Guitarist Steve Vai Recalls Wild Days With David Lee Roth
From Spinner.com:
Guitarist Steve Vai has a new live DVD, ‘Where the Wild Things Are,’ that highlights his 25 plus years of performing for sold-out audiences. Vai, who is known for his wild guitar licks onstage, was no match for the backstage antics he experienced on tour with Van Halen’s David Lee Roth.
“Actually, I was never really wild,” he tells Spinner. “I guess back in the ’80s when I was touring with Dave Roth, that was pretty wild. I was just a naïve kid and I’d been touring with Frank Zappa, which was tough enough but I wasn’t ready for the Dave Roth experience. We would pull into town and every night there was this tremendous party backstage because Dave really knew how to do it. There would be food and drinks and a big PA system and lights and there was usually 50 or so chosen girls from the audience that were very happy to be at the party. The techs would go out and invite somebody backstage or if somebody in the band saw a girl in the audience he’d give a cue to the tech or would go out and give them a [backstage] pass. Back then, we were playing those arenas [and] it was 80% girls in their underwear. It was crazy. I was like a bee sitting on the rim of the cup sipping the honey. I just had a taste now and then. It was really an amazing experience.”
Vai was just a wide-eyed 24-year-old when he rolled into town with Diamond Dave for the first gig, an experience that he could never have imagined. “I remember the first day on tour with Dave we got in Huntsville, Alabama or something in 1984 or 1985 [it was 1986 - VHND] and we would rent two floors of every hotel because one floor was all for us and the other floor was just a buffer floor so nobody would stay there. When we got there a few days early I was sitting in the executive lounge of the hotel and I see this smoke coming out from underneath this sink and there are two girls dressed like maids who had been sitting there for two days waiting for us to get the floor.
“That night when we came back to the hotel the entire floor was like a circus. I’ll never forget — I came out of my room and looked down the hall and saw one of the notorious techs and he’s walking down the hall naked with one of these girls I saw under the sink and she was naked. That was my introduction to day one with David Lee Roth on tour!”
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November 5th, 2009 at 8:09 am
When was the last time any of us has heard anything from DLR? I hate to say it, after 2010 there will be news that he is no longer with the mighty VH.
November 5th, 2009 at 8:22 am
Gee, thanks for the update, “Where’s Dave”!
(Sarcasm off) Anyway, can’t wait to see Ed & Dave next year!
November 5th, 2009 at 8:43 am
My hope is that DLR is just holding out for something. I’m sure he’s wise to the fact that as soon as EVH got his own line of gear to promote, he decided to get all chummy again with brother Dave. I hope it’s just a business thing. After all, he knows he outvoted in any band meeting.
November 5th, 2009 at 8:49 am
I think that both Dave and Sammy parted ways with Van Halen and regrouped with possibly the best guitarists that played in the same vein as Eddie.
Eddie is number one, he is the king. No doubt about it.
But Vai was pretty special on Eat ‘em and Smile, his chemistry with Sheehan was excellent.
Satriani was Vai’s mentor I think, and again, plays in the same vein as Edward. Superstrat, floyd-rose divebombing accurate guitar work.
So both Vai and Satriani have a good place amoungst VH fans I think.
November 5th, 2009 at 9:30 am
wtf is going on with him nowadays?
November 5th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Ahhh…the good ol’ days….
November 5th, 2009 at 10:51 am
I love stories like that. It makes me realize that my life really wasn’t as exciting as I thought it was back then. Imagine renting out two floors at hotels every night. Talk about having money to burn…..
November 5th, 2009 at 11:41 am
dave! get back to your old wild and crazy self! we wanna hear from you…
November 5th, 2009 at 11:41 am
I would love to see Vai and Eddie on the same stage at some point - talk about a clash of the titans! I give the ege to Eddie though - he is, as Dave so often bellowed on stage, the “King of Ten Fingers and Six Strings!”
November 5th, 2009 at 11:44 am
Eat Em & Smile…One of the greatest hard rock discs of all time. Very under appreciated. Just great, good-time rock & roll!
November 5th, 2009 at 11:54 am
I was at that Huntsville show, first time I had ever seen Steve, big fan ever since.
November 5th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
….A great time and great tape! We had Eat’em and Smile and 5150 both crankin’ in our cars that summer!
November 5th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
I always felt EVH is a better rhythum player than lead guitar player. I have never cared much about the lead part of a song as I have the rhythum. I feel the rhythum & groove is what it’s all about and EVH is the KING of rhythum and groove!
November 5th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Sandman WTF?
Maybe you should listen to some VH albums.
