You almost made me spit my coffee onto the kitchen table a few times here!
"Just when he was about to go full Ted Nugent, Eddie Van Halen called. He asked Hagar if he’d be interested in crushing the dreams of Van Halen fans all around the world."
"I've always been a bit of a mathematician"
🤣🤣🤣
It's funny to me that somehow Van Halen were able to find two guys who fall into the "too strange to live, too rare to die" category in Roth & Hagar. Not to say they aren't talented, and I don't know anything about Gary Cherone, maybe he wasn't weird enough. But yeah. Enjoy this one a lot Sonny!
You're right. When I first started listening to VH I was like "Hagar is totally better" but then as I was more "seasoned" I understood why people preferred Roth and I agree he was the better front man. He just has a certain sauce none of the other had.
He was a better front man given what VH already was. Hagar was the better musician but a lot of people like the sleaze that Dave exudes. I’ve come to realize it’s hard to discuss groups. My view comes from a different perspective than the regular concert goer. I’m learning to just keep my mouth shut.
I love how crazy a lot of the rock stars from that era were. Like as dumb as they sound sometimes, it's really a breath of fresh air comoared to the overthought ramblings of some of today's pop stars. Like yeah, Hagar is dumb, but he's not stupid.
Another excellent piece, your public service in protecting our precious time is appreciated.
... but no matter what when Hagar’s name is voiced, I start singing ’I can’t drive 55’ I was in Cabo Wabo, the place was a rockin’, the booze was flowin’, the night was hummin’ and they spun ‘I can’t drive 55’ right after Roxy Music’s ‘Both Ends Burning’... the place went beyond 11!
So I guess you won’t be mountain biking with Sammy anytime soon. Your mileage may vary on the musicality but I got it straight from MA that tour expenses went down because they didn’t need an extra truck to haul Dave’s hair products. That’s got to be worth something right. If forced to make a decision I’ll take any of Sammy’s solo stuff over Dave’s.
To be fair, I won’t be caught mountain biking with anybody unless there’s an obscene amount of cash involved. And snacks.
I would definitely choose Dave’s stuff. I saw him live at an impressionable age, and picked up the guitar after I heard Eruption. Trouble is, there’s nothing worth listening to after the first 2 albums. As for Hagar, it’s just one of those instances where his voice inherently drives me nuts.
Agree on the biking. I just said that because Sammy used to ride mtn bikes around before the VH gigs to kil time. I don’t mind a couple of Sammy albums circa Three Lock Box and “ I Can’t Drive 55” is a rock anthem. TBH I haven’t listened to anything after his VH stint. I can understand if you don’t like the voice…that ends the discussion there. Having spent some time around both I definitely lean towards Hagar, but that’s just me. Another masterpiece by you though.
The person I pity the most in all of this is Joel Selvin. I can't even imagine having to sift through all this nonsense and try to make a cohesive book out of it. Joel, whatever percentage you got, it wasn't enough.
'Dance the night away' -- great closer and fun to hear it, because Old Van Halen's songs are far superior to Van Hagar's songs. It is known. This bit though: "Hagar parted ways with Van Halen in 1995. If you recall, that was right around the time when the ozone layer began to heal." Gold.
Thanks a lot, now I’ve got “Love Walks In” stuck in my head! 😜 (oh, maybe no one bought A Different Kind of Truth, but that record slams…)
🤣 Sorry, dude! If it's any consolation, the same thing happened to me while I was writing this piece.
You almost made me spit my coffee onto the kitchen table a few times here!
"Just when he was about to go full Ted Nugent, Eddie Van Halen called. He asked Hagar if he’d be interested in crushing the dreams of Van Halen fans all around the world."
"I've always been a bit of a mathematician"
🤣🤣🤣
It's funny to me that somehow Van Halen were able to find two guys who fall into the "too strange to live, too rare to die" category in Roth & Hagar. Not to say they aren't talented, and I don't know anything about Gary Cherone, maybe he wasn't weird enough. But yeah. Enjoy this one a lot Sonny!
It wasn’t that…he was just nothing. You couldn’t hate him or love him. That’s the worst possible place to be.
You're right. When I first started listening to VH I was like "Hagar is totally better" but then as I was more "seasoned" I understood why people preferred Roth and I agree he was the better front man. He just has a certain sauce none of the other had.
He was a better front man given what VH already was. Hagar was the better musician but a lot of people like the sleaze that Dave exudes. I’ve come to realize it’s hard to discuss groups. My view comes from a different perspective than the regular concert goer. I’m learning to just keep my mouth shut.
Dude, that mathematician line still cracks me up 🤣
I was always a Roth guy, but lots of my friends preferred Hagar. Both iterations were very successful. Gary Cherone just sucked lol.
I love how crazy a lot of the rock stars from that era were. Like as dumb as they sound sometimes, it's really a breath of fresh air comoared to the overthought ramblings of some of today's pop stars. Like yeah, Hagar is dumb, but he's not stupid.
Another excellent piece, your public service in protecting our precious time is appreciated.
... but no matter what when Hagar’s name is voiced, I start singing ’I can’t drive 55’ I was in Cabo Wabo, the place was a rockin’, the booze was flowin’, the night was hummin’ and they spun ‘I can’t drive 55’ right after Roxy Music’s ‘Both Ends Burning’... the place went beyond 11!
So I guess you won’t be mountain biking with Sammy anytime soon. Your mileage may vary on the musicality but I got it straight from MA that tour expenses went down because they didn’t need an extra truck to haul Dave’s hair products. That’s got to be worth something right. If forced to make a decision I’ll take any of Sammy’s solo stuff over Dave’s.
To be fair, I won’t be caught mountain biking with anybody unless there’s an obscene amount of cash involved. And snacks.
I would definitely choose Dave’s stuff. I saw him live at an impressionable age, and picked up the guitar after I heard Eruption. Trouble is, there’s nothing worth listening to after the first 2 albums. As for Hagar, it’s just one of those instances where his voice inherently drives me nuts.
Agree on the biking. I just said that because Sammy used to ride mtn bikes around before the VH gigs to kil time. I don’t mind a couple of Sammy albums circa Three Lock Box and “ I Can’t Drive 55” is a rock anthem. TBH I haven’t listened to anything after his VH stint. I can understand if you don’t like the voice…that ends the discussion there. Having spent some time around both I definitely lean towards Hagar, but that’s just me. Another masterpiece by you though.
The person I pity the most in all of this is Joel Selvin. I can't even imagine having to sift through all this nonsense and try to make a cohesive book out of it. Joel, whatever percentage you got, it wasn't enough.
OMG, I want to have a beer (I call bull shit that he didn't drink until he was 30) with him and really dig into this "everything is 9" theory.
'Dance the night away' -- great closer and fun to hear it, because Old Van Halen's songs are far superior to Van Hagar's songs. It is known. This bit though: "Hagar parted ways with Van Halen in 1995. If you recall, that was right around the time when the ozone layer began to heal." Gold.
Thanks, Amy! And I agree: OG Van Halen shall rule forever.
A mathematician?! I guffaw!
Hilarious, Sonny!
Thank you so much, Sheila! I had a lot of fun writing this.