loveless
god
Bringing ballet to the masses. Sticking to the funk.
Posts: 2,779
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Post by loveless on May 16, 2020 1:35:11 GMT
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Post by Charlie O. on May 16, 2020 2:11:57 GMT
Considering he also produced Clear Spot, Tupelo Honey, Sailin' Shoes and Montrose, I'll definitely be reading his book at some point.
loveless, did you ever read the book by VH's road manager Noel Monk? Well worth it.
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loveless
god
Bringing ballet to the masses. Sticking to the funk.
Posts: 2,779
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Post by loveless on May 16, 2020 2:14:40 GMT
loveless, did you ever read the book by VH's road manager Noel Monk? Well worth it. I'm a big enough fan, that...off to Amazon. |
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Post by Charlie O. on May 16, 2020 2:56:59 GMT
I'm not even a big fan, and I enjoyed it!
Monk got that gig fresh off the Sex Pistols' US tour. I'll have to read his book on that sometime.
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loveless
god
Bringing ballet to the masses. Sticking to the funk.
Posts: 2,779
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Post by loveless on May 16, 2020 3:28:23 GMT
I don't blame him for splitting his best stories into two books.
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Post by sloopjohnc on May 16, 2020 13:08:24 GMT
I saw last week he's come out with a bio.
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Post by sloopjohnc on May 16, 2020 13:16:28 GMT
Thank god, they stuck with Roth. He's as much raconteur as singer - I always found it interesting that Van Halen and the Sex Pistols came up around the same time. One was very traditional and one obviously wasn't, and both played off the personalities of their singers and frontmen.
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Post by tory on May 19, 2020 20:43:49 GMT
I listened to Bill Burr's podcast and he mentioned this. Great read - thank you.
I was feeling down today and then my wife went out and I played "Fair Warning" at very loud volume. Amazing record.
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fange
god
Listening to long jazz tracks
Posts: 4,541 
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Post by fange on May 20, 2020 0:29:52 GMT
Good read, cheers! His enthusiasm for the band really shines through; it's fascinating for me to read about how he saw and desperately wanted to capture those strengths which every fan of early VH know well - the guitar virtuosity, the hard rock power, Roth's distinctiveness as a lead singer, his smarts as a lyricist, the youthful energy of the backing vocals, the fun and poppier elements of the band together, the complete package.
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~ / % ? *
god
disambiguating goat herder
Posts: 5,532
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Post by ~ / % ? * on May 20, 2020 20:31:39 GMT
Great read. Really tough on DLR, did not realize he was viewed as such a liability. At this point, I've come to view Eddie as essentially a John Holmes like novelty, has a gimmick that doesn't amount to much and goes nowhere, but it's a hell of a gimmick. Just don't ask Eddie to play with anyone beyond his comfort zone, don't ask Eddie to improvise or long form solo, and 42 years in the biz he's even been able to turn many blessings into nothing much.
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Post by Charlie O. on May 20, 2020 20:43:47 GMT
Great read. Really tough on DLR, did not realize he was viewed as such a liability. At this point, I've come to view Eddie as essentially a John Holmes like novelty, has a gimmick that doesn't amount to much and goes nowhere, but it's a hell of a gimmick. Just don't ask Eddie to play with anyone beyond his comfort zone, don't ask Eddie to improvise or long form solo, and 42 years in the biz he's even been able to turn many blessings into nothing much. I'm not even really a fan and I think you're seriously short-changing him. I don't know if anyone really has ever asked him to improvise a long solo (so how do you know he can't?), but that's irrevlevant; there are/have been a lot of great musicians who aren't strong improvisors, just as there are great comedians and comic actors who can't do comedy improv. Most musicians have their "comfort zone" and I don't know that there's anything necessarily wrong with that.
This is a guy who pretty much re-invented rock guitar in his time; whether you think his influence has been good or not (I'm not so sure myself), it has been singularly massive.
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Post by tory on May 20, 2020 20:56:17 GMT
I guess you could argue that a guy of Van Halen's outstanding talent hasn't really contributed what I would call a definitive "song" that showcased what he could do.
I mean, he contributed some absolutely amazing riffs, but say, you've got Hendrix and Page for example producing excellent and definitive songs. Van Halen could probably piss all over both of them in some respects in terms of what he was capable of, but have VH got a really great song that matches his talent? I don't know. They're known more for their product and great image/fun/presence than their music I reckon.
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~ / % ? *
god
disambiguating goat herder
Posts: 5,532
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Post by ~ / % ? * on May 20, 2020 21:04:04 GMT
Great read. Really tough on DLR, did not realize he was viewed as such a liability. At this point, I've come to view Eddie as essentially a John Holmes like novelty, has a gimmick that doesn't amount to much and goes nowhere, but it's a hell of a gimmick. Just don't ask Eddie to play with anyone beyond his comfort zone, don't ask Eddie to improvise or long form solo, and 42 years in the biz he's even been able to turn many blessings into nothing much. I'm not even really a fan and I think you're seriously short-changing him. I don't know if anyone really has ever asked him to improvise a long solo (so how do you know he can't?), but that's irrevlevant; there are/have been a lot of great musicians who aren't strong improvisors, just as there are great comedians and comic actors who can't do comedy improv. Most musicians have their "comfort zone" and I don't know that there's anything necessarily wrong with that.
This is a guy who pretty much re-invented rock guitar in his time; whether you think his influence has been good or not (I'm not so sure myself), it has been singularly massive.
He can't, so he doesn't. And that's fine. He was massively influential for a time, sometimes I wonder if it was mostly hype from Marshall and Kramer. His influence has fallen off dramatically. He was exciting initially, and over time it became apparent he was mostly silly and his "innovations" were empty. He only has meaning in his moment of the rock era, if he came around now he would be overlooked, ignored. |
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Post by Charlie O. on May 20, 2020 21:11:41 GMT
He only has meaning in his moment of the rock era, if he came around now he would be overlooked, ignored. Why? Because everyone would assume he was ripping off all of the guitarists he influenced? |
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~ / % ? *
god
disambiguating goat herder
Posts: 5,532
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Post by ~ / % ? * on May 20, 2020 21:17:45 GMT
He only has meaning in his moment of the rock era, if he came around now he would be overlooked, ignored. Why? Because everyone would assume he was ripping off all of the guitarists he influenced? No, though Schenker could still play rings around him even today. Mostly the rock era provides the context for him and his "innovations". He's rarely if ever name checked or covered by jazz, classical, bluegrass, avantgarde, etc., players the way Hendrix routinely is. He's very similar to many very successful novelists of the past who are no longer vaunted once they are gone. |
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