Wddie is the King of the solo…he is able to pull off a lick and solo out of the rythym and fall back to it again he is the greatest SOLOIST of all time!
IF he wasn’t there would have been 2 or 3 guitarists in VH.
If scar reads this you will defineatley get “putzed” dude!!
November 5th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Wddie… thAT WAS A TYPO.
lOOKS LIKE i MIGHT EVEN GET PUTZED TOO!
November 5th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Vai has had an insanely good musical career since leaving Dave. Of course, he probably wouldn’t have if it weren’t for him, and maybe his stint in Whitesnake.
Personally I like the old Vai playing, rather than the new stuff.
Dave? He’ll be back.
November 5th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
That was such a great band. Too bad Dave couldn’t have guested with Steve on the new DVD…the Eat ‘Em band was incredible. I’ve always wished I could see that one more time, but given how incredibly delicate Ed’s psyche is about outside projects that’s never going to happen. That’s also why Dave’s famous quotes are missing…he knows he’s not allowed to talk for fear he says something to piss off Ed. That would be an expensive mistake.
Anyway, kudos to Steve…great story.
November 5th, 2009 at 2:49 pm
Shayne, I dont think Sandman is way off. I wish Ed would have continued to delve deeper. Side B of 1984 was the last time Ed really did something innovative. I feel that he has rested on his laurels. When Sammy hooked up with VH Eddie was more concerned about the songs and they went pop. What I love about the Vai and Satch of the world is how they continue to experiment.
November 5th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
My 1st concert. i was 16.BLEW MY FUCKIN MIND.
Stood outside in 6 degree weather waitng in line(2hrs) for the doors to open(festival seating).
Some “dork” was riding his bike around the block over&over.
while freezing our asses off,we could hear the band warming up.Then this “dork”who suffered everyone`s wrath of insults
got off his bike and walked up the steps and motioned for the door.My girlfriend`s survival instincts hit OVERDRIVE-
She stopped him dead in his tracks with her hand and said
in her “bitchy” tone;are YOU HERE TO SEE DAVIDLEEROTH???!!!!
To which the “dork”,geek,loser,dweeb,spaz,lowered his sunglasses and said in that unmistakeable voice,
“BABE, I AM DAVIDLEEROTH;)
and it was.Needless to say,we forgot all about the Hypothermia in time to be squished to death in the
“front row”
Talkin`bout GOOD TIMES!!!
oh yeah:TESLA opened up hot-off of”ModernDayCowboy”&”LittleSuzy”
Like I said,GREAT FUCKIN`SHOW
the bitch dumped me soon after,-go figure……
November 5th, 2009 at 3:25 pm
I was front row in charlotte n.c. for eat em and smile and it was a classic show! It was’nt VH but it was close to it! Vai proved he could jam! I remember in a interview with vai he said his no.#1 guitar album was fair warning….nuff said!
November 5th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
vai and chickenfoot will be on “that metal show” saturday night at 11p.m on vh1 classic,just thought i’d let ya people know.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
with ou812 and 5150, everything was love this love that, every song pretty much had the word love in it. they had so much love on their albums you would think they hooked up with richard marx and michael bolton and had a cicle jerk.
November 5th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
Dude, you username is VHIII. I’m not sure you are an authority on good music.
November 5th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
VHIII_1998
that is some funny shit!!! LMFAO!!!
November 5th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
VHIII,i could’nt have said it better myself! VAN HALEN with dave sang about sex,drugs and rock n roll….van hagar sang about,well VH111 summed it up!
November 5th, 2009 at 8:02 pm
With Spammy at the mic, Eddie finally got the chance to expore his “Wussie Side”…
November 5th, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Skutch, you and i disagree sometimes but you are 100% right on your VHIII comment!
November 5th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
you all know in a crossroads movie type face off “cuttin’ heads”, vai & satch would smoke evh ! They can easily cop his stuff, he’d choke on theirs
November 5th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Satch likes to experiment? Chickenfoot is a giant step backwards for music. Joe’s playing on the disc was a major letdown. All that talent wasted on garbage like “Oh, yeah!”
Give me a break!
November 5th, 2009 at 10:09 pm
One break coming up meaning your bones will be broken Dickhead Bacon!!!!
November 5th, 2009 at 10:14 pm
I can’t believe I wasn’t around for this stuff…what I would give to be at those concerts!!! Haha..
Sounds crazy, but like so so much fun.
DLR <3
November 5th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
you mean songs like black and blue and sucker in a 3 piece or maybe he is talking about poundcake or man on a mission or maybe its the song finish what you started…
all love songs for sure
more like bone it songs!
i love it when people make stupid comments
November 6th, 2009 at 7:57 am
Ah the eighties….good times,great music. Today’s stuff is so pussified I wonder when guys are gonna start wearing tampons…..
