I want to thank you guys for providing a lot of excellent reading material in this thread.
I'm old, so I was listening to Montrose (thanks to a friends older brother with Mindblower speakers in his car. Anyone remember those?) before VH was known nationwide. I liked Montrose. I saw Hagar open for Boston on March 8, 1979 at Henry Levitt Arena in Wichita, KS. It wasn't Montrose, but he had a pretty fucking good band. Gary Pihl on guitar and Bill Church on bass. It wouldn't be fair to say every piece of material Hagar came out with, was shit. Like Rikk or someone else posted, he's got some decent stuff. Even Dave complemented his longevity way back in 2002 on the Radio Rodeo tour, when they were doing the Dave and Sam tour. Speaking of the Radio Rodeo tour, I still think Dave's version of "Tin Cup Chalice" from the WRIF studio is nothing short of stellar. It was almost like one upping the Jimmy Buffet wannabe at his own game. I have to believe that was calculated. If not, still brilliant.
As far as his pre Van Hagar solo material, he's got some decent stuff in that catalogue too. I took a hit of acid and attended the VOA show. He sat literally right in front of me on the edge of the stage and played "Bad Motor Scooter" on a slide guitar. My hobby in those days, and actually still today, was taking concert photo's. I didn't think enough of Hagar to even take my camera. Looking back, I'm actually shocked I didn't. I was front row and probably should have taken pictures. It was an okay show.
I am by no means a huge fan of Dave's material for the first few years after VH, nor am I a huge fan of most of the Van Hagar era material. There are a few songs I like from each, but rarely listen to either. I think both incarnations rode the wave of 1984. I was not happy with the selection of Vai as Dave's guitarist. I am a riff guy. I like riffs more than solo's. I think the solo is more icing on the cake of the riff. For me, Vai just wasn't consistently a great riffer. I just don't think he had the right chemistry with Dave, and maybe even the rest of the band. Vai has never been able to last in a true band format and for good reason. He's a solo guy. There are a few killer tunes though. I wish Dave had selected Steve Stevens, or maybe even an unknown. I love the DLR Band album and think this is his best post VH album. Well, it's a toss up between that and ALAE.
Dave and Clichegar both have their share of cheesy stuff. But the first 6 and then the 7th Van Halen albums are in a league of their own. Dave has openly stated he doesn't care for "Me Wise Magic". I think that may just be from the sour taste in his mouth for getting ditched right after, for Cherone. "Me Wise Magic" is a killer tune. I wonder if he has changed his opinion of it now that all this time has passed, and so has Ed? Dave and Ed had a chemistry that neither were able to duplicate without each other. Yes, they both made some good music without each other, but nothing close to what the original Van Halen did.
As I mentioned earlier, I am old. I am in fact getting to the desperate stage where I fucking want an official video release of a live show, from the glory days. 1984 or before. Shame on that fucking Wolfgang for caring more about his own career, than his Father's legacy. Like someone else said, he could absolutely turn the process over to someone that is more than capable of handling it. But hey, this is a dumbfuck that has no idea what a true band is. Even after all this touring, his "band" isn't good enough for him, to go into the studio and record an album. Mr Big Shot has to do it all himself. He must pay them well otherwise I have to believe they would bail. Frankly, his music sucks. I'd rather listen to Clichegar than the generic shit he comes up with. Yes, I would love to hear all the stuff in the vault too, but I have been longing for an official live video release, forever. For fucks sake. I can go get a live concert video from virtually every band ever, but this one. Why is that? Those old live shows are fucking LEGEND! HEY WOLFGANG, QUIT BEING A SPOILED WHINY CUNT AND GIVE VAN HALEN FANS WHAT THEY WANT! It's fucking sad that you want to be more like your Dad, but are nothing but a clone of your miserable Mom.
Sorry for rambling on and being all over the map, but you guys have all made some interesting posts in this thread. Well, everyone but NickDelusional. He's too busy posting stupid political shit, than to be bothered with anything VH related.
