David Lee Roth Looks Back At Van Halen's Club Days

Bruce Henne | 02-05-2023

(hennemusic) David Lee Roth recounts stories from Van Halen's club days in the latest episode of The Roth Show. The rocker shares multiple tales from the band's days on the southern California club circuit in the mid-1970s, just two years before they would sign with Warner Brothers and issue their self-titled debut album in 1978.

"It was 1975, we were at the top of our game," says Roth. "'All In The Family' was the television show; the 'Thrilla In Manilla'; and Van Halen at our peak, and we were singing our asses off."

Roth talks about traveling back and forth to club dates while having to load-in and load-out their own gear, their weekly schedule - which included two days of vocal practice - and the band's insatiable drive to succeed, while seeing their friends move on to seemingly more stable futures.

"We lived with terror of the unforeseen finish," he recalls, "we watched all of our friends go to college, join the military, start traveling...get their lives started - and we spent five and a half years wondering 'are we really gonna dance the night away?'"

Get more details and stream the latest episode of The Roth Show here.