itself. But, I will agree with you, Dave wasn't performing well on that tour, and I decided not to waste the money seeing VH play the greatest concert venue on the planet, for the first time in their careers. In hindsight, I should have showed up. At least you'd have only had one disappointment that night. :D

[Von Halen]

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.

[Kristy]

Every classic artist has their ups and downs, creatively and commercially. And most of those artists towards the end, it is nowhere near as great as it was. But if given the choice between "some DLR" and "no DLR," I think it's an easy decision/answer there. See the legends while you still can. Cherish the opportunities if/while you still can. Experiences over belongings.

I'm not buying it especially in Roth's case where his only reasoning for doing a final farewell is out of this sense of being vague and ambivalent about his health. If this is such of a concern as Roth purports it to be then why perform at all? Dave's best days are long, long behind him. There was a while there when he was not only disillusioned with his career but the music industry itself turning his back on completely out of a sense of spite. Fame and and sudden lack of it can fuck a lot of people up in mysterious ways. His decision to become a New York EMT was a severe personality crisis knowing he could have had the commercial (as in total sell out) peaks that S P A M M Y took the band. When I saw them perform live at Red Rocks in 2015 no one look more out of place than Roth like he was an Alzheimer's nursing patient. There wasn't much fan camaraderie as there was confusion towards Roth's presence. People cringed when Roth's vocal shrieked and at a place like Red Rocks where the sound is crystal clear is was really nerve racking. Eddie stole the show and gave flashes of brilliance but there were times when he looked at Roth with discontent. It was far from entertaining when you discount Eddie's soloing.

Must be me then. I stridently believe there is a time when these fucking aging rock stars need to hang it up and by hang it up walk away from any type of performing for good. Look the examples of KISS, The Stones, even U2. The muzak is beyond stale, beyond boring, beyond self-parody. From what I've and heard of Roth's Vegas show before COVID it's certainly wasn't Roth in terms of a nostalgia act. More of a sad, wretched man doing his damnest to soothe his ego at the expense of his fan base. I'm sorry, but he's a embarrassment now and not only to himself - although the same goes for Jagger and Fuckhead Bono. Even in recent interviews Roth does not seem to have his heart into doing this. Maybe Eddie's death affected him in a way that he is not ready to process what is over is over.