Credit: Neil Zlozower
Take a bit of ballet, add a nice mix of Paul Stanley and David Lee Roth and you’ve got Kip Winger’s stage performance approach.
The Winger frontman and bassist stopped by the Paltrocast with Darren Paltrowitz to talk about the new Paramount+ three-part docuseries I Wanna Rock: The ’80s Metal Dream. Paltrowitz asked Winger, who has a background in ballet, who his influences are when it comes to his “singing and spinning” in concert.
“I was really into KISS when I was about 16 so, of course, Paul Stanley, David Lee Roth. Those probably, those two where, when I was doing the ballet thing, I was like ‘I’m gonna take this to another level where I’m playing and singing and spinning around and doing all these kind of technical things that I don’t see anybody else doing.’ David Lee Roth would have been the closest to it, but he didn’t play an instrument.”
Paltrowitz reminded Winger that Roth has been known to strap on the “Dave-sicle” acoustic guitar for “Ice Cream Man” in concert.
“I don’t really know that much about Van Halen other than being a fan and I never got to see them live,” responded Winger. “[I’ve seen their] videos and stuff.”
Of course, you can’t have a documentary on the ’80s without including Van Halen. At one point in the series, music journalist Katherine Turman pointed out the influence the band had, specifically Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth.
“Van Halen had the template,” Turman said. “The shredding guitarist. The outrageous frontman with the hair. Never would I have called them metal, never would I call them hair metal. But an influence on every single band that was metal that came afterwards, for sure.”
Darren Paltrowitz can be heard on the David Lee Roth podcast The DLR Cast with co-host Steve Roth. You can also catch his interviews with various celebrities on his podcast the Paltrocast. His complete interview with Alex Winter can be viewed HERE.