VAN HALEN is...

[Rushman14]

It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces.

 

but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call.

 

 

[Presto-digitation]

QUOTE (GeddyLeeRoth @ Nov 2 2009, 01:20 AM)

Hey Presto, I'm surprised by your statement--I thought you were a huge KISS fan.  I would still agree with your decree about VH.  With DLR they were totally on fire and untouchable.  An utter phenomenon.  KISS is cool too

Oh Kiss is my favorite band because a ) I love 'em and b ) I have a ton of time and energy invested in studying them (since I was a kid)....but purely from a musical and attitude perspective I think Van Halen is the total shit. Hard rockin'-but-fun party band with the greatest rock guitarist ever, one of the best drummers, a great harmonist in Michael Anthony, and perhaps the most quintessential front man rock *STAR* ever in DLR.

Edited November 2, 2009 by Presto-digitation

[sullysue]

I dunno. I always thought of Van Halen as a better-than-average garage band with an exceptional guitar player. I can think of so many other American bands that would rank as the best.

[Tick]

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 02:09 PM)

It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call.

Early Aerosmith albums rival Van Halen. The latter day stuff quite sucked.

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM)

It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call.

I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.

 

Again, just my opinion.

[Tick]

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM)

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ?

[Natch]

I was one of those VH fans that went into a major funk when DLR and VH parted ways. I regret not having seen VH live during the DLR era. When Sammy came on board, I was upset and just couldn't get into the new music. It seemed like a different band to me. Yeah, the guitar riffs were awesome, but the songs themselves just didn't have that familiar feeling that came with the DLR era tunes.

 

But, over the years, some of the music grew on me, and now I actually can appreciate the music for what it is. Had there not been a DLR era prior to Sammy, there would be no debate as to whether VH with Sammy was a good band or not.

 

The unfortunate thing is that VH went through so many years of nonsense between band members and singers. There could have been so much more production had they not wasted all their time on BS. But, despite the BS, I still believe they're the greatest American rock band. Seeing them live last year only solidified that for me. I thought the arena was going to collapse.

 

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 01:53 PM)

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ? Absolutely...that is why I said it.   I thought I expressed that by putting "just my opinion".

[EmotionDetector]

QUOTE (Natch @ Nov 2 2009, 01:57 PM)

I was one of those VH fans that went into a major funk when DLR and VH parted ways. I regret not having seen VH live during the DLR era. When Sammy came on board, I was upset and just couldn't get into the new music. It seemed like a different band to me. Yeah, the guitar riffs were awesome, but the songs themselves just didn't have that familiar feeling that came with the DLR era tunes. But, over the years, some of the music grew on me, and now I actually can appreciate the music for what it is. Had there not been a DLR era prior to Sammy, there would be no debate as to whether VH with Sammy was a good band or not. The unfortunate thing is that VH went through so many years of nonsense between band members and singers. There could have been so much more production had they not wasted all their time on BS. But, despite the BS, I still believe they're the greatest American rock band. Seeing them live last year only solidified that for me. I thought the arena was going to collapse.

 

That is the truth...the band could've had a lot more productive years had they avoided all of the egotistical BS that has constantly surrounded the band.

 

But yeah, the fact is clear, whenever the boys were actually in the studio, they were able to create masterpieces with the best of 'em!

[ozzy85]

Hmmm... I did wear out a copy of OU812 in the tape deck of my Chevelle. Killer album. VH's last album of worth, IMO.

 

Greatest American Band?

 

Tenacious D

[metaldad]

QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 01:53 PM)

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ? I hear ya bro and i love "old' Aerosmith but i really think as far as the first 4 V.H. albums go, pretty untouchable by any american rock n roll band .......all imo

[Tick]

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 05:03 PM)

QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 01:53 PM) QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ? I hear ya bro and i love "old' Aerosmith but i really think as far as the first 4 V.H. albums go, pretty untouchable by any american rock n roll band .......all imo I'm a bigger VH fan for sure, but Aerosmith(featuring Dream on),Get Your Wings, Rocks, and Toys In The Attic are pretty legendary.

