Thanks for the new episode Dweezil. To add another layer of light to the long tortured genesis of “Dirty Water Dog” I thought you might enjoy “Twist The Knife” from your buddy Steve Lukather’s early solo album. Ed gave Steve that VH riff/song whilst also lending his own bass playing on it. Also the term “dirty water dog” was coined by little Wolfgang to describe hotdogs at baseball game vendors.
Baluchitherium was always my favorite song off Balance. When I first heard it, I thought the riff always sounded like the riff from the song Eyes of Love by Trevor Rabin. Years later I remember reading in some guitar magazine an interview with Trevor Rabin where he mentioned that Eddie contacted him to make sure he was ok with the riff sound similar to his song. I wish I could find the article as I thought if I remember correctly, it either sounded like they were friends and Eddie asked before album was released or maybe he tried giving Trevor some credit or $ or something? Too long ago to remember the article exactly, but what I got from the interview was that Eddie was a pretty stand-up guy for the influence/ coincidence of that riff.
Really enjoyed the VH III album episode. It really is a difficult album to listen to and like you Dweezil, I go back every so often and try to talk myself into it! There are a few moments I like but overall I just can't get past the way Gary sounds so forced, like he's singing in the wrong key. I'm a fan of Extreme and I think Gary is a very talented singer, but I think Ed was running the show at that point and perhaps Gary didn't feel comfortable pushing back. A more involved producer may have helped. I do think they sounded good on the VH III tour though and it was nice to hear some of the older material after such a long time. When they played "Josephina" live acoustically it was much better than the album version.
I think Blues made a great point about how in retrospect Dave and Sammy both did an amazing job finding cool melody and lyric ideas around the riffs.
It is such a shame that Ed did the press and was so proud of the record, because when it bombed commercially it clearly affected him for a long time afterwards.
When you discuss ADKOT maybe you can discuss the 2 DLR tracks that they put out on the Best Of? I think they were both excellent tracks, even though (if what I've read is to be believed) it sounds like it was a bit of a chore getting the vocals recorded for those.
Loved the VH III Episode. I am by no means a fan of the record, but I am a fan of what Ed tried to do. He did something different. I actually liked Neworld and Without You. Even on the first listen there was continuity. I liked that Neworld started off light, and turned dark and foreboding and I thought Without You kicked ass. I had high hopes, but soon found myself rummaging for nuggets. I actually liked his cleaner tone on the record and there were bits and pieces of songs and his playing that I thought were really good. On the whole it was a miss and it seems worse because collectively those guys never missed, let alone whiffed on anything. But to have it treated it like a crime or a joke had to hurt. I don't think it's a coincidence that his darkest period came after III.
For me the real disappointment is that I think by and large the failure and more importantly the response to III is the reason we went so many years without new music. Ed had a vision, took a risk and people threw rocks. Big rocks. If that is the response to taking a risk, why ever experiment or take a risk again? Bring Dave back, re-work some old songs, and jam with Wolf. End of story. If you're Al or Wolf why open up the vaults and let people hear what's in there? Honestly if I were Wolf I wouldn't let anyone near that stuff.
Anyway thank you for the episode. Loved the way it was done live, the quick turnaround was fantastic. Not sure how many more are left, but make it easy on yourself and do them in one take.
Great episode, I certainly share Andy’s love for this record and the right here, right now, live era. It was when I got into Van Halen. I share so many of his thoughts! The ‘glassy tone’ on don’t tell me that reminds him of Slash’s Use Your Illusion tone was a nice observation. Always loved that UYI ‘liquid’ wah-tone and I get what he’s saying. I’m happy he called out the solo to ‘Can’t stop loving you’, which has always been one of my favorites – completely out of character, indeed almost session player like. I was really surprised to hear Andy bringing up Extreme’s Play With Me…that’s always been the song I compare Big Fat Money to as well, together with ‘We didn’t start the fire’ by Billy Joel (I’ve even got those three programmed together on a playlist), much more so than the Led Zep one. I also share his view on the solo-record thing…’aren’t they all’? His take on the Aftershock/Enter Sandman comparison also hits home to me…I see quite a few people saying he ripped off that riff, but to me it never really sounded alike, probably for that ‘meandering, wobbly sitting in the pocket’ reason Andy gives. I also like the observation that the band had matured gracefully. They had pretty much reinvented themselves (again) at this point, and the fiery maturity during these few years was amazing (also just listen to those 2 new Roth tracks in '96...)
Anyhow, too many nuggets on this album to mention, and I really enjoyed the listen.
