It’s a question for the ages – or at least for the last 20 years. After releasing six albums with frontman David Lee Roth, the other members of Van Halen jettisoned him in 1985 in favor of Sammy Hagar, who had solo success prior to joining the band. Van Halen released four albums with Hagar from 1986-1995 and he was ultimately replaced in 1996 by former Extreme vocalist Gary Cherone.
So, David Lee Roth or Sammy Hagar?
I find myself debating this question every so often, usually with a group of friends and several empty beer bottles strewn about. And I’m always in the minority.
My answer: Sammy Hagar, in a close one.
I can almost hear the collective scoffs of hardcore Van Halen fans everywhere. But hear me out. There’s reasoning behind this.
Looking through my Van Halen iTunes collection, I count no fewer than eleven four- or five-star songs sung by Roth: “Runnin’ With The Devil,” “You Really Got Me,” “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love,” “Jamie’s Cryin’,” “Dance The Night Away,” “Beautiful Girls,” “And The Cradle Will Rock,” “Everybody Wants Some,” “Unchained,” “Panama” and “Hot For Teacher.” A load of great songs, there’s no doubt.
But look at Van Halen’s production during the Hagar years: “Why Can’t This Be Love,” “Dreams,” “Summer Nights,” “Best of Both Worlds,” “Love Walks In,” “When It’s Love,” “Feels So Good,” “Finish What Ya Started,” “Black and Blue,” “Poundcake” and “Top of the World.” Again, I count eleven songs.
I’m sure people will point to “Ice Cream Man,” “Pretty Woman,” “Dancing In The Street,” “Jump” or “I’ll Wait,” and declare Roth the winner. These are all three-star songs in my book but, in response, I submit “Runaround,” “Right Now,” “Can’t Stop Lovin’ You,” “Don’t Tell Me (What Love Can Do),” and “Not Enough.”
People may argue that Roth only had six years with the band versus Hagar’s nine. But keep in mind that Roth had six albums to produce his eleven four-star songs, while Hagar only had four albums to produce his. And I’ll argue that Roth was with the band in their creative prime, when they were hungry, while Hagar was with Van Halen when that creativity and hunger started to diminish.
Not convinced?
All right, I’ll admit that the Roth Eleven rock a bit harder than the Hagar Eleven. But to truly make a fair comparison between the two eras you have to look at the eras those eras existed in. Confused? Me too, but stay with me.
Roth fronted the band from 1978 to 1984, in a time when the “classic” rock sound was still in its heyday. They were putting out great music at the same time AC/DC, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, John Cougar (Mellencamp), Foreigner, ELO, Supertramp (and countless others) were releasing some of their best stuff.
Hagar’s Van Halen made classic rock in a time when the genre was in serious trouble. In the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, new wave, classic rock, hair bands and grunge collided to produce a confusing landscape in the world of rock. In the classic rock genre, Petty and Mellencamp went on to make some excellent albums, but other than a smattering of good songs here and there, the genre was pretty much dead.
So what’s more impressive – making great classic rock in the genre’s golden age or almost single-handedly keeping the genre alive through the early ‘90s?
For me, it’s the latter, which is why Sammy is the right answer.
