Van Halen’s David Lee Roth References Sammy Hagar in Bizarre Illustration
David Lee Roth makes multiple references to his rival Van Halen frontman, Sammy Hagar, in the latest visual art piece from the often cryptic "Diamond Dave." But what does it mean?
Roth revealed the illustration on Monday (Nov. 30), and the cartoonish drawing appears under the banner of the fictional newspaper The Daily Catastrophe. The newsy-style presentation is a framework the most recent Van Halen singer frequently uses to flaunt his various, and sometimes bizarre, depictions.
See it down toward the bottom of this post.
In the sketch that Roth accompanies with his usual #SoggyBottom hashtag, a figure pilots an aircraft over what look to be geographic landforms. But it's the artsy musician's puzzling insets of text — placed among the illustration in the style of newspaper comic — that undoubtedly point to Hagar.
The labels among the drawing read, "Concrete Flowers for Sam," "Sam the Man Not Only Will Be Giving His Life for Rock and Roll, But Plans to Be Buried in His Recently Acquired Jet!," "Red Rocker Refuses to Fly 55 in Afterlife" and "Soggy Kudos to the Bottom's Favorite Front-Guy for Planning Ahead."
The artwork is obviously not the usual type of drawing Roth issues on social media — the singer's Instagram and Twitter feeds are filled with his Daily Catastrophe paintings. Even fan site Van Halen News Desk picked up on the particularly strange nature of the musician's latest illustration.
Clearly, Hagar's 1984 hit "I Can't Drive 55" is being referenced in the Roth cartoon. Also a point of focus in the drawing is Hagar's ownership of a private jet, a fact that was outlined by Forbes back in 2017.
But why is Roth alluding to an afterworld to be visited by Hagar, in addition to other implications about being "buried" and "planning ahead" for death?
Both musicians fronted Van Halen at various points of their career. Bandleader and guitarist Eddie Van Halen died in October at the age of 65 after a battle with cancer, and his son — Van Halen bassist Wolfgang Van Halen — has now ventured out on his own with Mammoth WVH.
Last month, Roth launched a dystopian online comic book called The Roth Project.
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