One question for Dweezil: you mention that parts of the Big Fat Money solo are patterns he uses elsewhere on the Wild Life soundtrack. I’d be curious to hear what parts you mean, since it doesn’t really sound pattern based to me, and it seems to fit the weird rhythm playing behind it very well. It’s another one of my favorite solo’s of his, again very atypical. If you’re doing a Wild Life episode, please link back to this observation!
Really enjoying the Balance Ep! The discussion of Big Fat Money is fun and there are so many references in that tune. The piano isn't the only connection to A Apolitical Blues, the first vocal line and overall feel are a pretty direct nod to Little Feat's Teenage Nervous Breakdown. 70s Little Feat rules and probably one of the swinging-est bands around. Wonder if all of VH were into them or if it was a Sammy thing?
Another excellent episode, Balance is still one of my favourite Van Hagar albums. I don't think Bruce would have contributed the arrangement ideas such as a Beatles part or Led Zep vibe though, I think that was just coming from Ed and Al, and Sammy too in his vocal delivery. I think Ed allowed his influences to come out more prominently at this time and then even more so on VH III, with nods to everything from the blues to Peter Gabriel. Apparently 'Strung Out' was taken from hours of a recording where Ed destroyed a rather expensive piano! I saw an interview around that time and Ed said that 'Baluchitherium' was supposed to be a vocal track, but Sammy couldn't come up with lyrics for it?
Dweezil: GREAT episode!!! Another home run. The part of Andy playing the intro to " Cliffs Of Dover " in the wet-dry-wet configuration almost made me collide with another car while listening to the show ( haha )! Question: Has interviewing these guests inspired you to ask them to contribute to your " What The Hell Was I Thinking " project ( keep in mind I'm asking this being unaware of your current work load status )? All the best-DMC
Awesome. New episode has arrived! I'll be checking it out today on my routes. Andy is someone fairly new to me ( I've caught a couple of his You Tube shows in the past-Great player ). Thanks Dweezil!
Great episode with Andy Wood. Dweezil, I can say VH III really did make me dive into Van Halen more. I had heard other albums for all the songs that made it to the pop charts, but that spring of 98 I was invested. Seeing the concert 3 times that summer with Gary was one of my favorites because the concert spanned all three eras. Loved Gary in the band. I think I was drawn to this album more because so many people just wrote it off. While it isn't my favorite album at the moment, it does circulate through my rotation frequently. I think I like the album more and more because of the hate for it. In my opinion, a true Edward Van Halen listens to that album and notes what he was trying to accomplish. Knowing what we know now about his bouts with depression and the vulnerability of his mind makes it all the more special to me because Gary was able to encourage him to sing. Encourage him to just play and let the sound be raw.
I agree, Chris! I loved the show with Gary. We got to hear more songs from all three eras. Your opinion on the album resonates with me. It may not be my favourite, but every now and then, I've got to listen for what they did accomplish.
I too saw Gary with VH on their 3 tour and really enjoyed it. But, it wasn't until I bought the VH 3 guitar tab book that made realize that Ed was a layering genius, especially on tunes like " From Afar " as well as " Fire In The Hole. " I believe that more people will come to enjoy VH 3 in time.
Well, while I think it was a good thing that Dweezil finally answers the many comments over here, his email brings nothing new, and I'm sorry but still isn't answering specifics questions like:
1) Fractal presets??
2) Reverse engineering brown sound episodes??
3) Futur episodes?? approx ETA??
This reminds me the techniques of politicians, when you ask a specific question, and their answer is so long, that you don't even remember what you asked, and you're left with your question unanswered...
Oh well, at this point, and as much as I love the content he released and the promise of all these wonderful things, this is not happening.
I give up :-)
Maybe in the next 2 years, I'll be surprised by a Newsletter announcing the above!! who knows!!
Hi Freak6767 -- To tide you over, do check out the most recent Fractal Factory Axe-Fx III/FM9/FM3 Presets "Eruption" and "The Brown Sound" until Dweezil can get to creating some for us (and that will survive the fast firmware updates of the past 6 months). I find theFactory presets still pretty good surrogates -- maybe a just dial the wet back a little for delay and reverb, and they are pretty killer and fun to play.
Big D. Thanks for the update. The "Running with the Dweezil" episodes have been great, and I am certain the remaining episodes will continue with the same content quality level - if not better.
If it was easy everyone would be doing it - even the complainers here (probably because their mom kicked them out of her basement).
