Monday
Mar032014
Diamond Dave Doesn't Disappoint
Monday, March 3, 2014 at 12:01AM Note: today's article comes to us courtesy of the poster known as Him.
David Lee Roth recently joined Beach Boy Mike Love onstage in Beverly Hills, where Love was honored for his songwriting prowess with the Ella Award by the Society of Singers. Roth is Roth. More vocalist than singer, more cheesy than a stuffed crust pizza. He is an acquired taste that you either love or hate. "Meh" isn't a phrase used to describe Diamond Dave.
Thing is, he sounds good here. Roth was never a great singer live. Fans who say that have imagined what they heard rather than recalling it. At his best, he was (and is) an entertainer. He said what he wanted, acted like he wanted, and drew a huge swath of fans into his fast-talking orbit. Even solo, and well past the "lion stalking his prey" days, Roth could command a crowd . . . of thousands or hundreds. Recently, he has given many performances that test even a fan’s love: straining to reach notes he never hit before, scatting instead of talking, and trying to prove he can sing.
Not here. While he mangles some lyrics, chats and moves like he is doing an old vaudeville routine, and still insists on dressing like a woodworking apprentice, Roth nonetheless gives the lie to the idea that he can’t manage vocals live . . . in concentrated doses, at one-off shows, where he can focus on a single song or two. A Different Kind of Truth amazed a lot of fans and haters (and got its fair share of criticism too, for recycling old scraps). Roth sounded good though. Studio trickery and all, he sounded like you hoped he would sound. This video again shows why Roth is a one-of-a-kind sort of artist. And it makes a fan hope that the new album that Van Halen is working on will be as good as the last, even if we know the live concert vocals won’t live up to the album (or this video). Thing is, they never did. The whole is more than the parts.
“Dance the Night Away” and discuss.
