Gary Cherone on fronting Van Halen

copyright_zlozower_1998 A couple of us from the Van Halen News Desk just had the fortune of seeing Extreme perform in last week in Phoenix. Their show was absolutely killer! They’re an unbelievably talented band and one of the top rock acts around. They put on a really fun show.

David Carr at KNAC.com recently interviewed Gary Cherone to discuss Extreme’s latest album, Saudades de Rock, and Summer 2009 tour. Here’s the Van Halen segment of the interview:

KNAC: What did you learn or take away from your experience, with regards to being in Van Halen?

CHERONE: Well looking back on the three years I spent with Van Halen I guess, if I had to do it all over again I think I would have preferred to tour with them and then put out a record…it would have been a better idea to establish myself first and then hit the studio with the band. At the time it may have looked odd on paper but it actually worked live! I made a concerted effort to do the old Van Halen tunes that Sammy was not doing. I wanted to do the deep cuts…as a live act we did songs their fans had not heard in years! I don’t however; think we made a great record. I think their were some great ideas and some little gems but it was not a great record. I had fun but at times it was like being a stranger in a strange land.

KNAC: How intimidating was it to be in the band?

CHERONE: It was very intimidating. Most of the time the criticism just rolled off my back, but if I had a bad night or my throat hurt…sometimes it would get to me but what are you gonna do? I will say, each night when we came into town I would hear the radio djs take their shots at me and the band but at the end of most of the shows the same djs would be back stage and almost apologize to me or at the very least admit that the show was way better than they had originally thought.

Read the full interview at KNAC.com.

Extreme

kite

atti your still alive, check the pm on vht
RickieVanWhalen

Could not have said it better Kerndawg!
Tiffany

Gary Cherone has gotten back to the band he belongs in. Extreme. BTW, is Nuno Bettencourt ever gonna get the fucking respect he deserves???? The guy is a true guitar god and a musical genius, pick up any album he has ever done, it’s just simply superb. He can do anything musically well, sing, play guitar, drums, bass, more and more.

I love Eddie Van Halen, while Van Halen fans were happy to see the band together again, I know I am happy that Extreme is making new music again.

Saudades de Rock is just really, really special.

Again, there is this guy named Nuno Bettencourt. Ed you da man but Nuno deserves some fucking respect.
http://n/a Joel New Halen

While I’m reading most of this posts I start to understand that what one of my friends accussed me several years ago was true. Most of VH’s fans are “airheads” and that’s why they love the band. I argued with him a lot about his accusations, and tried to pinpoint in my favor some of the deepest songs VH has done, songs like “The Seventh Seal” from “Balance”. Also songs like “Don’t Tell me what Love can Do” from the same disc, “Dreams” from “5150″, etc. were some of my examples… I specially used on my point songs from “3″, like “Ballot or the Bullet”, “Once”, etc.
But now that I’m reading these comments I realize that he was right. From what I’m reading here what most “loyal fans” wanted was to hear old VH tunes, from the Dave era. O.K. Dave was a great showman and a decent singer, that’s it. There’s a comment by a Dan Russell that says that Gary is a great song writer, but not a great singer, well Dan I beg to differ, Gary’s been the best voice in VH history after Eddie’s Guitar. I’ve been a VH fan for almost 30 years and I’ve stood beside them on ALL the ups and downs. I loved the “3″ album, maybe it wasn’t the greatest VH CD in their career, but Gary did a great work on that disc, and the live material on concert was to die for, I sure loved the Dave era songs, tha Sammy era classics, and the explosive “3″ material. It may be that it was too heavy sounding for the fans or maybe too deep lyrically, or too political or maybe just the fact that there was not many party tunes, like “Jump”, sex oriented like “Hot For Teacher” or “Poundcake”, etc. but it was a great album from the band and Gary was a big part of that “success”. Well who knows, maybe the fans weren’t ready for that sound by that time. Anyway, I’m looking forward to what they have in store, be it with Dave or whoever they choose, and if they decide to follow Alex’s new beliefs and go full time christian I’ll be there waiting to support them. They have been a vital part of my life for such a long time, that they feel like family to me!!!
GOD bless the mighty VH forever!!!
Alan5150

I have to be one of the biggest fans out there, with the Van Halen proving it. Me personally, I thought VHIII was great, and I only wish Gary would’ve been giving the chance to record more. Rest on their laurels or do something Halen worthy. But don’t hang around too long trying to soak every last bit of the great legacy out of the toilet. However I DON’T look forward to Dave recording with the band. I feel a KISS moment coming if they do. However if they do record, they’d better make it good or the critics and some fans will bury them.
K_Loncar

I’ve been a hugely loyal fan since 1979 and saw VH with Sammy on a few occasions. I can honestly say there is not a VH song that I would call a flop. I’ve had every one of their albums (cds) and have worn them all out. When I was a teen my friends and I used to go into school reciting lines from Hot For Teacher and pissing off our teachers for liking songs like Running With the Devil. I even mimicked David’s trademark screams in my own sort of partying avatar sort of way. As I’ve matured I still cannot find a band with the catalog of great songs with as much high voltage as VH (AC/DC has the voltage, I just don’t find everyone of their songs as high caliber). As for VHIII in particular, it was definitely an experiment, but I felt it worked for me. I enjoy a broad range of music and the injection of youth again was fun. But, what I most enjoyed was the maturity of lyrics on VHIII. Frankly, I grew a little bored of the lyrics and was stunned to hear Eddie sing from his heart regarding his failed marriage (probably because I’ve experienced that too). Honestly, I’m glad that Dave has returned though, because let’s face it Alex, Eddie, and Dave (miss Mike too)are the heart of VH. The great thing about Dave is that he brings with him a gigantic presence and a love of all types of music (I even loved his bluegrass offerings). Dave understands that the raw energy is what differentiated his style from Sammy and Gary who are much more suited to the high production sound Eddie wanted to experience with after hearing the perfection of the Bee Gees’ sound. I’ve come to almost resent the overproduction and just want them to rock and roll again.

AC/DC, Led Zepplin, Van Halen have all had brilliant moments of superhuman rock energy. My son would argue that Rage in the Machine found it once or twice too…who am I to argue with youth about rock and roll.

Hopefully, the news of upcoming new material is true! More material to wear out.
K_Loncar

Oh, and sorry, Chickenfoot has not impressed me in the slightest. Sorry guys.
RobCT

A great singer but not a great record! The only two tunes I really can listen two over and over are “Fire in the Hole” and “A Year To The Day”. “Without you sounds like Extreme to me. I am a big fan of both fans since day one and I can say this wasn’t the best fit for either one.