Alex Van Halen: The (songs are) actually written in two pieces; first the music by itself. If it holds up as a song, then you have a damn good basis to put lyrics over. Sammy walks in, and 9 times out of 10 - if not 99 out of 100 - his first reaction to it, what comes out of his mouth as he kind of scat sings along with it, generally ends up being the song.
With this record, we spent a little more time asking Sammy to re-write stuff. Like, 'Don't Tell Me (What Love Can Do)' was originally 'What Love Can Do.' The whole slant of the song was one of universal love - that it can cure all and fix all, and the planet will be all right. Well, you hear so many people talking about it. I don't wanna hear it. Show me. I'm sick and tired of people telling me this shit. Then again, that's not the focus of the record, it's just one song. In it, we're saying 'Don't tell me this shit,' but (sequenced) right before this is a song called 'Can't Stop Loving You'.
Alex Van Halen: The (songs are) actually written in two pieces; first the music by itself. If it holds up as a song, then you have a damn good basis to put lyrics over. Sammy walks in, and 9 times out of 10 - if not 99 out of 100 - his first reaction to it, what comes out of his mouth as he kind of scat sings along with it, generally ends up being the song.
With this record, we spent a little more time asking Sammy to re-write stuff. Like, 'Don't Tell Me (What Love Can Do)' was originally 'What Love Can Do.' The whole slant of the song was one of universal love - that it can cure all and fix all, and the planet will be all right. Well, you hear so many people talking about it. I don't wanna hear it. Show me. I'm sick and tired of people telling me this shit. Then again, that's not the focus of the record, it's just one song. In it, we're saying 'Don't tell me this shit,' but (sequenced) right before this is a song called 'Can't Stop Loving You'.