Dweezil, thanks so much for the update. I have enjoyed every episode that has been released, and although I may have been frustrated by the delays, I continue to await further content. We know shit happens, and life gets in the way.
Besides as a 50+ year old, life long fan of all things Van Halen, I’m used to long waits between updates/new products. LOL
It is true that I have not been here on the site for a while. I understand how frustrating it is to feel disconnected and unable to have answers to your questions. Within the RWTD community there has been a healthy debate about the status of the podcast and people have voiced their concerns about the podcast being over promised and under delivered.I think that is a fair representation of the situation to a point. I definitely agree that Season 2 has been under delivered in terms of episode frequency and timeliness. That has been the most challenging part of this endeavor because of extenuating circumstances. On the other side of the coin, I do believe that that the episode content has been and will continue to be worthy of the described premise of the show.
I have just written a blog and email to all of the RWTD group which will hopefully answer your questions. I know that there are people in this group who are beyond disappointed with the delays and as I have mentioned I agree that there is validity to that frustration. The episodes have been taking way too long to complete. It's not because I've forgotten about any of you or that there is a commitment to creating the content. Please have a look at the blog or the email you will receive for further understanding of the circumstances that have caused the delays.
Hey Dweezil, im not seeing an email. Have you sent it yet? And i understand life is busy. Curious what the ETA of the Balance episode is? Thanks and love the podcast!
You rock Dweezil! Thanks for everything--looking forward for what's to come! Until then we have all of your fantastic episodes and plenty of the epic music that VH has bestowed upon us over the decades.
Dweezil Z^pp^ has been breaking his word with his fans for years. He over-commits himself, and then makes excuses for it, when he can’t deliver.
It’s not easy being him.
I forgive him. Because, he’s Dweezil Z^pp^. ^nd, he can’t be anybody else. So, give the guy a break. He’s trying really, really, really hard to be a good Dweezil Z^pp^.
Wow!!! TWO episodes in one week? I've died and went to guitar heaven! Listening to it now! Thanks Dweezil!!
Thanks for the new episode Dweezil. To add another layer of light to the long tortured genesis of “Dirty Water Dog” I thought you might enjoy “Twist The Knife” from your buddy Steve Lukather’s early solo album. Ed gave Steve that VH riff/song whilst also lending his own bass playing on it. Also the term “dirty water dog” was coined by little Wolfgang to describe hotdogs at baseball game vendors.
Luke's first solo disc is KILLER! In fact, I was just listening to it a few days ago. Great album!
I totally forgot about that! Thanks for posting. Also, that’s a funny story about the title. I never heard that before.
Baluchitherium was always my favorite song off Balance. When I first heard it, I thought the riff always sounded like the riff from the song Eyes of Love by Trevor Rabin. Years later I remember reading in some guitar magazine an interview with Trevor Rabin where he mentioned that Eddie contacted him to make sure he was ok with the riff sound similar to his song. I wish I could find the article as I thought if I remember correctly, it either sounded like they were friends and Eddie asked before album was released or maybe he tried giving Trevor some credit or $ or something? Too long ago to remember the article exactly, but what I got from the interview was that Eddie was a pretty stand-up guy for the influence/ coincidence of that riff.
Really enjoyed the VH III album episode. It really is a difficult album to listen to and like you Dweezil, I go back every so often and try to talk myself into it! There are a few moments I like but overall I just can't get past the way Gary sounds so forced, like he's singing in the wrong key. I'm a fan of Extreme and I think Gary is a very talented singer, but I think Ed was running the show at that point and perhaps Gary didn't feel comfortable pushing back. A more involved producer may have helped. I do think they sounded good on the VH III tour though and it was nice to hear some of the older material after such a long time. When they played "Josephina" live acoustically it was much better than the album version.
I think Blues made a great point about how in retrospect Dave and Sammy both did an amazing job finding cool melody and lyric ideas around the riffs.
It is such a shame that Ed did the press and was so proud of the record, because when it bombed commercially it clearly affected him for a long time afterwards.
When you discuss ADKOT maybe you can discuss the 2 DLR tracks that they put out on the Best Of? I think they were both excellent tracks, even though (if what I've read is to be believed) it sounds like it was a bit of a chore getting the vocals recorded for those.
Dweezil,
Loved the VH III Episode. I am by no means a fan of the record, but I am a fan of what Ed tried to do. He did something different. I actually liked Neworld and Without You. Even on the first listen there was continuity. I liked that Neworld started off light, and turned dark and foreboding and I thought Without You kicked ass. I had high hopes, but soon found myself rummaging for nuggets. I actually liked his cleaner tone on the record and there were bits and pieces of songs and his playing that I thought were really good. On the whole it was a miss and it seems worse because collectively those guys never missed, let alone whiffed on anything. But to have it treated it like a crime or a joke had to hurt. I don't think it's a coincidence that his darkest period came after III.
