# David Lee Roth

David Lee Roth (born October 10, 1954, Bloomington, Indiana), often referred to as "Diamond Dave", is an American rock vocalist, songwriter, actor, author, and former radio personality, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of Van Halen. In addition to his work with Van Halen, Roth is a successful solo artist and has released several platinum and gold solo albums. Roth rejoined Van Halen in 2007 for a North American tour that was the highest grossing tour in the band's history.

## Sourced

* I think that there is a whole lot turning upside down at rock radio -- not -- excuse me, talk radio particularly. Radio as we know it is pretty much changing completely. You know, the diversity of the taste of the folks that are watching the show right now is way more than what is available in the little Motorola in your car today. And where are the new personalities? Where is the new Stern, somebody who has that much impact? Where is the new.
** Neil Cavuto (June 16, 2006) "Interview with David Lee Roth", Share Your World With Neil Cavuto, Fox News Network.
* Maybe I'm like acts of Congress or your favorite chinese restaurant -- you don't really want to know what's going on behind the door. I'm a real study in contrast, I expect, looking from without. But it adds up to what you get on stage.
** Nicole Keiper (June 7, 2006) "David Lee Roth covers himself on bluegrass tribute ", The Tennessean, p. 1D.
* Nine times out of 10 when people do a tribute album or tribute songs for somebody, it's what I call 'white boys playing reggae'. They know they can't, we know they can't, so they sing like they can't and play like they can't. They gently make fun of the idiom or sing in a false accent.
** John Gerome (June 5, 2006) "Roth still 'Runnin' with the Devil' on bluegrass tribute", Associated Press.
* For the last 30 years, I've been leading a life of crime and international intrigue that's involved 40 stamps in my passport, love affairs, and broken hearts to go with each one of them. You would have to live three lifetimes to catch up with just the allegations that follow me!
** Jay Lustig (January 1, 2006) "Diamond Dave hits the airwaves", The Star-Ledger, p. 1.
* What I do is dangerous for sponsors, dangerous for editors. But I'm really a radio kid. I grew up on radio, not TV. Ultimately, I'll probably do radio.
** Chuck Darrow (May 30, 2003) "'Diamond Dave' rehashes old tunes to new beats", Courier-Post, p. 22S.
* "It's not about money right now. My ambition is to further create a signature sound, a signature spirit, that makes some kind of contribution to music in general.
** David Barton (July 3, 1994) "Jumping at the Chance - With His Newest Album, David Lee Roth Rocks, Rolls and Moves On", Sacramento Bee, p. EN3.
* I change as the times change. I'm a reflection of what's around me without trying at all.
** Michael Saunders (March 18, 1994) "The reemergence of David Lee Roth", The Boston Globe, Section: Arts & Film, p. 75.
* I believe more and more that this business is about people. People, people. The idea is to make friends at the retail level, the warehouse level, let people see you exist, can form sentences and have an interest in something other than yourself.
** Jim White (February 17, 1994) "POP / Hi, I'm Dave - lovely to see you: Last week, David Lee Roth went to Wembley to promote his new album - not at the stadium but at the distribution factory, saying hello to the packers and the pressers, 'making friends at the retail level'. Jim White jumped into the limo to discover where people fit in with 'this rock'n'roll thing'" The Independent, p. 27.
* Somebody asked me the question not too long ago: 'Dave, do you think the music business has turned corrupt'. I said: 'Absolutely not - it has always been corrupt.
** Brett Thomas (October 16, 1988) "Roth 'N' Roll: Flashy - But David's A Shrewd Businessman", The Sun-Herald, Section: News and Features, p. 25.
* You can really bring so much more to rock'n'roll. Rock'n'roll is the most accepting, is the most fertile ground for creating hybrid forms of music and hybrid forms of show, if you draw from many, many different wells. It's just unfortunate so many rock'n'roll stars only bother to learn how to play like Led Zeppelin and/or the Rolling Stones and that's what you get, disc after disc and show after show."
** Patrick McDonald (October 13, 1988) "David Lee Roth: Outrageous or normal?", The Advertiser.
* Fun is the pivotal point of our existence. Fun is what the United States is based on. The thing is, when you are working all night in the studio, is it possible to have fun?
** Iain Blair (August/September, 1986) "The Meaning of Life: If anyone knows, it's Diamond Dave Lee Roth", Rock Express (Canada).

## Attributed

* I'm not conceited. Conceit is a fault, and I have no faults.
** Susie Shellenberger (2005) The One Year Devos for Teens 2, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., ISBN 1414301812, p. 357.

## External links

* David Lee Roth on IMDb