The timing of David Lee Roth’s actual departure from Van Halen has always been a bit murky. It’s likely that it happened behind the scenes some time before it was actually announced to the world in 1985.
But before that happened, Roth made it clear that he had his own musical ambitions apart from the band. A surprising EP released in 1985 proved that he didn’t need the VH brand behind him to make a splash.
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DLR vs. EVH
On September 2, 1984, Van Halen closed out a jaunt of nearly eight months of shows in support of their 1984 album with a spot in the Monsters of Rock festival in West Germany. With the massive crossover success of the album only bolstered by the lucrative tour, they walked away from that show with a solid claim to the title of biggest band in the world.
But behind the scenes, tensions had reached a boiling point between guitarist Eddie Van Halen and lead singer David Lee Roth. On top of the fact that they sported wildly different personalities, the two men clashed on the artistic direction of the band, future tours, and whether they should be doing anything musically outside their Van Halen output.
By all accounts, Van Halen was still intact as the tour closed. Nonetheless, Roth jumped at the opportunity to record solo stuff once the band activity ceased. What he did with that opportunity was a surprise to even the most ardent VH supporters.
‘Heat’ Check
One bone of contention between Roth and Eddie Van Halen was the latter’s reluctance to include cover material on the band’s albums. Perhaps it’s telling then that Roth’s first musical foray outside Van Halen consisted of nothing but cover songs.
He hastily assembled some top musicians to throw together four songs for an EP entitled Crazy From The Heat. Roth later explained that most LPs contain only a handful of good songs and a bunch of filler, which is why he chose to keep things brief.
Crazy From The Heat arrived in early 1985 and quickly earned massive success via a pair of singles. “California Girls”, with backing vocals from Christopher Cross and Beach Boy Carl Wilson, soared to No. 3. Roth then went back to the 50s, faithfully covering Louis Prima’s “Just A Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody” medley to the tune of a No. 12 hit.
The Bitter End
Roth was seemingly everywhere in 1985 with these songs, dominating both radio and, with a pair of ornate videos, MTV. In interviews promoting the record, he made subtle hints at the fact that he always envisioned a solo career at some point. But for a while at least, he stuck to the story that he and Van Halen would go right back to business following this little side gig.
Allegedly, that was the intent. But when Roth and Eddie Van Halen met to plan what was next for the band, the old fissures became a yawning chasm. The story goes that Roth told the band then and there that he was moving on, giving everyone in the band farewell hugs in an effort to depart amicably.
By the time the story hit the news, things got nasty between the camps. Eddie Van Halen spoke out to say that the final straw had been when Roth asked Eddie to compose music for a movie that Roth was planning on making. (That movie never happened when Roth’s deal with the studio fell apart.)
The split added unintended context to Crazy From The Heat. It was originally supposed to be just a quick detour off the beaten path. But it ended up being the first steps in David Lee Roth’s solo career.
(Photo by Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images)