I'm old, so I was listening to Montrose (thanks to a friends older brother with Mindblower speakers in his car. Anyone remember those?) before VH was known nationwide. I liked Montrose. I saw Hagar open for Boston on March 8, 1979 at Henry Levitt Arena in Wichita, KS. It wasn't Montrose, but he had a pretty fucking good band. Gary Pihl on guitar and Bill Church on bass. It wouldn't be fair to say every piece of material Hagar came out with, was shit. Like Rikk or someone else posted, he's got some decent stuff. Even Dave complemented his longevity way back in 2002 on the Radio Rodeo tour, when they were doing the Dave and Sam tour. Speaking of the Radio Rodeo tour, I still think Dave's version of "Tin Cup Chalice" from the WRIF studio is nothing short of stellar. It was almost like one upping the Jimmy Buffet wannabe at his own game. I have to believe that was calculated. If not, still brilliant.
As far as his pre Van Hagar solo material, he's got some decent stuff in that catalogue too. I took a hit of acid and attended the VOA show. He sat literally right in front of me on the edge of the stage and played "Bad Motor Scooter" on a slide guitar. My hobby in those days, and actually still today, was taking concert photo's. I didn't think enough of Hagar to even take my camera. Looking back, I'm actually shocked I didn't. I was front row and probably should have taken pictures. It was an okay show.
I am by no means a huge fan of Dave's material for the first few years after VH, nor am I a huge fan of most of the Van Hagar era material. There are a few songs I like from each, but rarely listen to either. I think both incarnations rode the wave of 1984. I was not happy with the selection of Vai as Dave's guitarist. I am a riff guy. I like riffs more than solo's. I think the solo is more icing on the cake of the riff. For me, Vai just wasn't consistently a great riffer. I just don't think he had the right chemistry with Dave, and maybe even the rest of the band. Vai has never been able to last in a true band format and for good reason. He's a solo guy. There are a few killer tunes though. I wish Dave had selected Steve Stevens, or maybe even an unknown. I love the DLR Band album and think this is his best post VH album. Well, it's a toss up between that and ALAE.
Dave and Clichegar both have their share of cheesy stuff. But the first 6 and then the 7th Van Halen albums are in a league of their own. Dave has openly stated he doesn't care for "Me Wise Magic". I think that may just be from the sour taste in his mouth for getting ditched right after, for Cherone. "Me Wise Magic" is a killer tune. I wonder if he has changed his opinion of it now that all this time has passed, and so has Ed? Dave and Ed had a chemistry that neither were able to duplicate without each other. Yes, they both made some good music without each other, but nothing close to what the original Van Halen did.
As I mentioned earlier, I am old. I am in fact getting to the desperate stage where I fucking want an official video release of a live show, from the glory days. 1984 or before. Shame on that fucking Wolfgang for caring more about his own career, than his Father's legacy. Like someone else said, he could absolutely turn the process over to someone that is more than capable of handling it. But hey, this is a dumbfuck that has no idea what a true band is. Even after all this touring, his "band" isn't good enough for him, to go into the studio and record an album. Mr Big Shot has to do it all himself. He must pay them well otherwise I have to believe they would bail. Frankly, his music sucks. I'd rather listen to Clichegar than the generic shit he comes up with. Yes, I would love to hear all the stuff in the vault too, but I have been longing for an official live video release, forever. For fucks sake. I can go get a live concert video from virtually every band ever, but this one. Why is that? Those old live shows are fucking LEGEND! HEY WOLFGANG, QUIT BEING A SPOILED WHINY CUNT AND GIVE VAN HALEN FANS WHAT THEY WANT! It's fucking sad that you want to be more like your Dad, but are nothing but a clone of your miserable Mom.
Sorry for rambling on and being all over the map, but you guys have all made some interesting posts in this thread. Well, everyone but NickDelusional. He's too busy posting stupid political shit, than to be bothered with anything VH related.
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