November 6th, 2009 at 9:17 am
It would have been awesome to have gone to one of these shows! Is this the tour where Dave had a boxing ring and than another part of the show surf boarded over the crowd? Or was that the Skyscraper tour?
I saw Dave in 1999 in Washington D.C.. He was the “special guest” of the original Bad Company. Bad Company was good but Dave and his band blew them off the stage! However, by this time Vai and Billy Sheehan were long gone, unfortunately. Bart Walsh was playing lead for Dave. Bart did a great job that night.
November 6th, 2009 at 9:42 am
Chickenfoot is ok, but not satchs best work. When he joined the band I thought it would be cool, but its another sammy hagar band. Joe is great, but seems limited with chickenfoot. AS for steve vai. I think he is a bad ass player, but I prefer evh. I’m hoping we can see van halen with dave soon. Oh yeah the comment about vh111 clasic!
November 6th, 2009 at 11:06 am
The good ol’ days is an understatement!
How good it felt to log on after so long and see Dave and Vai pop up! Thought it was gonna be more chickenbone updates….
ANYWAY!
What you’re seeing right there is rock and roll at it’s finest hour. “Eat em and Smile” is an excellent rock record.
Someone mentioned that this and 5150 were the big back in summer the summer of 86′ and he’s spot on. It was so exciting to have an album out by roth and see how VH was doing with “the new guy” sammy. Even though I’m not a sammy fan it was a cool record for that time. “Summer nights” will forever be a good memory. Miss those days….
I was too young to be able to see those shows or expierience what many have told me, “was an amazing group of players”.
I think dave did a stellar job putting together a tight band. I know many at this site could give a shit about vai but I beg to differ. No, I’m not a guitar player, but I think the guy did a great job on the album….I truly do.
Fuckin’ YANKEE ROSE “still” kicks ass and the “opening” is still cool after all these years! Plain and simple…a great underrated rock album. I still listen to it and I feel it’s aged pretty damn well!
Finally got to hear the spanish version for the first time a couple of months ago. I laughed out loud hearing the beginning of yankee rose! Cool stuff. Dave was a genius.
I know I’ve mentioned this before but Steve Vai grew up in my hometown of Carle Place, NY. He went to the highschool I graduated from (Carle Place High) and briefly dated my aunt back in the 70’s. I never met him but he also frequents my hometown bar (Hunters pub) that I try and get down to as much as I can. He’s actually played there and there are pics and a vai poster by the jukebox. Who knows, maybe I’ll have a beer with him one day!
It’s good to be back but I’m sure something is going to aggrivate me eventually around here! We’s some opinionated MFer’s! But one things for sure baby: No one will ever come close to topping Dave as a frontman back in his heyday!
He made his impact on the rock and roll world and the aftershocks are still present as I write this!
Cheers to one of the BEST frontmen of all time and the Eat em’ and Smile band!
November 6th, 2009 at 11:17 am
PS) MARK:
The surfboard and boxing ring was part of the “skyscraper” tour.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:26 am
I just bought floor Bon Jovi tickets for 2010, sure wish they were Van Halen tickets!
November 6th, 2009 at 11:43 am
Thanks Dirty Duck.
November 6th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
dawn,bonjovi constantly puts out new music and tours the world for thier fans.eddie is clueless about this concept.
November 6th, 2009 at 12:48 pm
MJC:
Bon Jovi hasnt put out a decent rock record since “New Jersey” and that aint sayin much…
Comparing eddie to anything fuckin’ bon jovi does is assinine..
I knew something would annoy me!
November 6th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
I am still hoping for 2010 tour. If they don’t tour at least I got to see them 2x last tour. I wasn’t sure that tour would happen. In the mean time I will just continue to go to other rock concerts and listen to Van Halen because their music (and footage)never gets old to me!
And yes I agree I would never compare Bon Jovi to VH.
November 6th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
Dawn:
Me too babe! Hope to see them in 2010 myself.
Was lucky enough to catch a show on long island back in 06′
What a great time…a great show…and one helluva memory!
The boys did a great job! So cool that you got to see them twice! You single?
I feel exactly how you do! I’ve been listening to VH since I was 10 and to me they’ve done more than enough! Not many rock bands lasted as long as VH has. They’ve survived hip hop, grunge (which I cant fuckin’ stand) and all this other shit music that sold between 78 and 2000…..not to mention today’s so called music scene. VH has proved beyond expectation that they will always be the kings when it comes to signature sound and showing those wannabe rock bands how it’s done! I’m happy with the classic albums period! The “only” thing that I wish I could see is a DVD of all those old classic shows with dave….thats really it! I’m just a humble duck who loves classic VH!
