Van Halen Poll

Which singer do you prefer for VH—Diamond Dave or the Red Rocker? Or do you like them equally? 

(Or are you a Cherone guy, you poor soul?)

For me, I got into VH in high school when I heard Best of Vol. 1. So I heard both Sammy and Dave at essentially the same time and I loved them both. Still do. 

Cherone is super talented, and I dig Extreme, but VH III needed a lot more work to be up to snuff.

Anyone, I’m going with both Dave and Sammy. 

NOTE: this is not about if you enjoy both or all, but who’s your favorite. I truly can’t choose between DLR and SH.

Both for me

I like both fairly evenly though my favorite VH song is with Sammy.

Black Rider wrote:I like both fairly evenly though my favorite VH song is with Sammy.

And that is????

Same for me, actually. My favorite VH song is 5150. My favorite with DLR is Unchained.

Poundcake, duh.
Actually it's Seventh Seal.

Roth by a mile!

Although Sammy did have some good tunes with VH. 

It just was a lot more wild with DLR. Not to mention the music and riffs were better in the Roth years.

I like all 3 (VHIII is underrated - fight me!), but I prefer the Roth years.

First time I heard VH was their cover of "Pretty Woman" at a talent show and I was dumbstruck as a small lad.  I knew that was not the original Roy Orbison because this song rocked and the guitar tone was sweet and crunchy.  This was going to be my generation's music and there was no looking back after that.

I heard Jump later on a few years later and I didn't connect that they were the same band.  Eventually I started putting the pieces together and figured out who that band was that I heard at the talent show that impressed me so much.

That being said Sammy eventually took over, I heard a few songs on the radio like Dreams.  Took a chance on the 5150 album and it became my high school summer album.  Later I dug out all the old Dave stuff which was decidedly heavier, raw, and guitar heaven.  I fell in love with guitar players like Eddie.

Thus I prefer the Roth years, but Sammy Hagar is still the Voice of America.  It wasn't Sammy's fault that the band sided with more the Top 40 side of things, that was the Van Halen brother's decision and the direction they were already heading.  They still made great music and did fill the albums with rockers if you wanted to dig for it.

Both Sammy and Dave for me!

Sammy was the better singer by far, but Dave was the better showman.

Superjuice wrote:First time I heard VH was their cover of "Pretty Woman" at a talent show and I was dumbstruck as a small lad.  I knew that was not the original Roy Orbison because this song rocked and the guitar tone was sweet and crunchy.  This was going to be my generation's music and there was no looking back after that.

I heard Jump later on a few years later and I didn't connect that they were the same band.  Eventually I started putting the pieces together and figured out who that band was that I heard at the talent show that impressed me so much.

This was almost exactly my experience as well. Only difference is my first time hearing VH's Pretty Woman was the weird video (they were all weird back then) on MTV in 1982.

Then I heard Jump in 1984 and my uncle gave me the 1984 album on cassette later that year.

Both DLR and Sammy for me. I concur with many of y’all’s comments and had similar experiences as a teenager.

I really like both. But voted DLR as I was there when their debut album came out and it took the hard rockers by storm

I absolutely love everything Sammy has been a part of

But DLR's Van Halen was first. Those first 4 VH albums!!!!

Hagar is the best rock singer of all-time.

I’m loving the Hagar love in this thread.

I saw VH with Gary Cherone and it was a great show.

That said, no one could beat DLR in this band.

Cherone is a great singer and he was willing to sing songs from the different eras. It's just that III needed a lot more work to be good. (Sorry, Magnus).

I saw VH with Sammy in 2004. While Eddie was a mess for part of that tour, I quite enjoyed the show I saw and Sammy was awesome. Sammy was also willing to sing more Roth tunes than he was back in the 80s and 90s. 

I saw them again in 2015 with DLR. Eddie was firing on all cylinders, but Roth was absolutely awful. It's a shame, too, because the setlist was nigh unimpeachable. 

Since then I've seen other shows on YouTube. It seems to me that DLR's performance took a nosedive towards the end of his first era with the band. (He was much improved on the Eat 'Em & Smile clips I've seen, though). Sammy was pretty much always top-notch. And Gary did a great job, as well. 

I would actually take most of Hagar's performances, including back in the day—again from what I've been able find—over Roth's because Hagar can simply bring it vocally. 

But while I love both eras equally, I agree that there's some special chemistry with Roth on those first 4 albums.

I’m happy I went to see VH once in 2012. Especially now that the band is done and EVH is gone…

DLR was struggling with the vocals, but he has always been more about the theatrical aspect and showmanship. I also was disappointed that Michael Anthony wasn’t involved. But overall, it was a nice experience.

This is the show I attended. 

I went with both.  But in all honesty it feels like two very different bands.  The DLR era was like the party band, and the Hagar era was like the radio rock kind of band.