Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Tactical spandex’

As the lead singer for Van Halen, David Lee Roth earned a reputation as one of the most outrageous showmen in rock music.

Known as much for his spandex-driven fashion sense, his long blonde hair and his dynamic stage presence as for his voice, "Diamond Dave" quickly became one of the first heroes of the MTV generation.

In the 18 years since he and his Van Halen mates parted ways, Roth's profile has gradually faded from the front pages of the nation's tabloids, even as rumors of possible Van Halen reunions have kept fans glued to his official website for updates.

With each passing year, such a reunion seems less and less likely, as Roth and brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen trade rounds of public barbs and insults.

For now, the 47-year-old Roth is still on his own, touring in advance of his upcoming album, "Diamond Dave," which hits stores July 8. The tour stops at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel on Saturday.

On Tuesday, Roth took time for a phone interview from his hotel room near Richmond, Va. From the conversation's opening moments, he lived up to his reputation for outrageousness.

Las Vegas Sun: How's it going?

David Lee Roth: Good. I've got a big crow sitting on my balcony (bird squawks in background). It's like an omen or something, like I'm going to become a kung-fu warrior.

Sun: Like "The Raven" ...

DLR: Exactly. Yo homeboy! Nevermore! (Bird squawks again.) Hold on. Let me get rid of this thing. (In the distance, Roth rushes to the balcony and curses at the bird, which squawks back and flies away). Sorry, I walk and talk with the animals.

Sun: How is the tour going so far?

DLR: Great. And I'll be on the road all the way up 'til "Jingle Bells." We'll do 70 shows in the United States and then on to Japan and Australia.

Usually people stop doing this like they do in judo, by the time they're 30. But occasionally there's Jerry Rice, me, Willie Nelson ...

Sun: You had a standing gig at Bally's and the MGM Grand for a while in the mid-'90s. What ever happened with that?

DLR: I don't so much create future as I do predict it. I knew that Vegas was going to become the everybody place. I loved the Rat Pack. I never really owned any of the music, but the whole lifestyle and approach, I said, will be applicable to all of us Baby Boomers and our progeny. Because we love living and if you want to live large, Vegas is one of the largest places on earth.

I was way in advance of all of this, but I made some comment about how my girls were hot enough to make Michael Jackson quit the Boy Scouts and management got all upset because it was an off-color remark and I got fired.

I did an interview recently and some fella from Japan said, "Mr. Roth, I understand you got fired from big hotel in Las Vegas." I said, "Hey, my friend, I got fired from the two biggest hotels on earth, where have you ever been fired from, McDonald's? Burger King?" (Laughs hysterically.)

Sun: Your new album is filled with covers by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles and the Doors. What made you decide to tackle the classics?

DLR: Usually when I go to the movies and I see somebody redo a movie that was originally great, I go, "Why did you bother doing that?" So some of this is about just getting it right when you do a cover tune.

It's like this Beatles song ("Tomorrow Never Knows"). When The Beatles did it, it was a great idea, but I don't think it really added up. I think the way we did it is better. That was their original idea, to sound like me. To be a singer you have to think like that.

And the Jimi Hendrix tune ("If 6 Was 9"). He did a great version. Mine's better. It doesn't matter that he wrote it. That's the beauty of great music, that it can be translated into other languages or seen through other people's eyes. Take that idea, coupled with my Christlike humility, and you can accomplish great things with a microphone.

Sun: So what are the chances you'll actually tour with Van Halen again someday? Are the planets just aligned against you guys getting together?

DLR: I think the planets are aligned against the Van Halens. They've never failed to miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. Eddie Van Halen's entire career has been like Stevie Wonder in heavy turbulence.

Sun: You recorded two songs with Van Halen for 1996's "The Best of Van Halen Vol. 1" and then worked on a few more with the band in 2001. What became of those?

DLR: It was less-than-stellar work. I think the Van Halens are pretty much relegated to doing music two days a week. It isn't like riding a bicycle. It's like bicycle racing. And if you weave off of it, much less for seven years or whatever it's been for the guys, yeah, you can kind of come crutching back, like the guys do behind Ozzy for the Sabbath reunion every six years. And it helps everybody with child support, and I'm all for that. I love the kids, Spencer.

Sun: You toured with another ex-Van Halen singer, Sammy Hagar, last year. What was that experience like?

DLR: We had a ball. I'd do it again in an instant. I think the only one who didn't have fun was Sam. Sam lives in a whole 'nother world. Sam is in another dimension.

Sun: You have a VH1 special coming up July 4 weekend. What is that all about?

DLR: I did 60 two-minute spots for "Diamond Dave's Fourth of July Christmas Special." If you enjoyed the "California Girls" or "Hot for Teacher" characters, then this is part and parcel of the same.

These hallucinations are what most people's reality causes me to have. It's got pregnant white chain-smoking trash, and I know what you're thinking, but hey they can be heroes. I've got the whole low-rider gang in there. I've got a low-rider donkey. Don't ask, those are only allegations. No charges have been filed yet.

It's all off-color humor, with a big yellow ice cream truck and the usual sets and what-not. Somewhere in between Groucho (Marx) and (filmmaker Akira) Kurosawa is what I do for a living right now.

Sun: Will we see any spandex in there?

DLR: Tactical Spandex. We are on heightened alert.

archive