A Poll and Discussion for TR
 

Which is the better Van Halen?

(I voted other, but will withhold my explanation until later.)

hmmmm...

Each had their good and bad points I think.

Sammy Hagar is a better musician, but I think DLR had a better stage presence.

just my .02

I am a Sammy Hagar fan, and not a DLR fan, but I agree with James, DLR puts on a better show, and the VH songs were better back then as well, IMHO.

It is hard to cover a previous artist's music and improve on it, but few can dispute that the Red Rocker probably has better range and control than DLR. "High Hopes" is a lesser known classic demonstrating Sammy's vocals.

Ask echoes, she is the resident rock expert, and I think knows some of the VH members.

As afr as vidoes go, this remains my all time favorite commercial:

http://webservernt.d2g.com:81/Movies...bie%20Dolls.qt

TR

Sammy for me. I always thought that Roth held the band back creatively. Besides, I always enjoyed covering Hagar over Roth, anyone can yell and scream but it takes a degree of talent to cover the range of Hagar's voice.

IMHO

Reaper, wow! I always thought of you as an "original" type of guy...Now, I know for sure! :D
David Lee has washed down too many substances to be taken seriously...IMHO. But, Sammy Hagar does a great job picking up ladies....So He is a viable replacement!

Holly (wink)

I agree with the various comments above. I really think they are two completely different bands, and therefore voted "other."

Sammy is a good Republican, and I suspect this may have had something to do with TR's response.

Sammy is a musician. Dave is an entertainer. Different things. I like both of their solo stuff too. Was playing "Yankee Rose" loudly in the car on the way to work today. But the best solo tune IMO is "There's Only One Way To Rock" by Sammy. It's better when Eddie plays it, though. :)

You know...I am speaking from a tiny little musician standpoint...They were not "two different bands" though. They are Van Halen, an incredible drum-kick-bass line, that different singers approached.

To think of it this way, I am to Music, what You All are to SF.
I am a "Music Natzi" so-to-speak. :D

Right-On RL!
Holly

I always favored the guitar riffs of VH myself. Some of the best I have ever heard.

Was unaware that Sammy was a Repub, or a perv. Now I KNOW which way to vote.

Concur with the "There's Only One Way To Rock" vote as well.

Wicked!!

TR

Six votes, and none for Dave. I must say that I am surprised.

I'd also have to vote for Sammy. Dave's a funny guy but Sammy plays some serious tunes.

Definitely Sammy Hagar.

This is what makes it hard to choose. I like Sammy better, but I like the earlier songs better.
Ken never had a chance, which is why I was always "borrowing" my big brother's GI Joes. :p

You and me both. GREAT blast from the past on that commercial TR!

Widely overlooked fact:

Sammy Hagar did the title track for Fast Times at Ridgemont High, one of the great films in the history of the United States. :)

I believe that I have that in my MP3 collection.

Funny, I just mentioned that movie yesterday to one of my co-workers.

Concur, a classic piece of Americana.

TR

"Are you in my class?"

"I am today."

Is there a Best VH song poll?

I voted Sammy and offer a hijack to other Sammy favs:

Where Eagles Fly

And there is nothing like a blazing summer day, top down on the convertible and cranking out, "I Can't Drive 55"

I voted for David Lee Roth.

Regardless of the individual talents of the two, Van Halen made better music with David Lee Roth than they made with Sammy Hagar. Maybe that is because Roth isn't a musician and let the Van Halen boys have more freedom. Maybe it is some other reasons, but it remains that the music was better with David.

"What are you, people? On dope?"

I voted for Roth, the early VH was the best IMO. I do like the Red Rocker though, my favorite Hagar tune was Heavy Metal. Who remembers that movie? LOL

Head bangers in leather
Sparks fly in the dead of the night
It all comes together
When they shoot out the lights
50,000 wats of power
And it's pushin' overload
The beast is ready to devour
All the metal they can hold
Reachin' overload
Start to explode

It's your one way ticket to midnight
Call it Heavy Metal
Higher than high, feelin' just right
Call it Heavy Metal
Desperation on a red line
Call it Heavy Metal noise

Tight pants and lipstick
She's riding on razor's edge
She holds her own against the boys
Yea, cuts through the crowd just like a wedge
Ohh, can you feel the static
So many contacts being made
We've got up front fanatics
Tearing down the barricade
To reach the stage
Can you feel the rage

Van Halen
 

I am right there with you Panda! :)

I know I will catch hell for not bringing up old tunes from 5150, and OU812, but...I love "Poundcake".