For me the real disappointment is that I think by and large the failure and more importantly the response to III is the reason we went so many years without new music. Ed had a vision, took a risk and people threw rocks. Big rocks. If that is the response to taking a risk, why ever experiment or take a risk again? Bring Dave back, re-work some old songs, and jam with Wolf. End of story. If you're Al or Wolf why open up the vaults and let people hear what's in there? Honestly if I were Wolf I wouldn't let anyone near that stuff.
Anyway thank you for the episode. Loved the way it was done live, the quick turnaround was fantastic. Not sure how many more are left, but make it easy on yourself and do them in one take.
Be well,
Scott
I accidentally loaded the wrong file! Sorry about that. The new one is loading right now.
I fixed it!
18
^
Great episode, I certainly share Andy’s love for this record and the right here, right now, live era. It was when I got into Van Halen. I share so many of his thoughts! The ‘glassy tone’ on don’t tell me that reminds him of Slash’s Use Your Illusion tone was a nice observation. Always loved that UYI ‘liquid’ wah-tone and I get what he’s saying. I’m happy he called out the solo to ‘Can’t stop loving you’, which has always been one of my favorites – completely out of character, indeed almost session player like. I was really surprised to hear Andy bringing up Extreme’s Play With Me…that’s always been the song I compare Big Fat Money to as well, together with ‘We didn’t start the fire’ by Billy Joel (I’ve even got those three programmed together on a playlist), much more so than the Led Zep one. I also share his view on the solo-record thing…’aren’t they all’? His take on the Aftershock/Enter Sandman comparison also hits home to me…I see quite a few people saying he ripped off that riff, but to me it never really sounded alike, probably for that ‘meandering, wobbly sitting in the pocket’ reason Andy gives. I also like the observation that the band had matured gracefully. They had pretty much reinvented themselves (again) at this point, and the fiery maturity during these few years was amazing (also just listen to those 2 new Roth tracks in '96...)
Anyhow, too many nuggets on this album to mention, and I really enjoyed the listen.
One question for Dweezil: you mention that parts of the Big Fat Money solo are patterns he uses elsewhere on the Wild Life soundtrack. I’d be curious to hear what parts you mean, since it doesn’t really sound pattern based to me, and it seems to fit the weird rhythm playing behind it very well. It’s another one of my favorite solo’s of his, again very atypical. If you’re doing a Wild Life episode, please link back to this observation!
Really enjoying the Balance Ep! The discussion of Big Fat Money is fun and there are so many references in that tune. The piano isn't the only connection to A Apolitical Blues, the first vocal line and overall feel are a pretty direct nod to Little Feat's Teenage Nervous Breakdown. 70s Little Feat rules and probably one of the swinging-est bands around. Wonder if all of VH were into them or if it was a Sammy thing?
Another excellent episode, Balance is still one of my favourite Van Hagar albums. I don't think Bruce would have contributed the arrangement ideas such as a Beatles part or Led Zep vibe though, I think that was just coming from Ed and Al, and Sammy too in his vocal delivery. I think Ed allowed his influences to come out more prominently at this time and then even more so on VH III, with nods to everything from the blues to Peter Gabriel. Apparently 'Strung Out' was taken from hours of a recording where Ed destroyed a rather expensive piano! I saw an interview around that time and Ed said that 'Baluchitherium' was supposed to be a vocal track, but Sammy couldn't come up with lyrics for it?
Dweezil: GREAT episode!!! Another home run. The part of Andy playing the intro to " Cliffs Of Dover " in the wet-dry-wet configuration almost made me collide with another car while listening to the show ( haha )! Question: Has interviewing these guests inspired you to ask them to contribute to your " What The Hell Was I Thinking " project ( keep in mind I'm asking this being unaware of your current work load status )? All the best-DMC
Awesome. New episode has arrived! I'll be checking it out today on my routes. Andy is someone fairly new to me ( I've caught a couple of his You Tube shows in the past-Great player ). Thanks Dweezil!
