Earlier today, while half drunk at 11am on a random Thursday wine tour with my wife, I asked via the facebook: Hagar or Roth?
Some responses were alarming.
I understand that is a subjective question, to a point. So let's discuss this in an adult, open-minded manner.
My initial question, obviously, was referring to the frontmen of the rock and roll band, Van Halen. Outside of Van Halen, I really don't care about what either artist has accomplished. So let's start there. And in addition--remember that I have been drinking all day. So that means that I am uninterested in Googling facts and "researching" any written or recorded proof that may lead someone to lean towards one lead singer or the other. I'm simply writing what I know. And I know.
I'll start with saying this: I do like Sam. But he has no business being in a band called "Van Halen".
The name Van Halen was born from, of course, the brothers Halen--Edward and Alex, along with Michael Anthony and David Lee Roth. They were all formerly called Mammoth, back in their house party-playing days and then moving up to the L.A. club scene. Roth, digging the way the name, "Led Zeppelin" sounded, suggested the band be called Van Halen. This name would also counter-balance Roth's enormous ego, centering much of the attention to his highly skilled guitar player and equally adept drummer--the Van Halens. Roth would later create his own niche as one of--if not the, most extravagant, entertaining rock and roll frontmen in history.
After being discovered by The Demon bass player for KISS, Mr. Simmons, the Halen quickly gained a reputation for being a hard rocking party band referred to as "mighty". After this point is when the general music-listening public may start to become familiar with VH.
The first sound you hear on Van Halen (the band's first album) is a car horn that will make you frantically look in your rearview mirror, followed by Michael Anthony's low bass thump in "Runnin' With The Devil". From that point forward, this album takes you on a rock and roll journey that was, and is, different than anything recorded prior. Sure, the handsome, boisterous lead singer coupled by the quiet, classically trained guitar player had been done--Led Zeppelin. But with VH, you got an entirely different mood...and sound. The "brown sound", as some of you may have heard, is what Ed's guitar creates when he feels like playing it.
Okay. So meanwhile, you've got an established "Red Rocker", formerly with a band called Montrose, who has found himself enjoying a very successful (and deservedly so) solo career. "Heavy Metal", "Crusin' and Boozin", "There's Only One Way to Rock", and of course the classic-rock radio hit to this day, "I Can't Drive 55".
I'll be honest, I never listened to much Hagar. What I heard was pretty cool, but it didn't blow my skirt up. I liked "Heavy Metal", which was the title track of the animated movie of the same name, which is equally as cool. I miss you, John Candy. And then he had some radio hits that were kind of poppy, but not bad.
But let's get back to band that my question revolves around.
Van Halen, or Van Halen I, as most call it, was ground breaking. Sure, I was four when it came out, but that's beside the point. The diversity of the style of tunes, from Ed's solo, "Eruption" segwaying into the Kinks' cover of "You Really Got Me"--to the end of the album with "Ice Cream Man" to me is not only ballsy, but confident. It shows equal parts of Ed and Dave. Another track, of Dave's persuasion, was "I'm the One", which is a "boogie" style of a tune, as the band describes it, and would later be the foundation for "The Full Bug" and the more popular "Hot For Teacher"...as well as others that I'm probably forgetting. Remember--been drinking.
The following five albums released by the original members of the band would go on to be equally as fun, diverse, and entertaining--all in their own right. The band itself (like it or not) paved the way for essentially every 80s hair metal band to follow. VH was the main catalyst in creating a new genre of music--a genre that drank excessively, partied non-stop, humped a ton of chicks, and sang about cool shit like...well, all those things I just said. Spandex was also popularized around this time, quite possibly by Roth, which I do not have a problem with. For bike riding, no. For rock and roll entertainment, yes.
Roth, of course, was a major part of all of this. Roth-style VH was raw, energetic, and still poetic at times. While listening to Roth-VH on headphones, you can hear laughter, inhaling, exhaling, bottles clanking, and fuck-ups that went unfixed--all in the background. That, in itself, still portrayed them as real and honest to me. Roth himself--although undoubtedly an asshole--carried himself and his band to quick stardom by knowing exactly how to entertain an audience. I've seen Roth in concert, I've seen Van Hagar in concert, and I've seen the resurrected Van Halen (with Wolfie) in concert. For my money, I'll take Roth in a wheelchair over Sam any day of the week. But I digress, we're speaking only of these frontmen while with VH (albeit I may stop the conversation at 1995's (96?) Balance--Hagar's last bit with them. Then on to the Gary Cherone debacle.)
Here's the reality of it: I would probably get along with Sammy a hell of lot better than I would with Dave. Sam seems down to earth and easy to have a drink with. Dave is uber-eccentric and full of himself. So if we're all in a bar together, I'd probably end up having shots with Sam, and probably avoid Dave just to steer clear of disappointment. But that's not the premise of the semi-vague question: Hagar or Roth? The premise is, and I should have specified, who's the better frontman for Van Halen?
Let's take a look at Sam's time with the band.
As a 6th grader in 1986, I received the cassette tape, 5150 for Christmas. My parents, knowing that I was a young, but avid fan of "Jump", "Panama", "Hot For Teacher", and 1984 in general, bought me this as a gift. Granted, I did like it. I at least liked the first cut, I believe called "Good Enough"--the one that starts out, "Hello, baaaby!" Then came the synthesizers and some guy trying to sound like David Lee Roth. Although there were some decent tunes, this pretty much went on for the next ten years.
What Roth did with Eat 'Em And Smile was much more appealing to me. He kept a fantastic guitarist in Steve Vai, and added a substantial rhythm duo with Billy Shehan and Matt (Greg?) Bissonette. It was fun, kind of crazy, and ten times more energetic than 5150.
From that point on, there were three different bands that had existed. There was the original Van Halen with David Lee Roth; A band that created a new and powerful sound and image. A group that any other band in the entire world would hate to follow if on the same bill. And a band that, to this day, is considered part of the foundation of rock and/or roll as we know it. Then you've got Roth-solo; He had one, maybe one and a half good albums. I dig Roth, but don't care to listen to his solo attempts. After the 80s ended, he fell head-first into obscurity. Then, finally, you've got the second coming of Van Halen with Sammy Hagar; Hagar made a match with the other three members of the band due to the direction that they were heading at the time. Radio, synthesizers, over-production, seriousness, ballads--all unentertaining things to me.
It comes down to entertainment value. Sammy cannot jump over a set of drums on an eight-foot riser. Dave can. Sammy cannot hit that high note scream that defines the early Van Halen sound. Dave can. Sammy cannot write songs about wanting have sex with his teacher. Dave can.
As far as the singer for Van Halen goes, Sammy Hagar may as well of not even existed. If they wanted to call the band something else, like The Van Halenishes, or The Suckrealbads, or The Synthesizerballadqueers, then I'd be okay with that. But you can't continue to call yourselves Van Halen if you decide to stop having fun and start playing music that our parents like. "Why Can't This Be Love?"--jesus. And don't even get me started on that Crystal Pepsi song, "Right Now"--fuck. I'm just happy that they've decided to try and save a little bit of their pride by bringing back Dave to play the good stuff (after Dave splits for reasons still debated about, hiring Sam, firing Sam, reuniting with Dave briefly, telling Dave to go to hell, hiring the singer for Extreme, kicking him out, bringing Sam back again and firing him I think, kicking out Mike Anthony, hiring Ed's kid, then bringing Dave back once more).
The years 1978 through 1984 are Van Halen. If you disagree, then you like some other band.
whew!
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