Holly

It's like Classic Coke and New Coke

DLR all the way

I think we can all agree that the Gary Cherone VH era is an abomination that shall never be spoken of again

It would have never been spoken of at all had you not brought it up. :D

Very few bands had an impact on guitar playing and rock like VH first album. Roths singing style and eddies crazy guitar riffs defined hard rock for maybe a decade afterwards. I voted for Roth, but its like like comparing apples and bananas. My favorite Hagar is when he was with Montrose.

Your rock candy baby
Hot sweet and sticky

When I first heard Michael Jackson's "Beat It" on the radio, I had to go to a record store ASAP and confirm that it was Eddie VH on the guitar solos.

Finger work from hell, the man is a genius.

TR

Being a guitar player for the last 25 years I agree completely. I wish Eddie would go back to his roots for one more album and shock and awe again.

:p

I'm knocking some out for my stupidity !

Yes, finger dexterity is the key! I had to buy the Music Man EVH in '95...before he switched to Peavy, and made the Wolfgang.
I can only say that my personal dexterity increased ten-fold after playing it.

Very good for muscle building as well, which must be why Eddie has stood the test of time. :)

Holly

You want to talk finger dexterity, take a look at Chet Atkins or Mark Knopfler - they did it with both hands!

Everytime I hear Chet Atkins Lover Come Back to Me, I doubt all over again how one man can make so many sounds come out of one guitar.

Here it is: The Music-man EVH:

I don't mean to hijak, maybe we should start another thread and discuss the attributes of the guitar gods, but no one comes close to Hendrix. Over the years the more I learned the more I would look at his phrasings and say how and the hell did he come up with this. Jimi is beyond human.

Van Halen is great because they have stood the test of time, IMHO. I wonder if anyone here caught the Tour with Sammy and Dave? I missed that one. hehehe

Holly

The Van Halen Greatest Hits CD I think is the best CD to pop in for a run or a trip to the gym

I missed that tour echoes but I did see Sammy last summer and he puts on a great show

I wish I could have seen Diamond Dave in his prime but I was a bit too young

Echoes, my favorite part of that guitar is the fret board, they don't get much better. What do you think of the pickups? The guit shops don't let me crank the amps up to 11 on try outs.
Mark

Saw Sammy a couple of years ago, I thought the part where he hands out bras before the show for the women to throw up on stage was a bit lame. :munchin

2 Custom DiMarzio's, humbucking thier way to earplug limits! I ran mine through the 5150 half-stack, and I swear even at larger gigs, never had to go up past 4...but, you know, I am just a girl and all... ;)

All 22 frets sounded as crisp as the day it was made, to Eddie's specs. Wow, I gotta stop talking now about it.
Holly

Now imagine that tune blasting over the net a few minutes before a mech Bn TF attack. Heavy Metal embodied. :)

Good, but I prefer AC/DC's "Hell's Bells" for that.

Moving into firing position during the the intro, opening fire as soon as the vocals start.

TR

I have always wondered "if" SF Soldiers really did play music while firing? I can think of a few Zepplin songs that could be killer while discharging the weapon?

Great info.

Holly

Razor is talking about in a Mech unit, where everyone is in a vehicle, with radios, an intercom, speakers, etc.

Saw that in the old days, in a NATO tank gunnery competition, the Germans rolled out in their Leopards with Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild" playing over the PA system.

The crowd was wowed till the M1s rolled out to "Hell's Bells". The American tankers cleaned the course and carried the day.

Zepp? "Stairway to Heaven", "Black Dog", "Rock and Roll", or "Kashmir" would work for me.

TR

Wow, very cool! Just remember that all us true Rockers support Our Soldiers, and would All probably play it live for You Guys, if We could!

Holly