David Lee Roth Appears To Poke Fun At Sammy Hagar In New Cartoon
David Lee Roth has been sharing a lot of sketches lately, and his most recent one seems to poke fun at Sammy Hagar, the man who replaced him in Van Halen.
Diamond Dave’s sketch is the front page of a publication called “The Daily Catastrophe,” and the headlines include “Concrete Flowers for Sam,” “Sam the Man Not Only Will Be Giving His Life for Rock and Roll, But Plans to Be Buried in His Recently Acquired Jet!,” “Red Rocker Refuses to Fly 55 in Afterlife” and “Soggy Kudos to the Bottom’s Favorite Front-Guy for Planning Ahead” (perhaps a nod to the Soggy Bottom Boys, the fictional bluegrass group led by George Clooney’s Ulysses Everett McGill character in 2000’s Coen Brothers classic O Brother, Where Art Thou?)Ā Roth has shared sketches of “The Daily Catastrophe” before and has also referenced “Soggy Bottom.”
#SoggyBottom #DLR #DavidLeeRoth #DiamondDave pic.twitter.com/zZ4Q2ZRHgh
— David Lee Roth (@DavidLeeRoth) November 30, 2020
Roth and Hagar have been in the news recently, since Wolfgang Van Halen has said in recent interviews that, in the years before Eddie Van Halen’s passing, Van Halen was considering a tour with all three singers: Roth, Hagar and Gary Cherone.
Roth’s ribbing of Hagar was — Ā perhaps — his impish way of reminding his 0ne-time rival that he would not have agreed to the tour, or if he did, he wouldn’t be an easy touring mate. As Hagar recently pointed out in an interview, he doesn’t consider Roth to be “user-friendly”: “I love the guy, I love the music, all that, but heās just not user friendly. Heās always gonna pull something to try to make you look bad and make him look good and all that kind of stuff.”
Van Halen: Their 30 Best Songs, Ranked
30. āDirty Moviesā – āFair Warningā (1981)
ShareOne thing that doesnāt get discussed enough about Van Halen is how funky they could be. This song, about a prom-queen-turned-porn-star, features one of Van Halenās deepest grooves, courtesy of Michael Anthony and Alex Van Halen, but itās Eddieās evocative leads and riffing (along with Dave being Dave) that really makes the song work.
29. āHappy Trailsā – āDiver Downā (1982)
ShareA song by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans that Van Halen covered as a one minute long acapella jam for their most uneven album, this might not have ranked as one of their best songs before October 6, 2020. But if you were putting together your own Van Halen mix today, this would be a great final track, and it definitely sounds different now that Eddie is gone. It also showed that not only were the band members great instrumentalists, they were great vocalists as well.
28. āIce Cream Manā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareLike all other hard rock bands from the ā60s and ā70s, Van Halen was influenced by all forms of blues. But Van Halen had more fun with it than most, as evidenced here. Dave would play the acoustic guitar at the beginning of the song, starting it out solo, but the band kicked in and Eddie came in hot with one of his greatest solos. The end where Dave and Eddie are dueling with their instruments, is just a blast.
27. āRight Nowā – āFor Unlawful Carnal Knowledgeā (1991)
ShareItās difficult for a hard rock band to grow up and Van Halen were one of the few who were able to pull it off gracefully. Letās be honest -- they wouldnāt have been able to do it without Sammy Hagar. But the band evolved as songwriters and players. This socially conscious song was built on an amazing Eddie Van Halen piano riff, but it also included one of his many incredible solos.
26. āIntruder/(Oh) Pretty Womanā – āDiver Downā (1982)
ShareVan Halen were, of course, a great songwriting team, as this list attests to. But they were also amazing song interpreters. They kicked off their career with a supercharged version of the Kinksā āYou Really Got Me,ā but their unexpected take on Roy Orbisonās ā(Oh) Pretty Womanā is nearly as iconic.
25. āFinish What Ya Startedā – OU812 (1988)
ShareWhen the Eddie Van Halen/Sammy Hagar team worked, it *really* worked. The two of them worked this song out on two guitars in the wee hours of the morning and it sounds like it. This song sounds unlike anything else VH ever did; Eddieās playing, even without distortion, is fantastic.
