Just in case your vinyl/CD copy of Crazy From The Heat is trashed, DLR is packaging that entire EP with a collection of his favorites from later efforts into a Greatest Hits CD/DVD package, set for release on November 19th.

As far as the order of the songs, supposedly Dave himself has, and I quote from the promo copy on VanHalenStore.com;

"...personally selected and sequenced the newly mastered songs and the videos for this special collection. If you are looking for the perfect hard rock party for your eyes and ears this holiday season, your search is over!"

The truth is, you may have forgotten some of the pretty damn decent party songs Diamond Dave ripped out in the late 80's to early 90's, and this collection gives you MOST of his best songs in one neat remastered package. It will also include all the videos he's made for his singles, and all the MTV special DaveTV interviews. Roth is/was well known for his outrageous and sometimes mystifying video creations. His videos were frequently more like a campy TV variety show from the 70's, than a song performance. The package includes the complete EP Crazy from the Heat, as well as selections from his four follow-up albums.

Many VH die-hards were somewhat shocked at the Crazy from the Heat EP that he dropped in 1985. It contains four songs, all covers of older tunes from the 50's and 60's. Most notable was California Girls, a cover of the Beach Boy's classic, that featured original Beach Boy Carl Wilson and Christopher Cross on backing vocals. The song was a massive MTV hit, as was the other single, the Louie Prima medley I'm Just A Gigolo/I Ain't Got Nobody. To be fair all 14 minutes or so of the EP are pretty good, just not what Van Halen fans were expecting. It suddenly became clear as to why the band kicked him out after 1984 was released.

However, he came back with a vengeance and ramped up his rock sound with the release of Eat 'Em And Smile a year later. The album featured a barrage of killer rock musicians, including one of Frank Zappa's guitar apprentices, Steve Vai. Yankee Rose and another cover, The Nashville Teens' Tobacco Road returned our faith that Dave could still tear it up. Both are included in this repackaging.

He gained steam with his next solo release, Skyscraper, even though it spawned only one radio hit; Just Like Paradise. It turned out to be his biggest hit since the VH years and second only to California Girls. The effort also contains what I believe is his best solo song to date; Damn Good. It wasn't a rocker or party song or even a cover. It was a mellow acoustic-based song that showcased the songwriting/singing talent he and Steve Vai had developed. Sadly that song has been overlooked by Dave and wasn't included on the forthcoming compilation. Unfortunately, I can't seem to dig up a live version or even an MTV packaged version of the tune, despite it's #1 position on the Rock Charts at the time. But really, the song stands on it's own without all of DLR's well-documented bluster as you can see/hear below.

Full Track List for David Lee Roth's Greatest Hits - available November 19th

CD:
1. California Girls
2. Just A Gigolo
3. Easy Street
4. Coconut Grove
5. Just Like Paradise
6. A Little Luck
7. I’m Easy
8. Tobacco Road
9. Goin’ Crazy
10. Yankee Rose
11. A Lil’ Ain’t Enough
12. Sensible Shoes
13. Hey, You Never Know
14. Hot Dog And A Shake
15. Land’s Edge
16. No Big “Ting

DVD

1. Just A Gigolo
2. California Girls
3. Yankee Rose
4. Goin’ Crazy
5. Sensible Shoes
6. A Lil’ Ain’t Enough
7. The Nightlife
8. Goin’ Crazy (Spanish)
9. Tell The Truth
(Plus the Dave TV Interviews)

Special thanks to Shannon Knight for the heads up on this release.

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