opinion from Bill Simmons, ESPN

**faeriellen** · 06.26.06, 10:27 AM

famous You Tube moments

4. The Tonight Show
David Lee Roth sings a bluegrass version of "Jump" ... or as I like to call it, "the official death of the '80s." Unfortunately this clip was pulled from YouTube right before we posted this column. Maybe that was for the best. Until it goes back up, we'll have to replace it with Van Halen's original "Jump" video that has aged so nicely -- most notably, Eddie's uncomfortable, possibly chemically altered grin and the over-the-top antics of bass player Michael Anthony, who rates right ahead of Jack Haley and right behind the guy who plays Turtle in "Entourage" on the I'm-Just-Happy-To-Be-Here-Getting-A-Paycheck Scale. Can't you picture him sitting in a trailer right now and trying to convince some 16-year-old girl that he used to be in Van Halen?

link to the whole article

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...e=bill_simmons

**ZORBA5150** · 06.26.06, 11:50 AM

That's pretty funny about Michael Anthony- I kind of agree with those statements about him to some degree. Most people here would have a heart attack after reading those comments, and may even try to sue Bill Simmons, because he' so anti-"Mikey".

**Model Citizen** · 06.26.06, 03:07 PM

Shoot..Replace Mike in VH and you'll see just how much he added to the equation. Vocally and musically.

**Foamfoot** · 06.26.06, 03:19 PM

Originally Posted by faeriellen

Can't you picture him sitting in a trailer right now and trying to convince some 16-year-old girl that he used to be in Van Halen?

link to the whole article

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2...e=bill_simmons

Did the writer steal this line from an epsidoe of Beavis and Butthead?!??!?!

**Pacfanweb** · 06.27.06, 08:21 PM

Originally Posted by bottagetta

Shoot..Replace Mike in VH and you'll see just how much he added to the equation. Vocally and musically.

Vocally for sure, musically, I don't think he added one thing. There are thousands of bass players who could have done the exact same thing Mike did on the bass....which is, exactly what Eddie said.

Besides, who cares about the bass player or the drummer anyway, unless you're going to see Primus or Mr. Big. Then, you are definitely going to see the bass player.
Any other band, it doesn't matter.
I remember a few years back, Motley Crue toured without Tommy Lee. They had the drummer chick from Hole on the kit.
They sounded just like Tommy never left. No difference. I'm sure some Crue fans cared, but not because it hurt the music....only because they wanted to see the original drummer, the original personality.

Roth had it exactly right on his radio show when he said that you could change the drummer or bass player and musically nobody would care or notice.