I recently purchased a copy of DLR's, ALAE. I love this album. Tell the truth and Drop in the Bucket are now two of my favorite songs. Also Shoot It and Baby's on Fire are kick ass songs as well. Its showtime reminds me in a way of hot for teacher because of the drums and the guitar and the other two songs that made it on his greatest hits(ALAE and Sensible shoes) are great as well. I was just wondering what anyone else thought of this album since it is rarely ever discussed.

IMO, it is Dave's best solo effort. Brilliant guitar work, but even more important, the songwriting and producing were excellent. Some of my favorite tracks are the most obscure on the album -- "Tell the Truth" and "It's Showtime" come to mind. I wish Dave would do something like this again.

LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!!!! bought it on the day of its release (same day the Gulf War broke out incidently) and I saw him in Dublin on the tour - so that album has great memories for me.

But it being discontinued, and never getting its Platinum award have left a very basd taste in my mouth - W.B all I can say is WHY!!!

I think it's his best one as well. I think this is the last album where his voice sounded really good. I guess it was just released to changing times, and was kinda doomed from the start. I really wonder what would have happened had Jason Becker not gotten ill. That seemed to be the catalyst for Dave's downfall.

I know that I am in a minority here, but I think this is DLR's weakest album. The production and musicians are excellent, but the album sounds like a rehash of old Van Halen. There's some good stuff on here, but I think the disc is self-indulgent mediocrity. However, I love Your Filthy Little Mouth. I think that album is far more interesting and original, with catchier songs.

ALAE is easily Dave's best. The songs are the strongest of his solo career, and the production is top notch. Dave put his all into that album, and it shows.

After the disappointing Skyscraper, Dave did something he rarely does: he listened. The production on Skyscraper was overdone by Dave, so Dave got a great producer. The songs were somewhat lackluster, so Dave got a great songwriting team. Put that together with an awsome guitarist and a voice in top form, and you've got one hell'uva album!

Dave gave his best efforts in ALAE, and when it failed commercially it broke his spirit. He's never let his talents guide him again, and has never let anyone second guess him. Because of that we got such downhill slides as YFLM and DLR Band.

I would have to disagree w/ most of the posts on this. It is a must have and it offers one of Dave's best album covers. However,"Shoot It" is weak. "Last Call" sound like a "Walk this Way" ripoff. "Lady Luck" and "Tell the Truth" are the best moments here. I would put it fourth behind EAS, DLR Band, and YFLM.

I thought he overdid his screams on this one, tried extending himself a bit too much (title track, end of Lady Luck). Get rid of ALAE & Dogtown Shuffle, (and Brett Tuggle's keyboards & songwriting)and it's a very good album.

There probably shoulda been a few more from here on "The Best"

What I don't understand is why Skyscraper gets such a bad wrap. I think Sky was somewhat ahead of its time. The title track and Damn Good are like a limp dick, you just can't beat it.

I don't like the general sound of Skyscraper, and Via's guitar started to branch out into a style that I don't really think meshes with Dave's. I think a lot of the songs are good, but somehow that doesn't translate into a good album for me.

There's nothin' wrong with that MikeL. When I look back on it now, it almost seems like a concept album but it followed EAS, and it took a lot of balls to follow up a hard rocking album w/ a keyboard dominate album which was pretty out there but in a cool way. The tour with the boxing ring and the surf board was the best I have ever seen.

Some really great guitar on this album. Dave really put the pedal down with this rock album. Tour was interesting with Extreme and Cinderella opening for him.

Originally posted by MikeL:
Dave put his all into that album, and it shows.

Dave gave his best efforts in ALAE, and when it failed commercially it broke his spirit.Very true - he never fully recovered, he just didn't 'fit in' with the '90's crowd. And the thinning hair definitly didn't help - grunge fans saw him as an aging has-been - Very Sad!!!! - and the likes of aerosmith, bon jovi and even my other Hero Ozzy carry on by selling out with song-doctors, and they are seen as survivors and are looked up to and respected, whilst Roth has become a joke - who would have predicted that in 1984???? - I tKILLS me to ahve seen that happen to Dave.

I'm a big Mike Tyson fan too - all my hero's are being swept away.

Originally posted by Master Joe:
and the likes of aerosmith, bon jovi and even my other Hero Ozzy carry on by selling out with song-doctors, and they are seen as survivors and are looked up to and respected, whilst Roth has become a jokeI think the group of people Dave worked with on ALAE were song doctors. Not well known ones, but people who's only purpose was to come in and write with Dave. If ALAE had been as successful as it had a right to be, I think Dave would've followed it up in ways similar to Ozzy and Aerosmith. Dave doesn't often mess with success when he finds it.

Originally posted by MikeL:
[QUOTE]I think the group of people Dave worked with on ALAE were song doctors.Well, yes and no - they certainly weren't Desmond Child!!! - Robbie Nevil - a one hit wonder with a song called "Ces't La Vie" (the VH encyclopedia thinks its the Robbie Neville of the 'Neville Bros'!!!!!), Graig Goldy - Dio guitarist, Preston Sturges - was a former marine according to Dave, and thats about it I think - the rest is all Brett Tuggle, Steve Hunter and Dave - and a co-credit to Rocket Richotte (Vai's initial replacement). Eric Lowen and Denis Morgan feature too (I've just checked the inlay card).

But I think these guys are friends of Dave first and foremost - and they jammed together, worked on some ideas - they weren't specifically hired to sit down and write w/DLR - I don't think W.B. hired them.

Now on DLR Band - there is what I would call a song-doctor - Bob Marlette - and I hope Roth works with him on his next album, which kinda contradicts what I'm saying all along - but to me, DLR Band is one amazing cd, and whatever Marlette brought to the table - it certainly worked.

DLR Bands next CD just needs a better mixdown and less straining from Dave. I think Dave needs to adjust his style to his vocal capacity. Maybe he hadn't reached the high notes in a while and was very out of practice. At that point, I wouldn't have pushed it...unless I thought it was going to get me back in VH. Dave had some real gems on that and has definitely proven whether ALAE or DLR Band, that he can write just as good a VH song as they can...if not better. Examples: Drop in the Bucket, Slam Dunk,It's Showtime, Little Texas. By the way, DLR band came out, what, like 99 and VHIII was out a year earlier or so? Dave definitely did a better CD!!

DLR Band came out in June '98 - and I'm sure VH3 was out early '98.

In Europe the album is only available as an import - so I knew absolutely nothing about it being released Now I am hard-core solo Roth fan, I know EVERYTHING. I read in a mag that it would be called "They never thought it could happen" - or something very similar. Then one day, reading another mag, saw an ad for the album, and it read "contains the smash hit sinles 'Slam Dunk' and 'King of the Hill' - I was STUNNED!!!!! not only was there a new DLR album out, but it had two hit songs.

And I bought the cd, and I've adored it ever since.