[Rushman14]

QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 02:51 PM)

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 05:03 PM) QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 01:53 PM) QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ? I hear ya bro and i love "old' Aerosmith but i really think as far as the first 4 V.H. albums go, pretty untouchable by any american rock n roll band .......all imo I'm a bigger VH fan for sure, but Aerosmith(featuring Dream on),Get Your Wings, Rocks, and Toys In The Attic are pretty legendary. yeah the cracks started showing with Draw The Line.

[metaldad]

QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 04:51 PM)

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 05:03 PM) QUOTE (tick @ Nov 2 2009, 01:53 PM) QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 02:46 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. I dunno...to be honest, I wouldn't put Aerosmith anywhere near VH on the list.   Again, just my opinion. Based on what, the fact your a bigger VH fan ? Aerosmith is certainly in the same league as Van Halen, as far as success and the multitude of there fan base. There is little doubt about that fact. Am I wrong ? I hear ya bro and i love "old' Aerosmith but i really think as far as the first 4 V.H. albums go, pretty untouchable by any american rock n roll band .......all imo I'm a bigger VH fan for sure, but Aerosmith(featuring Dream on),Get Your Wings, Rocks, and Toys In The Attic are pretty legendary. Yep, Rocks and Toys are masterpieces but the first 2 albums have a few filler tunes

[rushgoober]

The greatest American rock band is the Grateful Dead. No one even comes close to their body of work.

[metaldad]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Nov 2 2009, 06:42 PM)

The greatest American rock band is the Grateful Dead. No one even comes close to their body of work.

stop it.............................

[Xanadoood]

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 12:48 PM)

QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 12:46 PM) QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 10:45 AM) QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 10:27 AM) QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 10:17 AM) QUOTE (Gompers @ Nov 2 2009, 09:33 AM) QUOTE (EmotionDetector @ Nov 2 2009, 10:29 AM) QUOTE (circumstantial tree @ Nov 2 2009, 09:02 AM) To me, Van Halen begins and ends with David Lee Roth as singer.   I like Sammy's contributions quite a bit, too. They wrote some great material with him. They also wrote some real shitty pop love songs also . There is no arguing it...he did.   But to try and pretend like Sammy did no good while he was with VH would be a stupid thing to say.   The guy is a great songwriter, and he had them singing some more serious tunes as well, which I enjoyed personally. Obviously, 5150 was a great album, and is probably the most highly-regarded album of the Van-Hagar era.   But look at OU812 and For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge...I think those two albums are really strong, probably my personal fav's from Sammy's time. So many good songs on both albums IMO.   I know that Roth will always be the favourite, and that's cool. I think the greatest VH album is the debut, and I don't think any of Sammy's albums even come close to touching that one.   But with that said, Sammy did a lot of good for the band, and I like what he brought to the band personally. He was a fine replacement to take over from Roth. The fact that people think he did nothing good with the band just blows my mind. I hear what you are saying but he changed the sound of the band .That is not Van Halen . I would never say he did nothing for the band, 4 # 1 albums . What he did do the whole time he was with the band was act like they did not have 6 albums before him. i have seen many Sammy/Halen shows and outside a 2 or 3 songs it was all the stuff he sang on. That is complete bullshit if you ask any old school V.H. fan . They did more Sammy solo songs than old Van Halen songs. I still listen to 5150 and OU812 once and a while and they are very good but you can not put them in the same sentence with Fair Warning , Women and Children First ya know ? Oh absolutely, I'm with you completely on that MD.   That is stupid. A band with as many 5-star songs as they had on the Roth records, it is absolutely idiotic that they would leave them out of the concerts. I know you've seen them many times over the years. For me, I only got to see my first VH concerts within the last few years (2004 with Sammy and 2007 with Dave), and you're right, even on that Sammy tour, they only played 3 Dave-songs, I think. Duuuuumb.   But seriously, I don't think that Sammy can be the sole man to blame for that direction. I can't imagine that Sammy had THAT much pull on how the band was run...afterall, it is well documented that the VH brothers tend to run the show in the end. I think VH's track-record in terms of egos, speaks for itself.   Again, I'm with you on the concept of what they became. They were definitely a different band, no doubt. But I'm just saying that, to me, the songs were still exceptional and strong, even if they were different. Right on Man, the whole Dave versus Sammy discussions always bring out such passion. I LOVE it!   I am conflicted when discussing VH, because they were such a HUGE part of my youth. Its sad what Eddie has done to the legacy of the band. But yes, from 78-84, i truly believe they were the greatest party rock band EVER!..They had it all and then some. Even on this board, many have stated that shows from that era were some of the best they have seen. I have many bootlegs of the boys, dating back to '76. They definitely lost something when Dave departed. They became very vanilla and they lost their edge big time. And Eddies playing changed. If anyone has ever heard the bootleg from Nov. of '77 at the pasedena civc aud., they know what i am talking about. He just lost the fire when Sammy joined.   But i give Sammy some props and they had some decent tunes. But overall, no, VH is with Dave. Now they just need to get Micheal back in the band, and make a new record. Its going on 12 years!   And as far as the topic of the original post, i would say ZZTOP is in the running as well.   VH AEROSMITH KISS ZZTOP