Great episode with Andy Wood. Dweezil, I can say VH III really did make me dive into Van Halen more. I had heard other albums for all the songs that made it to the pop charts, but that spring of 98 I was invested. Seeing the concert 3 times that summer with Gary was one of my favorites because the concert spanned all three eras. Loved Gary in the band. I think I was drawn to this album more because so many people just wrote it off. While it isn't my favorite album at the moment, it does circulate through my rotation frequently. I think I like the album more and more because of the hate for it. In my opinion, a true Edward Van Halen listens to that album and notes what he was trying to accomplish. Knowing what we know now about his bouts with depression and the vulnerability of his mind makes it all the more special to me because Gary was able to encourage him to sing. Encourage him to just play and let the sound be raw.
Love this series so much.
Chris
I agree, Chris! I loved the show with Gary. We got to hear more songs from all three eras. Your opinion on the album resonates with me. It may not be my favourite, but every now and then, I've got to listen for what they did accomplish.
I too saw Gary with VH on their 3 tour and really enjoyed it. But, it wasn't until I bought the VH 3 guitar tab book that made realize that Ed was a layering genius, especially on tunes like " From Afar " as well as " Fire In The Hole. " I believe that more people will come to enjoy VH 3 in time.
Well, while I think it was a good thing that Dweezil finally answers the many comments over here, his email brings nothing new, and I'm sorry but still isn't answering specifics questions like:
1) Fractal presets??
2) Reverse engineering brown sound episodes??
3) Futur episodes?? approx ETA??
This reminds me the techniques of politicians, when you ask a specific question, and their answer is so long, that you don't even remember what you asked, and you're left with your question unanswered...
Oh well, at this point, and as much as I love the content he released and the promise of all these wonderful things, this is not happening.
I give up :-)
Maybe in the next 2 years, I'll be surprised by a Newsletter announcing the above!! who knows!!
Hi Freak6767 -- To tide you over, do check out the most recent Fractal Factory Axe-Fx III/FM9/FM3 Presets "Eruption" and "The Brown Sound" until Dweezil can get to creating some for us (and that will survive the fast firmware updates of the past 6 months). I find theFactory presets still pretty good surrogates -- maybe a just dial the wet back a little for delay and reverb, and they are pretty killer and fun to play.
Big D. Thanks for the update. The "Running with the Dweezil" episodes have been great, and I am certain the remaining episodes will continue with the same content quality level - if not better.
If it was easy everyone would be doing it - even the complainers here (probably because their mom kicked them out of her basement).
Dweezil, thanks so much for the update. I have enjoyed every episode that has been released, and although I may have been frustrated by the delays, I continue to await further content.
We know shit happens, and life gets in the way.
Besides as a 50+ year old, life long fan of all things Van Halen, I’m used to long waits between updates/new products. LOL
Wow-I paid $3. per episode for stuff I would have given my left nut for when I was 10.
Epic content !
If I never hear another second of interviews, what I have heard confirmed the genius of Ed
Thank you Dweezil!!
Hello Everyone,
It is true that I have not been here on the site for a while. I understand how frustrating it is to feel disconnected and unable to have answers to your questions. Within the RWTD community there has been a healthy debate about the status of the podcast and people have voiced their concerns about the podcast being over promised and under delivered.I think that is a fair representation of the situation to a point. I definitely agree that Season 2 has been under delivered in terms of episode frequency and timeliness. That has been the most challenging part of this endeavor because of extenuating circumstances. On the other side of the coin, I do believe that that the episode content has been and will continue to be worthy of the described premise of the show.
I have just written a blog and email to all of the RWTD group which will hopefully answer your questions. I know that there are people in this group who are beyond disappointed with the delays and as I have mentioned I agree that there is validity to that frustration. The episodes have been taking way too long to complete. It's not because I've forgotten about any of you or that there is a commitment to creating the content. Please have a look at the blog or the email you will receive for further understanding of the circumstances that have caused the delays.
DZ
^
Hey Dweezil, im not seeing an email. Have you sent it yet? And i understand life is busy. Curious what the ETA of the Balance episode is? Thanks and love the podcast!
You rock Dweezil! Thanks for everything--looking forward for what's to come! Until then we have all of your fantastic episodes and plenty of the epic music that VH has bestowed upon us over the decades.
Dweezil Z^pp^ has been breaking his word with his fans for years. He over-commits himself, and then makes excuses for it, when he can’t deliver.
It’s not easy being him.
I forgive him. Because, he’s Dweezil Z^pp^. ^nd, he can’t be anybody else. So, give the guy a break. He’s trying really, really, really hard to be a good Dweezil Z^pp^.
^
I paid over 50$ and was overpromised and underdelivered. This website is a mess. Where are all of these cool presets?