Rock on dawn!
November 6th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
Even though Bon Jovi hasn’t put a decent album in many years, at least they continue to put out new tunes and tour for their fans. Eddie Van Halen doesn’t have a clue. And as for Chickenfoot, who cares of Joe Satriani doesn’t “let loose” on the album. He wanted to play in a real band for once, and he got his wish…and the album is great. Sammy and Michael continue to please their fans while Eddie sits at home and doodles on his guitar.
November 6th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
Keith,
You may be right about that “cuttin’ heads” thing. But Vai and Satriani are expected to play EVH songs. EVH would never even have to acknowledge their existence.
November 7th, 2009 at 6:16 am
I think it was Eddie Van Halen’s rhythm playing that got me into Van Halen in the first place. I’ve never been interested in an as-fast-as-you-can-go approach to guitar playing. His rhythm playing on ‘Hear About It Later’, ‘Fools’ and ‘Drop Dead Legs’ among many is just wonderful. It just taps into something I can’t put into words. Something (not so good) happened to him when Sammy Hagar joined. Having said that, I love ‘Mine All Mine’, except the engineering/production is awful.
November 7th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
I feel there is a BIG difference between a hook and rhythum and groove. Hooks are a dime a dozen and I feel are very chezzy. Where a solid rhythum and groove is everything! Vai and Satch are incrediable players but that stuff gets old after awhile. It’s totally incrediable what they do but it gives be a head ache after awhile. EVH, Steve Ray Vaughn and Eric Clapton have that R&G factor going on.
November 7th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
After all this talk about “Eat em and Smile” I decided to pop in the CD…Man, I forgot how badass that CD is!! Brought back great F’ing memories!!!! 6th grade and my mom let me go to the skyscraper tour with my older bro, i haven’t been the same since! Smelled pot for the first time and LOVED it! Saw Vai and LOVED him! Saw Dave and LOVED him! Great FUCKING show!!!!! “I’m going coconuts, at least I’m going my way, at least i’ll be here when the sun goes down”!!!! Crazy From the Heat!!!
November 8th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
Duck I wonder if there is anyone who has footage of VH withe the parachutes out of the plane?? Was that the famous U.S. Festival 83? Not sure
November 9th, 2009 at 5:54 am
Duck back in middle school my neighbor used to play Diver Down in his boom box on the school bus and that started it for me. I had a chance to see them in high school (by then they were with Sammy) but my Mom wouldn’t let me go!
I was filmed at the last concert in GR and was really hoping they would put out a video, still hoping they will.
Do you think we are going to see a tour in 2010?
November 9th, 2009 at 7:35 am
Rick Pride:
That whole “VH parachuting into the stadium” was actually a hoax. Dave’s idea: VH hired some professionals to jump out of a plane with wigs on so it looked like the band…..
Before VH was supposed to hit the stage a plane flew over the stadium and the announcer would say: Look above…in the sky! It’s…..the mighty VH!!!
So the professional jumpers fly out of the plane with the wigs looking like the band, while the boys were waiting on the side of the stage with the same jumpsuits. Supposidly it looked so real that many fans thought it was really them for years after (the professionals made sure to ham it up by waiving their arms and legs wildly so it looked like they never did it before…ha ha)! Cool stunt, but alex sprained his ankle taking off the jumpsuit. Eiether way….cool story. I’m not sure of the exact concert…I’m thinking it was the diver down tour. Could be wrong….
Dawn:
Hey! Cool story about your introduction to VH. “Boom box’s”
wow…good times, good times.
YES! I will be at the 2010 show if it goes down. If there is no tour I’ll be just fine with what VH gave us for so many stellar years of rock baby!
November 9th, 2009 at 9:05 am
Shyboy!!
The album DOES STILL rock my man!
How cool is Vai’s riff on “Big trouble!?”
Man, that song grooves like a mutha!
Have you heard the spanish version?
November 9th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Duck it’s awesome to have you back!!!’
November 10th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Duck
I have not heard it but will check it out…is it online somewhere?
November 12th, 2009 at 6:20 am
Rick!!!
Thanks brother!! Hope you’re rockin and rollin!
Shyboy!!
Yes! You should be able to hear it online!
November 19th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
Never liked Vai as a player, sound, or music. However I have seen him speak many times, and he is really nice guy.
Great story to read too!
November 19th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Sandman,
Good comment!