It may very well be the most publicized non-concert in rock history. On November 25th, 2015, a one-off reunion concert featuring the members of David Lee Roth's Eat 'Em and Smile band was canceled at the last minute by the fire marshal at the Lucky Strike Live in Hollywood. The show would have marked the first time in 30 years that Roth, guitarist Steve Vai, bassist Billy … [Read more...]
Michael Anthony Still Open To Performing With David Lee Roth
Michael Anthony says he's still open to collaborating with David Lee Roth. Anthony commented on his current relationship with Roth during a recent Q&A interview at the 2024 Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp. "The last time I actually spoke with him was when [there was talk] about a possible reunion thing,” said Anthony, referring to the rumored 2021 Van Halen tribute … [Read more...]
Mike Post: ‘Van Halen III’ Was To Be An Album ‘Eddie’s Way’
Van Halen's 1998 album Van Halen III was a project intended to be led primarily by Eddie Van Halen, according to a candid interview with the album's producer Mike Post. During an appearance on The Hustle podcast, Post explained why he was chosen by Eddie to produce the album, what his role was to be as producer, and why he had the difficult task of asking Alex Van Halen to … [Read more...]
Van Halen Was ‘The Nirvana For The Late 70s’
Few bands in rock history could create such a seismic shift in popular music in such a short time as Van Halen. In a recent interview, musician Roger Joseph Manning Jr (Jellyfish, Beck, The Moog Cookbook, Imperial Drag) recalled the first time he heard Van Halen and compared the band's impact to Nirvana's in the early 90s. "I remember being on my school playground and … [Read more...]
Billy Sheehan: Band Had Limited Stage Access On DLR’s ‘Skyscraper’ Tour
Billy Sheehan says there was a line you couldn't cross with David Lee Roth and that line was made of duct tape. Below is an article on Sheehan's comments regarding Roth's 1988 Skyscraper tour. It was contributed to the Van Halen News Desk by Ultimate-Guitar's Greg Prato: One of rock's great "What ifs?" will forever be, "What if David Lee Roth's 'Eat 'Em and Smile' band … [Read more...]
Billy Sheehan On Roth’s Initial Guitarist Choice Before Vai
Before there was Steve Vai, there was another Steve on David Lee Roth's radar when it came to choosing a guitarist for his solo band. During a recent podcast interview, former David Lee Roth bassist Billy Sheehan talked about the formation of the Eat 'Em and Smile band and the guitarist Roth initially had in mind before hiring Vai. Below is an excerpt from Greg Prato's … [Read more...]
David Lee Roth Gets Up For New Cover Of ‘Jump’
There's a new cover of Van Halen's "Jump" and this version's got David Lee Roth up. About a month ago, solo artist Alex Melton recorded an "Acoustic Alt-Pop Indie Rock Cover" of Van Halen's number one single from 1984. Today, Roth showed his approval by uploading a video featuring Melton's version, which you can see above. In it is archival footage of Roth and his late … [Read more...]
Five Kids, One Dream: Seeing Van Halen Live
Forty years ago this month, five Cincinnati, Ohio kids barely in their teens got the chance to witness their very first Van Halen concert. The biggest band in rock and roll came to the Cincinnati Gardens and gave them an experience that would last a lifetime and it's all told in the brand-new book Jump: 40th Anniversary of Attending the "1984" Van Halen Concert by author Jim … [Read more...]
Wolfgang Van Halen Responds To Recent Roth Rant
Being David Lee Roth’s number one target. Now that’s a new one for Wolfgang Van Halen. But it’s not as if he’s all that surprised. During a recent radio interview with 99X in Atlanta, Wolfgang responded to the disparaging comments recently directed towards him by Roth. In a video posted to his YouTube channel in January titled “This fuckin’ kid…” (later changed to “This … [Read more...]
Alex Van Halen’s ‘Brothers’: A Discussion With Authors Greg Renoff & Chris Gill
With the recent announcement of Alex Van Halen's upcoming autobiography Brothers, fans are wondering what we'll read inside the 384-page book due out in October. The Van Halen News Desk reached out to authors Greg Renoff & Chris Gill to get their thoughts on this highly anticipated book. Renoff is the author of Van Halen Rising: How A Southern California Backyard Party … [Read more...]
David Lee Roth Wanted To Manage Tesla, Says Bassist Brian Wheat
Tesla bassist Brian Wheat says David Lee Roth not only wanted Tesla to open for him back in 1987, he also wanted to manage the band. After a series of dates supported by Cinderella during the second half of 1986, Roth tapped Tesla to open for the Eat 'Em And Smile band in January and February of '87. Roth had picked the band after seeing the video for "Modern Day Cowboy", … [Read more...]
1984 Throwback: Watch Skydiver-Version Video Of Van Halen’s ‘Jump’
Who knew when David Lee Roth sang "Go ahead and Jump" some people would take it literally. We have to give credit to Van Halen historian Greg Renoff for tipping us off to this video. On what is the 40th anniversary of the week Van Halen's "Jump" hit #1 on Billboard, Greg stumbled on this gem filmed back in 1984 by a group of Skydivers from Texas. It features a cast of … [Read more...]