24. āLittle Dreamerā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareDavid Lee Roth reminds us that he can sing on this song, and his lyrics are a bit more empathetic than usual: āAnd then they went and they voted you/Least likely to succeed/I had to tell them baby you were armed with/All you'd need.ā As flashy as Eddie could be, he knew how to let the song breathe; his playing during the verses dances around Rothās narration. Of course, he also gets his time to shine on his wailing solo.
23. āBest Of Both Worldsā – ā5150ā (1986)
Shareā5150,ā Van Halenās first album with Sammy Hagar, made a strong case that the bandās second iteration would be as strong as the first, and this song was a big reason why. Eddie played a monster riff during the chorus, and his playing glided through the verses. And itās one of Sammyās best VH performances.
22. āFeel Your Love Tonightā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareAn ode to teenage horniness; as always, Eddie, Alex and Michaelās playing was great but the real star is the interplay of their backing vocals with Daveās leads. As with āHappy Trails,ā it makes a good case that Van Halen could have been a great doo-wop group in a different era.
21. āSummer Nightsā – ā5150ā (1986)
ShareWith the addition of Sammy Hagar, it was clear that Van Halen could do a lot more, stylistically, and they werenāt going to stick with just party jams. But they werenāt going to ditch them, either, as they pointed out with āSummer Nights.ā And obviously, Eddie still had riffs for days.
20. āAtomic Punkā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareāI am the ruler of these nether worlds/The underground/On every wall and place my fearsome name is hear/Just look around, whoa yeee-ah!ā It sounds like something Black Sabbath might have cooked up. The opening interplay between Eddieās guitar scratching (reminiscent of āVoodoo Chileā by his idol Jimi Hendrix) and Alexās cymbals is hair raising. Which Eddie Van Halen solo is the best one? Tough to say, but this one kind of defines āface-melting.ā
19. āDreamsā – ā5150ā (1986)
ShareAnother example of a Hagar-era classic that just wouldnāt have been possible with Van Halenās original lineup. Here, itās Sammyās vocals that take center stage, but Eddieās keyboards drive the song. Of course, Eddie steps away from the keys for a bit to blow our minds with a solo.
18. āSo This Is Love?ā – āFair Warningā (1981)
ShareGive the bass player some! This is one of Michael Anthonyās funkiest performances; it almost sounds like something a jazz or blues band could have done in a prohibition-era speakeasy, and you could certainly imagine Roth performing in those snarky vocals in a dark, seedy joint. Itās Eddieās guitar and Alexās drums that bring it to the ā80s; of course, it still sounds amazing today, and it always will.
17. āJamieās Cryināā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareRoth showed empathy for the lead character in āLittle Dreamer,ā and he also did it on āJamieās Cryinā.ā āNow Jamie's been in love before/And she knows what love is for/It should mean, a little, a little more/Than one-night stands.ā Of course, many of his songs actually were about one-night stands, but here he shows some feeling for the person on the other end of a tryst.
16. āDance The Night Awayā – āVan Halen IIā (1979)
ShareOne thing that set Van Halen apart from their rivals was their ability to write a perfect pop song, and a danceable one at that. Hereās another great example of Eddie Van Halen getting out of the way of the song.
15. āPanamaā – ā1984ā (1984)
ShareAfter hearing the lead single from ā1984,ā āJump,ā fans might have worried that Van Halen was ditching hard rock. No such luck: this ode to fast cars was a guitar-driven masterpiece.
14. āIām The Oneā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareMore than forty years later, this song is still mindblowing; at parts, itās nearly as fast as speed metal, at other parts it sounds like cabaret. And they slip into doo-wop/acapella mode for good measure, just to show you that they can do it. One of the most underrated songs in the VH catalog.
13. āSomebody Get Me A Doctorā – āVan Halen IIā (1979)
ShareThe āwoo-woo!ā at 1:24, going into Eddieās solo is perfect, as is Eddie guitar fill at 2:09. You can hear how much fun theyāre having here and itās infectious.