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 04:52 PM)

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Nov 2 2009, 06:42 PM) The greatest American rock band is the Grateful Dead.  No one even comes close to their body of work. stop it............................. Don't get me wrong, Van Halen (not Van Hagar, Van HALEN) were a great and fun band, but the Dead were deep...

[MULTIPLIED REACTION]

QUOTE (circumstantial tree @ Nov 2 2009, 09:02 AM)

To me, Van Halen begins and ends with David Lee Roth as singer.

[rushgoober]

QUOTE (MULTIPLIED REACTION @ Nov 2 2009, 08:04 PM)

QUOTE (circumstantial tree @ Nov 2 2009, 09:02 AM) To me, Van Halen begins and ends with David Lee Roth as singer. I completely lost interest in them once DLR left.

[MULTIPLIED REACTION]

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM)

It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call.

Rocks is a compilation, not a real album.

[Test4VitalSigns]

QUOTE (MULTIPLIED REACTION @ Nov 2 2009, 11:09 PM)

QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. Rocks is a compilation, not a real album. No Rocks is an official album...with Back in the Saddle, Last Child, Sick As A Dog, etc...         you are probably thinking of the compilation album Gems

[metaldad]

QUOTE (Test4VitalSigns @ Nov 2 2009, 10:42 PM)

QUOTE (MULTIPLIED REACTION @ Nov 2 2009, 11:09 PM) QUOTE (Rushman14 @ Nov 2 2009, 01:09 PM) It's a tough call between early VH and early Aerosmith. Aerosmith edges out VH because Toys in the Attic and Rocks are absolute masterpieces. but Fair Warning is also a masterpiece... tough call. Rocks is a compilation, not a real album. No Rocks is an official album...with Back in the Saddle, Last Child, Sick As A Dog, etc...         you are probably thinking of the compilation album Gems

[troutman]

QUOTE (rushgoober @ Nov 2 2009, 06:55 PM)

QUOTE (metaldad @ Nov 2 2009, 04:52 PM) QUOTE (rushgoober @ Nov 2 2009, 06:42 PM) The greatest American rock band is the Grateful Dead.  No one even comes close to their body of work. stop it............................. Don't get me wrong, Van Halen (not Van Hagar, Van HALEN) were a great and fun band, but the Dead were deep... Deep in doo doo!!

[troutman]

VH was a great band early on. But have lost it over the past 15 or so yrs. With all the BS and band member changes. Especially when they fu**** over Michael Anthony!! These day's they just survive on the VH name!