David Lee Roth’s first full-length album after leaving Van Halen, Eat ‘Em And Smile, reaches its 40th anniversary this week, marking a pivotal chapter in one of rock’s most scrutinised departures.
by Paul Cashmere
Forty years after its release on 7 July 1986, David Lee Roth’s Eat ‘Em And Smile remains one of the defining statements of his solo career, arriving just one year after his departure from Van Halen and at a time when both Roth and his former band were under intense public scrutiny.
Released following the success of Roth’s 1985 EP Crazy From The Heat, the album was his first attempt to establish a full artistic identity outside Van Halen. It became a commercial success, peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 and eventually earning platinum certification in the United States with sales exceeding one million copies. In Australia, the album reached No. 26 on the Kent Music Report chart.
The album also introduced a formidable new line-up. Roth assembled bassist Billy Sheehan, drummer Gregg Bissonette and guitarist Steve Vai, whose previous work included stints with Frank Zappa, Public Image Ltd and Alcatrazz. The combination of Roth’s theatrical frontmanship and the technical prowess of his musicians gave Eat ‘Em And Smile a distinctive identity that separated it from both Van Halen’s catalogue and the lounge-pop direction of Crazy From The Heat.
Several songs became staples of MTV and American rock radio. The lead single, Yankee Rose, climbed into the Billboard Top 20 and became the album’s signature track. Goin’ Crazy!, originally intended as the theme song for an unrealised Crazy From The Heat feature film, also entered the Billboard Hot 100.
The album balanced original material with eclectic cover choices. Roth revisited his affinity for standards with versions of That’s Life and I’m Easy, while also recording Tobacco Road and including Shyboy, a composition brought into the project by Sheehan from his former band Talas. Most of the remaining songs were written by Roth and Vai.
The musicianship became one of the album’s defining characteristics. Vai and Sheehan frequently performed intricate, tightly synchronised guitar and bass passages on tracks including Shyboy and Elephant Gun. For many listeners, the record served as an introduction to Vai as a mainstream rock guitarist and positioned him in the unenviable role of following Eddie Van Halen in Roth’s career.
The album also spawned an unusual companion release. Sonrisa Salvaje, a Spanish language version of Eat ‘Em And Smile, featured Roth re-recording his vocals with the assistance of a language tutor. The project reportedly stemmed from Sheehan’s idea after reading demographic reports about the Mexican market. The experiment, however, found only limited success and future Spanish language versions of Roth releases were abandoned.
Eat ‘Em And Smile arrived during one of rock’s most discussed transitions. Van Halen had continued with Sammy Hagar and released 5150 earlier in 1986, prompting inevitable comparisons between the two camps. Critics frequently contrasted Roth’s flamboyant, guitar-driven approach with Van Halen’s more synthesiser-oriented direction.
The record was well received critically and commercially. Kerrang! named Eat ‘Em And Smile its Album of the Year for 1986, and retrospective assessments have continued to place the record among the strongest releases associated with any member of the Van Halen family tree.
Its influence also extended to the stage. The subsequent tour earned acclaim for its mix of new material and Van Halen classics, as well as the instrumental showcase provided by Vai and Sheehan. Interest in the album has remained strong enough that an attempted 30th anniversary reunion performance in 2015 attracted overwhelming demand and was ultimately shut down by fire authorities because of capacity concerns.
Four decades on, Eat ‘Em And Smile stands as more than a successful debut album. It captured David Lee Roth at a critical crossroads, proving that one of rock’s most recognisable frontmen could build a new identity beyond the band that made him famous and assemble a group of musicians capable of creating one of the most celebrated hard rock records of the 1980s.
Track Listing
Yankee Rose
Shyboy
I’m Easy
Ladies’ Nite In Buffalo?
Goin’ Crazy!
Tobacco Road
Elephant Gun
Big Trouble
Bump And Grind
That’s Life
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