12. āHot For Teacherā – ā1984ā (1984)
ShareAlex Van Halen is the star here; his drumming on this song is as iconic and instantly recognizable as any of Eddieās guitar work. Of course, Eddieās guitar here is stellar. Even though it was their last album with David Lee Roth (for a few decades), they were firing on all cylinders And not only on the song but on the video, which was their last with Roth and certainly their best.
11. āEverybody Wants Some!!ā – āWomen And Children Firstā (1980)
ShareNow, sure...we just gushed about Alex Van Halenās drumming in the previous entry, but weād be remiss if we didnāt do the same on āEverybody Wants Some!!ā While not as frenetic as āHot For Teacher,ā the lengthy drum intro on āEverybody Wants Some!!ā is just as infectious, as is its chorus.
10. āLittle Guitars (Intro)/Little Guitarsā – āDiver Downā (1982)
ShareāDiver Downā is generally thought of as the most uneven of the first six Van Halen albums, but most other bands would kill for an album that good. āLittle Guitarsā is the best original on the album; Eddieās acoustic intro is even more intense than āSpanish Flyā (from āVan Halen IIā) and āLittle Guitarsā itself is one of the bandās most joyful songs. Eddieās riff almost seems to be bouncing around during the song.
9. ā1984/Jumpā – ā1984ā (1984)
ShareVan Halenās lone number one hit is, of course, the synth-heavy āJump,ā because irony is just funny like that sometimes.
8. āOn Fireā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareClosing out Van Halenās self-titled debut, āOn Fireā sends listeners out on a hard rock high note (literally) with DLR and Michael Anthonyās wails of āIām on fire!ā Itās the type of closer that immediately just makes you want to start an album from track one again and go for another ride.
7. āUnchainedā – āFair Warningā (1981)
ShareTake a look at this! Some songs are just tailor-made to be performed in massive arenas, and āUnchainedā is one of them. From the chugging opening riff to the group vocal on the chorus, āwhat a rockerā this song is!
6. āYou Really Got Meā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareVan Halen had a way with covers and really had a knack for putting their own spin on classics, especially a rock standard like āYou Really Got Me.ā Itās undoubtedly VHās best cover and can easily stand up to the original by the Kinks. Of course, it didnāt hurt to have a lead in like āEruptionā either.
5. āMean Streetā – āFair Warningā (1981)
ShareServing as the opening track on Van Halenās fourth studio album, āMean Streetā is a unique standout not just on the LP but in the bandās entire catalog. Dave, Eddie, Michael and Alex all shine on this track, and itās a shared spotlight thatās hard to ignore.
4. āAināt Talkinā āBout Loveā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareThe final single from Van Halenās stellar debut album, āAināt Talkinā āBout Loveā remains a mainstay of rock radio over four decades after its initial release. Itās easy to understand why with its brash chorus and ridiculously memorable lines like āYou know you're semi-good lookin'/And on the streets again.ā Oh, and that opening riff is just killer.
3. āAnd The Cradle Will Rockā¦ā – āWomen And Children Firstā (1980)
ShareāHave you seen Junior's grades?ā More than just a little tongue in cheek lyrically, āAnd the Cradle Will Rockā¦ā famously gave fans the first taste of Eddie Van Halen dabbling with keyboards, without taking away from his guitar. That sure had some decent returns down the line!
2. āEruptionā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareIn 1:42 and only the second track into Van Halenās debut album, Eddie Van Halen cemented his status as a guitar god, and there was no turning back. āEruptionā is so ingrained in rock culture now itās almost difficult to think of a time without it. Itās the solo that inspired countless people to pick up a guitar; it also caused thousands of six-stringers to sit dumbfounded, trying to figure out how EVH played the damn thing in the first place. Perhaps, itās both.
1. āRunninā With The Devilā – āVan Halenā (1978)
ShareOut the gate, Van Halen just werenāt messing around. They were young, hungry and with a mission statement like āRunninā With The Devil,ā they told you who they were right away. When youāre ālivin' at a pace that kills,ā there isnāt time for pleasantries. In a debate on the best opening track from a debut album ever, āRunninā With The Devilā is always part of the conversation, and it may well be the greatest. In the case of this list, we think itās Van Halenās best song ever. Simply put, this song is perfect, even when you isolate DLRās vocals.